"Don't think Boogie Fland's a lottery pick": Analyst weighs in on Arkansas guard potentially returning to college basketball

Boogie Fland has been in the spotlight ever since he declared for the 2025 NBA draft. The Arkansas star also entered the transfer portal deadline on April 22.

Although Fland's focus will be on the draft, analyst Leif Thulin has said that the Arkansas star might not be taken as a top-14 pick in the pro league.

"The greater point to me is he's a very slight of build, six-foot-two guard," Thulin said on the "Locked on College Basketball" podcast on Wednesday (3:48). "If you look at the history of the NBA draft, the players who have been drafted of that stature, even one like Rob Dillingham, who I really liked last year, hardly plays. Reed Sheppard, though he was No. 3 and went to a team that was No. 2 in the west, like, that's very rare, hardly played.

"And you can stay, typically, 'Oh, they'll play in the future.' That's not typically what you want from a lottery pick. I don't think Boogie Fland's a lottery pick, and therefore, if he sees that, it incentivizes him to go back to school. And that's why I think he's reconsidering it. I'd still lean like, it's more likely for him to go to the NBA draft because of his declaration of 100% commitment, but I guarantee its not a 100% commitment right now."

Fland is keeping his options open after a strong freshman year at Arkansas. He averaged 13.5 points, 5.1 assists and 3.2 rebounds per game during his time with John Calipari's Razorbacks.

Fland was one of the best-performing players for Calipari in the first half of the regular season, until a hand injury in mid-January forced him to miss most of the remainder of the season.

Boogie Fland returned for Arkansas' March Madness run

Arkansas star Boogie Fland - Source: Getty

Boogie Fland didn't play a regular-season game for Arkansas following its 83-65 loss to Missouri on Jan. 18. However, he returned for the Razorbacks' March Madness run.

Fland helped the Razorbacks to a 79-72 win over Kansas in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, before beating St. John's 75-66 in the second round. Arkansas was eliminated from March Madness with an 85-83 overtime loss to Texas Tech in the Sweet 16.

Fland has reportedly garnered interest from national champion Florida if he returns to the college circuit next season.