Former Oklahoma State Star Invited to NBA Draft Combine

One of Oklahoma State’s former stars could be making the leap to the next level.

Over the past several years, OSU has been in a rough spot. With only one NCAA Tournament appearance in the past eight seasons, the Cowboys have been looking to get back to national relevancy but haven’t found the right combination for success.

Despite the losing seasons and overall struggles that have defined the OSU program over the past near-decade, there have still been some impressive players to come through Stillwater. Among those players is Javon Small, who played just one season for the Cowboys in 2023-24.

As the leading scorer on a 12-20 squad, Small has never earned much recognition for his impressive play that season. While his scoring ability was often not enough to change the outcome of a game, his scoring punch was critical to keeping OSU competitive against much better opponents.

While Small will simply be remembered as a one-year star who played for the Cowboys during Mike Boynton’s final season as head coach, he could soon join a short list of former OSU players. Since Boynton took over in 2017-18, OSU has sent only three players to the NBA, with Cade Cunningham and Lindy Waters III still in the league, and Cameron McGriff playing for about a week in the league in 2021-22.

However, Small could be the next OSU player to make the leap to the NBA. After a successful season playing at West Virginia, Small earned an invite to the NBA Draft Combine.

The combine is one of the most important events late in the draft cycle and can have immense influence on where a player will end up. While Small won’t be a first-round pick, he can use this as an opportunity to improve his stock to get selected in the second round or establish himself as a premier undrafted free agent.

Before coming to OSU, Small played a couple of solid years at East Carolina. Across four years and three stops, Small has shown he can make a significant impact at the college level, and his time in Stillwater was an important chapter in his potential journey to the NBA.