NBA Draft Latest: French players, UConn stars and hometown standout among first-round picks

NEW YORK (AP) — The latest from the first round Wednesday at the NBA draft:

AJ Johnson wasn’t invited to the NBA draft green room. He showed up as a fan, sat in the crowd -- and made his way to the stage anyway.

Johnson was the No. 23 pick by the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday night. The 6-foot-4 guard had a great NBA Draft Combine and opened plenty of eyes.

He spent last season playing in Australia, and now his development will continue as part of the Bucks.

Turns out, the New York Knicks will have some players who didn’t go to Villanova. And France’s huge night at the NBA draft continues.

French forward Pacome Dadiet was taken by the Knicks with the No. 25 selection. The 18-year-old averaged 6.8 points in Germany’s top league last season.

The Knicks added Dadiet one night after getting Mikal Bridges in a trade with Brooklyn. The Villanova alum will join a lineup that already included fellow Wildcats Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart and Donte DiVincenzo.

Stephon Castle wore a suit that matched the black-and-silver colors of the San Antonio Spurs, who drafted him at No. 4 overall.

The former UConn star said it wasn’t planned.

“It wasn’t intentional. But I guess it all really worked out. I guess I kind of manifested it to happen for me,” Castle said.

He also wore a chain with his initials and a large castle at the base to honor his last name.

UConn coach Dan Hurley spoke often about how he recruited NBA lottery picks during the Huskies’ run to back-to-back national titles.

Two UConn players went in the top seven of this year’s draft. Stephon Castle was picked No. 4 by San Antonio and Donovan Clingan went to Portland at No. 7.

“Everybody won. We won championships, they won their dream,” Hurley said on ESPN.

There are now two nations that have seen three of its native players taken in the top 10 spots of any NBA draft.

One is the United States.

The other is France -- which had three in the top six of this NBA draft, with Zaccharie Risacher going No. 1, Alex Sarr going No. 2 and Tidjane Salaun going No. 6.

It is a historic event for the French, who have seen both the quality and popularity of basketball soar in recent years. France will be considered a gold-medal possibility at the Paris Games this summer as well.

The run on French stars continues, with three now selected in the first six spots of the NBA draft.

Tidjane Salaun goes No. 6 to Charlotte, which grabbed the 6-foot-9 forward with good range from deep and good touch around the basket.

The Portland Trail Blazers acquired forward Deni Avdija from the Washington Wizards for guard Malcolm Brogdon and the 14th pick tonight and a first-round pick in 2029, according to a person familiar with the deal. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the trade had not been announced.

Welcome home, Matas Buzelis. You are a Chicago Bull.

The Bulls took the G League Ignite forward with the 11th overall pick Wednesday night. He’s a Lithuanian kid -- his mother Kristina and father Aidas both played pro ball there -- but he was born in Chicago after his parents moved to the U.S. and settled in the Windy City.

Buzelis averaged 14.1 points for the Ignite last season.

Another year, another French prospect goes No. 1 in the NBA draft. Last year, it was Victor Wembanyama to San Antonio and this year, it’s Zaccharie Risacher to Atlanta.

The 6-foot-9 wing technically was a teammate of Wembanyama in France during in the 2021-22 season -- though they never appeared in a league game there together.

But even then, Wemby was convinced that Risacher would be a star. And now we wait to see what the Hawks do next: Trading Trae Young, trading Dejounte Murray, or blowing it up completely by trading both and starting over all seem like options.

Bonjour, and bonjour.

Alex Sarr going No. 2 overall to Washington gives France a 1-2 sweep of the top picks, after Zaccharie Risacher went No. 1 to Atlanta.

Only 19, Sarr has seen the world already: the 7-footer born in France, and he’s played for Overtime Elite, Real Madrid and the Perth Wildcats in Australia.

Oh, brother! Cody Williams, you have bragging rights now.

He was picked 10th by the Utah Jazz on Wednesday night -- going two spots ahead of where his brother Jalen Williams was taken by the Oklahoma City Thunder two years ago.

Cody Williams famously said he hadn’t seen snow before his one and only college season at Colorado. Hope he kept some gloves: it gets cold in Utah, too.

The numbers tell us that rookies need time.

The learning process for the class of NBA freshmen starts with the draft, and don’t expect much right away when next season starts.

Consider the 2023 draft class. Only two members of that group averaged 10 points per game in October. By April, that number was up to 14. Clearly, as the season went on, the picks were getting more comfortable.

The only 2023 draft picks who averaged at least 10 points in every month last season were Victor Wembanyama and Brandon Miller.

Donovan Clingan brought his family with him to the NBA draft as part of his sharp draft-night suit.

Clingan wore a shiny gray suit with a black bow tie. The lining of his jacket was decorated with a montage of pictures of his family.

