McRoberts To Stay In NBA Draft

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) _ Josh McRoberts has signed with an agent and is staying in the NBA draft, the agent said Tuesday. <br/><br/>Bob Myers, an agent with the Wasserman Media Group in Los Angeles, told The

Tuesday, June 12th 2007, 4:30 pm

By: News On 6

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) _ Josh McRoberts has signed with an agent and is staying in the NBA draft, the agent said Tuesday.

Bob Myers, an agent with the Wasserman Media Group in Los Angeles, told The Associated Press on Tuesday that he is representing the former Duke star who has worked out for three teams in the past week in preparation for the June 28 draft.

It wasn't much of a surprise that the 6-foot-10 power forward kept his name in the pool of draft-eligible players. Had he not signed with an agent, he could have withdrawn from the draft at any time before June 18 and returned to Duke.

He announced in March that he was leaving school early, and coach Mike Krzyzewski said he supported McRoberts' decision because ``it is time for him to move on to the next level.''

Since then, Myers said McRoberts has been training with former NBA forward Billy Owens and with several current players, and has worked out for the New Jersey Nets, Washington Wizards and Chicago Bulls.

Several mock drafts online have McRoberts as a mid-first round selection in one of the deepest drafts in years. Myers said McRoberts could be picked anywhere from ninth to 18th.

``It's tougher now. An agent (usually) has a better sense at this stage,'' Myers said.

McRoberts averaged 13 points and a team-leading 7.9 rebounds for the Blue Devils, who finished 22-11 and lost to Virginia Commonwealth in the first round of the NCAA tournament. McRoberts scored a career-high 22 points in that game.

He finished second on the team with 114 assists and was the only player in the nation to average at least 10.0 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.5 blocks and 3.5 assists.

Even though McRoberts has left Duke, he remains connected through his agent to two ex-teammates. J.J. Redick and Shelden Williams are represented by Arn Tellem, president of WMG's management division.