Plenty has changed in one year for Keaton Wagler
May 16—CHICAGO — Keaton Wagler's biggest concern a year ago at this time was getting ready for his party after graduating from Shawnee Mission Northwest High School. He also couldn't escape a bit of nervousness about his impending move to Champaign, and the start of his college basketball career was also on his mind. Wagler knew what most people thought as he made the move from two-time state champion out of the Kansas City suburbs to the Big Ten.
That the best-case scenario would see him play a small role for Illinois — if at all — on a team that returned Kylan Boswell, landed Andrej Stojakovic out of the transfer portal and brought a 21-year-old Serbian point guard on board in Mihailo Petrovic. The reality a year later? Wagler was drastically under-recruited and underestimated.
Few outside the state of Kansas or Champaign knew his name last May. Now, he's a projected lottery pick — potentially even a top-five pick — in the 2026 NBA draft. "A year ago, I didn't think this is where I would be," Wagler said Wednesday at the NBA draft combine in Chicago.
"I was probably nervous about going to Illinois and trying to get a spot. It's definitely surreal. I'm definitely blessed.
This doesn't happen to a lot of people — getting here and being projected as high as I am. "Definitely a crazy year. Unexpected for sure.
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