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Trevor Lacey goes undrafted, says he's fine with choice to turn pro

Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

Sixty players were taken in the NBA Draft on Thursday night, but Trevor Lacey was not among them. That should come as little surprise, and Lacey would be the first to tell you that his odds weren't great, considering his age. Despite the fact that Lacey went undrafted, his decision to turn pro makes sense.

As he's already explained thoroughly, his age is working against him--he'll turn 24 this year, which is pretty ancient by NBA standards for an amateur prospect. Almost half of the first round picks this year were freshmen, plus some elite, young foreign talent. And a lot of teams spend the second round prospecting on young guys from overseas; guys they can stash and watch develop with little risk.

Another good college season probably wouldn't merit Lacey much credit, since he'd get dismissed for beating players much younger than him. Not enough credit to get him into the first round--not for a dude who'd be going on 25 as a rookie.

There are gonna be questions, of course. Heck, I opened up a "Trevor Lacey" column on Twitter and quickly did one of these:

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Probably sensing what's coming in the near term, Lacey tweeted shortly after the draft ended that he still felt like he made the right decision. And Lennard Freeman offered some support for his former teammate.

Lacey is more polished than a lot of the guys who actually were drafted, but sometimes your circumstances work against you, and sometimes "go back to school" is not the answer.

So what's next for Lacey? Most likely, he'll wind up playing summer league for an NBA team, then hope his performance there warrants a shot at a roster spot in training camp. If that doesn't work out for him, he'll have numerous opportunities overseas.