Hurricanes’ Jordan Miller, Isaiah Wong hoping to hear names called in NBA Draft

When Isaiah Wong arrived at Miami in 2019, the Hurricanes were in a rough spot.

The program was still reeling following an FBI investigation into UM and several other basketball programs around the nation for corruption. Miami had finished 14-18 in 2018-19, and Wong’s first two seasons would also end with sub-.500 records.

But before he left Coral Gables, Wong helped Miami reach heights never before achieved at UM. Now he and teammate Jordan Miller are hoping to bring that experience to potential NBA suitors in Thursday’s draft. Both guards are expected to be late second-round picks, according to several mock drafts.

“(Wong is) certainly one of the greatest basketball players of all time in University of Miami history,” UM coach Jim Larrañaga said in April. “I think if you ask me, it’s about his tremendous, consistent work ethic. I think he set a standard for everybody to emulate. He’s just a really hard-working guy.”

Miller and Wong are both looking to become the first Hurricanes player picked in the draft since Dewan Hernandez was drafted in 2019. If they are both selected, it will be just the fourth time in program history that two players were picked in the same draft — the last time that happened was when Bruce Brown and Lonnie Walker IV were drafted in 2018.

Wong spent four years with the Hurricanes, scoring the fourth-most points in program history (1,866). He averaged 14.1 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.2 assists over his career.

Wong’s initial success at UM came when the program was struggling. He averaged a career-high 17.1 points per game in 2020-21 as the Hurricanes posted a 10-17 record.

But as the team got stronger around him, he continued to play a major factor. His points per game fell to 15.3 in 2021-22, but he helped take the Hurricanes to their first trip to the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight. Miami lost to eventual national champion Kansas, and Wong considered leaving for the NBA.

“When the NBA scouts that I talk to look at (Wong), they really see a guy who’s a high-octane scorer, who really scored at the college level really well,” Larrañaga said. “I know in some of his workouts in previous years, they’ve encouraged him to expand his range, which he’s done. He’s now, I think, a very good three-point shooter.”

Wong ultimately decided to return for his fourth season, and he and the Hurricanes were even better. Wong averaged 16.2 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.2 assists, earning ACC Player of the Year honors.

“I feel like I’ve been through everything,” Wong said in April. “The struggles, the pains, the mental toughness and I feel like just from what I’ve been through, … and I feel like it’s just been a process to a great story.”

Wong helped the Hurricanes reach the Final Four before losing to eventual national champion UConn.

“You can’t really accomplish much more as a college basketball player than Isaiah Wong did,” Larrañaga said. “So I’m very, very happy for him.”

Miller did not spend his whole career with the Hurricanes, transferring to Miami after three seasons at George Mason. He was a strong player for the Patriots, but his scoring dipped when he arrived at UM. He averaged 10 points with 5.9 rebounds in 2021-22.

But in his final college season, he grew into one of the top players in the ACC, averaging 15.3 points with 6.2 rebounds. He excelled in the postseason, highlighting the Hurricanes’ tournament run with a 27-point game where he made all 20 of his shot attempts against Texas in the Elite Eight (7 for 7 from the floor, 13 for 13 from the free-throw line).

“During the course of his career, not only was he able to contribute but he just kept expanding his role,” Larrañaga said. “He just kept doing more and more really, really well. That’s why, throughout the season, I called him the most underrated player in the country. He was so good at everything. I don’t think anybody knew that this guy was going to score the way he did, rebound the way he did, defend the way he did, assist the way he did.”