Diamond Stone's Dad Denies Report Terps Star Is Entering 2016 NBA Draft

Don’t give up hope of a Diamond Stone return just yet, Maryland fans.

Chris Haynes of Cleveland.com cited sources on Monday and said the Terrapins center would declare for the 2016 NBA draft.

However, Stone’s father, Bob, had other ideas in comments he made to Jeff Ermann of 247Sports’ Inside Maryland Sports: “I don't know anybody in Cleveland. I don't know what they're talking about. ... There's a lot of people out there who like to talk, but we haven't told anybody anything. We're still evaluating.”

Haynes did say Stone was “holding on hiring [an] agent,” which would give the big man the option to return to Maryland. Jonas Shaffer of the Baltimore Sun added Stone could return to the Terrapins as long as he withdraws his name from draft consideration by June 13 (the draft is June 23).

Still, that doesn’t seem likely, given this update from Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports:

Stone always seemed destined for the NBA when he signed with Maryland before the 2015-16 season as a 5-star recruit, per 247Sports’ composite rankings. He was an immensely talented prospect who would get the chance to demonstrate his skill set on a national stage on one of the Big Ten’s best teams.

However, he was inconsistent as a freshman and played only 22.6 minutes per game. He also grabbed a mere 5.4 rebounds per contest despite being 6’11” and having the physique of someone who should be a force down low. Stone also frustrated Maryland fans when he scored a meager five points and notched four rebounds in his team’s NCAA tournament loss to Kansas.

Still, Stone is a scoring threat who posted 12.5 points per game in his freshman season and showed soft touch at the line, converting on 76.1 percent of his free-throw attempts. He poured in 39 points in a December victory over Penn State, which will catch the eyes of NBA scouts if they go back over the film.

DraftExpress provided a video scouting report of Stone's strengths before the 2015-16 campaign:

Despite his inconsistency, losing Stone after only one season would be a difficult setback for Maryland. Ryan Connors and Alex Kirshner of SB Nation’s Testudo Times noted sophomore Melo Trimble and junior Robert Carter are also “facing the same decision as Stone.”

Trimble, Stone and Carter were Maryland’s top three scorers this season, which means the Terrapins would be staring at a rebuild if all three bolt for the draft after the team's Sweet 16 appearance.

As for Stone, DraftExpress projected him as the No. 23 pick to the Atlanta Hawks in its March 27 mock draft. Some expected he would be a future top-10 pick when he arrived on campus as a highly regarded prospect, but he will have an opportunity to bolster his stock at the NBA Draft Combine.

Although Stone’s father wasn’t ready to declare his son ready for the draft, he is a potential first-round talent who appears to be moving on from his Maryland career after one season.