Justin Champagnie could be 1st Pitt player drafted by NBA team since 2014

These are the moments that drove Justin Champagnie from a place he loves.

The NBA Draft is Thursday night, and the former Pitt sophomore forward is among those players under serious consideration to be one of the 60 who are chosen. The 30-team NBA conducts only two rounds.

If he is selected, Champagnie will be the first player since 2014 to be drafted after finishing his collegiate career at Pitt. Lamar Patterson went 48th to the Milwaukee Bucks and was traded to the Atlanta Hawks. Our Lady of Sacred Heart graduate Cam Johnson, who transferred from Pitt to North Carolina, was picked 11th overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves and traded to the Phoenix Suns in 2019.

Champagnie, 20, could have returned to Pitt for his junior season and been its best player, respected leader and a candidate for ACC Player of the Year. He led the ACC in rebounding (11 per game) at 6-foot-5¾ (his height at the NBA Combine) and finished second in scoring (18) last season, his second with the Panthers. He played well at the Combine last month, totaling 28 points, with 20 rebounds, in his first two games.

Champagnie’s presence would have increased Pitt’s hopes to finish in the top half of the ACC for the first time since Patterson’s final season.

Plus, it would have given the Panthers recognition as the home of one of the nation’s best players. Perception means everything in college athletics in terms of a strong TV profile and in recruiting.

Yet Pitt coach Jeff Capel not only gave Champagnie his blessing but guided him along the process of determining what was best for his former player.

“I spoke to Capel, I want to say, every day in those weeks leading up to (the decision),” said Champagnie earlier this month in a conference call with reporters. “I spoke to my agent (Jeff Ramasar of Life Sports agency in Los Angeles) as well. They both felt I had a good chance to make my dreams come true. I just ran with it, really, and just believe in myself and believed in the work I put in.”

He said teams asked him if he had considered transferring from Pitt if he decided to stay in school. Champagnie said the thought never crossed his mind.

“I would never leave. This is my home,” he said. “I love Pitt. Pitt was the best two years of my life.”

In the months after deciding to turn pro, Champagnie visited, worked out for and was interviewed by 11 NBA teams, he said. He also had other visits planned in the ensuing days.

He is confident he will be among those selected Thursday, mentioning one team he declined to identify all but promised he would be one of their choices.

Mock drafts posted Wednesday by ESPN, Sports Illustrated and Bleacher Report did not include Champagnie among their 60 selections. Nonetheless, Sports Illustrated ranked him 52nd among its top 80 prospects (not based on fit). In an earlier mock draft released Monday, SI NBA analyst Jeremy Woo projected Champagnie, a Brooklyn, N.Y., native, going 58th to his hometown New York Knicks. ESPN ranked him 69th among 100 prospects.

Woo wrote Champagnie “is an unconventional prospect and undersized for his role by NBA standards, but his motor and productivity are pretty appealing and give him a chance to help a team at some point.

“He struggled a bit this season when defenses keyed on him heavily, but he was exceptionally productive at Pitt and only just turned 20. He’s an excellent rebounder, gets off the floor quickly, plays hard and finds ways to produce without needing to be fed touches. There’s reason for optimism that he’ll be a viable floor spacer and potentially transition into more of a wing role in the NBA.

“Defensively, there’s some debate about how he fits, with some scouts viewing him as a switchable piece and others concerned about his lack of size. It may take a little creativity to maximize his output, but Champagnie could work as a versatile piece in smaller lineups.”

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