5 UCLA Bruins' players to watch out for in the 2023 NBA Draft: Jaime Jaquez Jr., Jaylen Clark, Amari Bailey, and more

The UCLA Bruins could be set for a bumper number of players who get drafted on Thursday. Four of their players were invited to the NBA draft combine in Chicago in mid-May: Amari Bailey, Jaylen Clark, Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Adem Bona.

While UCLA's Tyger Campbell wasn't invited, he attended the G League Elite camp instead. He declared for the draft and is thought to either be a late second-round pick or go undrafted.

The UCLA Bruins had a decent year but were eliminated by the Gonzaga Bulldogs in the NCAA tournament's Sweet 16. At some point, it looked like their roster would be decimated by the departures but there was good news in the offing.

Pac-12 Freshman of the Year Adem Bona withdrew his name from the draft and will go back to UCLA for another year before he feels he's ready.

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NBA Cody

@NBACody12

Amari Bailey showed out in 6 games after the Jaylen Clark injury for UCLA averaging 17.3 ppg, 4.8 reb, 3 ast on 56.1 fg%/46.7 3pt%/82.1 ft%. Higher pressure tournament games for pac12 and ncaa, losing a heartbreaker in sweet 16 after Amari hit go ahead 3 with 12 seconds left.

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Amari Bailey showed out in 6 games after the Jaylen Clark injury for UCLA averaging 17.3 ppg, 4.8 reb, 3 ast on 56.1 fg%/46.7 3pt%/82.1 ft%. Higher pressure tournament games for pac12 and ncaa, losing a heartbreaker in sweet 16 after Amari hit go ahead 3 with 12 seconds left. https://t.co/NIMCXk8bkf

Analyzing UCLA's bumper harvest

Not many college programs get to have more than one player drafted, let alone possibly four, showing the strength of the UCLA program.

Jaylen Clark has been dubbed the best perimeter defender of this draft class. He has quick feet, is extremly fast and athletic and has an eye for a pass when in transition. He has been mocked to go mid or late second round mostly due to his Achilles tendon injury.

Clark was the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year for a reason. He causes lots of turnovers without fouling. He always has an eye out for the rebound and can guard several different positions.

Amari Bailey stepped up spectacularly when Jaylen Clark got injured and missed six games. His average end product shot up. He averaged 17.3 points, 3.0 assists and 4.8 rebounds.

Jaime Jaquez Jr. already received a green room invite for this year's draft allowing him to attend with his family. He was the reigning Pac-12 Player of the Year mostly due to his 17.8 ppg and 8.2 rpg.

Jaquez has quick feet and a more than a decent first step. He's being mocked to go mid to late first round where observers believe that he would be a steal.

Tyger Campbell's physicality or lack of it seems to be counting against him in the 2023 draft class. There are concerns about his defense and how he would handle bigger opponents since he stands at 5-11.

In any case, he didn't do his prospects any harm when he was invited to the G League Elite Camp to compete in front of scouts from both leagues. He averaged 5.0 apg and 13.4 ppg this season.

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