With four of its five starters already gone,
Steve Alford’s roster has three more players whom have declared
for the 2017 NBA Draft. Freshman Ike Anigbogu, Sophomore Aaron
Holiday and Junior Thomas Welsh have all put their names into the
prospect list, though, they haven’t hired an agent as of yet,
giving them the opportunity to withdraw before the May 24th
deadline.

Anigbogu’s decision means all three of Alford’s
2016 class have decided to enter the draft, with some executives
at the professional ranks believing he could be selected in the
early to mid 20s. The combination of athleticism and strength has
some placing his potential as an elite defender and rebounder at
the next level. For the campaign, Anigbogu appeared in 29 games,
averaging 13 minutes a night. He was able to throw in 4.7 points
on 56.4% shooting from the field, while grabbing four boards and
swatting away 1.2 shots a night. DraftExpress
has Anigbogu going 19th to the Hawks, while MyNBADraft
has him going to Toronto with the 24th selection.

Holiday and Welsh, on the flipside, aren’t
projected by any mocks to be selected, which could change with
some solid showings during combines and workouts. NBADraft.net
has Holiday at 61st, missing the cut by a single slot while Welsh
is sitting way back at 85, making the declaration seem like an
opportunity for the two to get feedback from NBA Scouts along
with some good work-outs and come back for another season in
Westwood.

After starting his freshman campaign, Holiday
was the sixth man, and excelled in the role, scoring over a dozen
points a night while dishing out 4.4 assists and notching just
over a steal. Shot well, hitting 48.5% of his field goal
attempts, including 41.1% from behind the arc. The youngest of
the Holiday brothers, Aaron could sneak into draft discussions,
though, ultimately, I see him returning for a Junior campaign.

Welsh continued to show that he had among the
softest touches in the nation among big men, as the mid-range
jumper seemed to be as guaranteed as a dunk or lay-up for most
players. Welsh averaged 25.1 minutes a night, scoring 10.8 while
grabbing 8.7 rebounds and shooting 58.5% from the field. He also
knocked down 89.4% of his free throw-attempts, just further
solidifying his jumper.

In the scenario that the Bruins end up without
any player returning, they would have lost seven of the eight-man
rotation and would rely on a six-man recruiting class to combine
with Gyorgy Golomon and the returns of redshirt sophomores,
Prince Ali and Alex Olesinski as they aim to bring hardware back
to Westwood.