Bears in High Demand
Ja’Kobe Walter and Yves Missi heard their names called in the first round of the 2024 NBA Draft, marking the first time in program history two Bears were selected in the first round of the same draft.
Taken 19th overall by the Portland Trail Blazers, Walter gave BU its fourth-straight top-20 pick, one of two schools in the nation to boast that distinction, and the only institution with a top-19 pick in four straight drafts. Two picks later at No. 21, Missi was taken by the New Orleans Pelicans, making Baylor one of three schools to have multiple selections in the first round of the 2024 NBA draft.
Baylor has 13 picks in the last 12 drafts, the most by any team in the State of Texas. BU was the only Texas school and only Big 12 school to have a player drafted on night one of the draft.
The University has had 14 NBA Draft picks in the Scott Drew era — Ekpe Udoh (No. 6 in 2010), Perry Jones III (No. 28 in 2012), Quincy Acy (No. 37 in 2012), Quincy Miller (No. 38 in 2012), Pierre Jackson (No. 42 in 2014), Cory Jefferson (No. 60 in 2014), Taurean Prince (No. 12 in 2016), Davion Mitchell (No. 9 in 2021), Jared Butler (No. 40 in 2021), Jeremy Sochan (No. 9 in 2022), Kendall Brown (No. 48 in 2022), Keyonte George (No. 16 in 2023), Ja’Kobe Walter (No. 19 in 2024) and Yves Missi (No. 21 in 2024).
“Ja’Kobe is somebody that will be extremely coachable and hardworking,” said Baylor Head Coach Scott Drew of Walter in a post-draft interview. “At the same time, he has the intangibles you can’t coach, and that is the desire to win, his competitiveness, being a great teammate.”
Of Missi, Drew said when he joined Baylor as a recruit, “We saw that he was an extremely hard worker, coachable, loyal, humble. He was also a tremendous student. For him, it’s about getting better every day, helping the team win, listening to coaches. That’s everything you want.”
Joining Walter and Missi in the league are two former Baylor teammates who each signed two-way prospect contracts: Jalen Bridges, signing with the Phoenix Suns, and RayJ Dennis, who signed with the Los Angeles Clippers.