Clingan is expected to be one of the top picks of the draft. The 7-foot-2, 280-pounder was a huge part of UConn’s back-to-back national titles. He’s a load for opponents inside at both ends of the floor.

When Kentucky’s Reed Sheppard arrived for the NBA draft, he was asked which former Wildcat he’s most looking forward to playing against in the NBA. His answer: Devin Booker.

“I remember watching him when I was a little kid,” Sheppard, “and he’s kind of one my favorite players to watch right now so it would pretty cool playing against him.”

Booker is 27 years old. Yes, Sheppard said he watched Booker as a “little kid.” And it adds up. Booker played his lone season for Kentucky in 2014-15, and Sheppard just turned 20 on Monday.

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UConn men's basketball coach Dan Hurley watches the first round of the NBA basketball draft, Wednesday, June 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)

Donovan Clingan poses for a photo on the red carpet before the NBA basketball draft, Wednesday, June 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)

Potential first-round draft picks stand together for a photo at Barclays Center before the NBA basketball draft, Wednesday, June 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)

Zaccharie Risacher, second from left, and Alex Sarr, fourth from left, both of France, stand on stage with, from left, Ron Holland, Rob Dillingham, Reed Sheppard and Dalton Knecht before the NBA basketball draft, Wednesday, June 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)

Alex Sarr, right, greets NBA commissioner Adam Silver after being selected as the second pick in the NBA basketball draft during the first round by the Washington Wizards, Wednesday, June 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)

Zaccharie Risacher, right, greets NBA commissioner Adam Silver after being selected as the first overall pick by the Atlanta Hawks in the first round of the NBA basketball draft, Wednesday, June 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)

Tidjane Salaun hugs family and friends after being selected by the Charlotte Hornets as the sixth pick during the first round of the NBA basketball draft, Wednesday, June 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)

Stephon Castle reacts after being selected by the San Antonio Spurs as the fourth pick in the first round of the NBA basketball draft, Wednesday, June 26, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Tropical Storm Beryl chugged toward the southeast Caribbean on Saturday and could strengthen into the year's first hurricane before reaching Barbados late Sunday.

A hurricane watch was issued for Barbados as the island's meteorological service warned of flash flooding and power outages. Beryl is expected to strengthen into a Category 2 storm before reaching Barbados, with its center forecast to pass some 26 miles (45 kilometers) south of the island, said Sabu Best, the meteorological service's director.

On Saturday, Beryl was located about 975 miles (1,570 kilometers) east-southeast of Barbados, with maximum sustained winds of 60 mph (95 kph). It was moving west at 21 mph (33 kph).

“We need to be ready,” Barbadian Prime Minister Mia Mottley said in a public address late Friday. “You and I know when these things happen, it is better to plan for the worst and pray for the best.”

She noted that thousands of people are in Barbados for the Twenty20 World Cup cricket final, with India and South Africa playing in the capital, Bridgetown, on Saturday.

Beryl is the second named storm in what is predicted to be a busy hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to Nov. 30 in the Atlantic. Earlier this month, Tropical Storm Alberto came ashore in northeast Mexico with heavy rains that resulted in four deaths.

“The development of a tropical storm this far east in the tropical Atlantic is uncommon, though not unprecedented,” wrote Michael Lowry, a Florida-based hurricane expert, in a forecast. “Only five named storms on record have formed in the tropical Atlantic east of the Caribbean.”

Of those, only one hurricane of record has formed east of the Caribbean in June, he added.

Mark Spence, manager of a hostel in Barbados, said in a phone interview that he was calm about the approaching storm.

“It’s the season. You can get a storm any time,” he said. “I’m always prepared. I always have enough food in my house.”

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicts the 2024 hurricane season is likely to be well above average, with between 17 and 25 named storms. The forecast calls for as many as 13 hurricanes and four major hurricanes.

An average Atlantic hurricane season produces 14 named storms, seven of them hurricanes and three major hurricanes.

Beryl is expected to drop up to 6 inches (15 centimeters) of rain in Barbados and nearby islands, and a high surf warning of waves up to 13 feet (4 meters) was in effect.

The storm is approaching the southeast Caribbean just days after the twin-island nation of Trinidad and Tobago reported major flooding in the capital of Port-of-Spain as a result of an unrelated weather event.

Meanwhile, a no-name storm earlier this June dumped more than 20 inches (50 centimeters) of rain on parts of South Florida, stranding numerous motorists on flooded streets and pushing water into some homes in low-lying areas.

This National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration satellite image taken at 3:10am GMT shows tropical storm Beryl, lower center right, as it strengthens over the Atlantic Ocean on Saturday, June 29, 2024. The storm could strengthen into the year's first hurricane before it reaches the Caribbean Sea early next week. (NOAA via AP)