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Report: Florida’s Devin Robinson lands with Washington Wizards for NBA Summer League

Robinson could ultimately join fellow former Gator Bradley Beal in the nation’s capital.

By Andy Hutchins
NCAA Basketball: NCAA Tournament-First Round-Florida vs East Tennessee State Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

After going undrafted in Thursday’s 2017 NBA Draft, it didn’t take long for former Florida Gators star Devin Robinson to find a home. The rangy forward has reportedly accepted an NBA Summer League invite from the Washington Wizards, with The Gainesville Sun’s Kevin Brockway and Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic both reporting as much.

Robinson went undrafted on Thursday despite being presumed to be a second-round pick by many when he announced he would forgo his senior season of eligibility by signing with an agent and remaining in the 2017 NBA Draft. It is likely that concerns about his ability to create for himself and possibly his defense led him to slip off every team’s draft board.

But Robinson could also function as the Wizards’ de facto second-round draft pick. The team had just one pick in the 2017 NBA Draft, but swapped that No. 52 selection to the New Orleans Pelicans for guard Tim Frazier. If he can beat out

Choosing to bring Robinson in as a Summer League invitee — and perhaps an undrafted free agent instead of a second-round pick — would make him somewhat cheaper for Washington. And though making an NBA team as an undrafted free agent is a tough path to walk, this route likely means that Robinson chose the Wizards as much as they chose him.

Robinson may find it challenging to make the Wizards’ regular-season roster. The team has a slew of big wing/stretch forward options, from frequent starters Kelly Oubre and Otto Porter to reserve Sheldon McClellan, and has most of its roster under contract for the 2017-18 season already. Plus, Washington has also picked up former Villanova Wildcats hero Kris Jenkins, another guard/forward combo, as an undrafted free agent.

It’s an uphill road for Robinson, to be sure, but he can take heart that former teammate Dorian Finney-Smith flourished after going undrafted in 2016, ending up as a key reserve for the Dallas Mavericks.

And if he does catch on with the Wizards, he’ll obviously get a chance to play with former Florida great Bradley Beal, the team’s starting shooting guard.