The list of players invited to the annual NBA Draft combine was revealed this past weekend and includes Nevada star guard Kobe Sanders.
In his lone season at Nevada in 2024-25, Sanders earned All-Mountain West third team honors. The 6-foot-9 Sanders averaged 16 points, five assists and four rebounds per game. He was fourth in the conference in assist percentage while also finishing in the top 10 in points, field goal percentage and free throw percentage.
Sanders’ growth spurt in college and continued development has put himself on the radar of pro teams, leading to his recent combine invite. Sanders hit the 30-point mark in games against Boise State and UNLV this past season and dished out seven assists or more in six games.
He joins Colorado State star Nique Clifford and San Diego State standout Miles Byrd as the three members of Mountain West teams to be invited to this year’s combine. The combine will take place in Chicago from May 11-18 with the NBA Draft set for June 25 from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
Coming out of Christian High School in El Cajon as part of the 2020 recruiting class, Sanders was 6-foot-5. He averaged 17 points, five rebounds, four assists and two steals as a senior but largely went overlooked by bigger west coast schools. He enrolled at Cal Poly and played in 20 games as a true freshman, starting eight. Sanders started 34 games between his sophomore and junior seasons, averaging six points and eight points, respectively.
He broke out for the Mustangs as a junior, averaging 20 points, four rebounds and three assists per game while starting 29 games. Sanders was an efficient scorer, leading the Big West Conference in free throws while finishing fourth in field goal percentage.
Nevada last had a player drafted to the NBA in 2020 when Jalen Harris went to the Toronto Raptors with pick No. 59. Cody Martin was drafted in 2019 with pick No. 36 and recently completed his sixth NBA season while playing with the Phoenix Suns. The Wolfpack have had three first round picks in program history. Kirk Snyder (2004), JaVale McGee (2008) and Luke Babbitt (2010).
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