Washington State wing Cedric Coward abandons Duke to choose to stay in the 2025 NBA Draft

Cedric Coward told ESPN that he will retain his name in the 2025 NBA draft and will give up the chance to play at Duke next season. Coward said: "This is the best opportunity for me to realize my NBA dream and everything is moving in the right direction now."

21-year-old Coward is a senior who is 6-7 (2 meters 01) and has a 7-2 wingspan. He has spent the past season at Washington State, but after only six games after being reimbursed due to a shoulder injury, he was forced to rest in red shirts. He averaged 17.7 points, 7.0 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.7 blocks in his senior season, and shot 40% from three-pointers.

Coward started his college career in 2021 with Willamette, a third-tier team, and won Northwest Newcomer of the Year honors in his freshman season. He then transferred to Division 1 team Eastern Washington, where he played for two seasons under head coach David Riley and was selected for the first team of the Big Sky League in 2024. When Riley was appointed head coach of Washington State, Coward followed him to Washington State.

Coward entered the NCAA transfer market during the offseason and announced after an official visit in late April that he would transfer to Duke University, rejecting interest from universities such as Alabama, Kansas, Washington and Florida. But after a great performance in the Chicago joint trial, Coward's draft market rose to the first round, which eventually led to his decision to stay in the draft, although he had never played a game for Duke.

Coward, who is predicted to be No. 30 in ESPN's latest mock draft, will receive a full confrontational contact event on June 14. He said he had visited two NBA teams for one-on-one trials, namely the Boston Celtics and the Oklahoma City Thunder.