After the most successful season in program history, the Miami Hurricanes may lose another key player.
Forward Norchad Omier entered the NBA draft, he announced on social media on Monday. He is the third Miami player to enter the draft, along with starting guards Isaiah Wong and Jordan Miller.
“After dreaming of becoming a Miami Hurricane for years, the opportunity to be one has exceeded anything I could have possibly expected,” Omier wrote in an image he posted on social media. “I love not only being part of the Miami basketball team, but also being a student-athlete at the U.”
Unlike Wong, however, Omier will retain his college eligibility, allowing him to rejoin the team for the 2023-24 season if he chooses. Miller does not have any years of eligibility remaining.
Omier played one season with the Hurricanes, transferring from Arkansas State in the offseason. He averaged 13.1 points and 10 rebounds in his one season in Coral Gables.
Omier suffered an ankle injury against Duke in the ACC Tournament but returned for the Hurricanes’ NCAA Tournament run, averaging 10 points and 12 rebounds as Miami reached the Final Four for the first time in school history.
If Omier does not return to school, Miami will need to find someone to replace his presence in the front court. Forward Anthony Walker entered the transfer portal, as did freshman center Favour Aire and forwards Danilo Jovanovich and Thomas Oosterbroek. The Hurricanes signed freshman center Michael Nwoko.
The Hurricanes are also waiting to see if starting guards Nijel Pack and Wooga Poplar enter the draft, though coach Jim Larrañaga previously said he expects them to return.
“I’m counting on them for next year,” Larrañaga said of Pack, Poplar and Omier. “Conversations with players today — you can’t predict anything. I think those guys are planning to come back, but who the heck knows in today’s college basketball world?”
()
