Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
Mar 16, 2026; Inglewood, California, USA; A general overall view as LA Clippers guard Darius Garland (10) dribbles the ball against San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle (5) on the Clippers logo at midcourt at the Intuit Dome.
After the departure of James Harden via trade and with Kawhi Leonard’s NBA prime seemingly ticking away, the Los Angeles Clippers are hoping to quckly turn things around after a difficult 2025-26 season.
One bright spot for LA, however, is that they had the fifth pick in this year’s NBA Draft thanks to a trade with the Indiana Pacers for center Ivica Zubac. The Clippers used that pick on Illinois guard Keaton Wagler, who should fit seamlessly alongside Darius Garland.
They then selected Cincinnati forward Baba Miller with the No. 36 pick in the second round, before making a trade with the Atlanta Hawks and using their final pick, No. 57, on big man Narcisse Ngoy.
Ngoy is a soon-to-be 22-year-old who averaged 10.6 points, 11.5 rebounds, and 2.5 blocks last season for Poitiers Basket 86 in the Frenc second division.
Thee’s just one problem with the pick for Los Angeles.
Narcisse Ngoy Ditches The Clippers To Play At Auburn
In a post on his Instagram page on Thursday morning, Ngoy thanked the Clippers for selecting him, but said that he’s opted to pass on the opportunity and play in college instead for the Auburn Tigres.
“I am thankful for the LA Clippers’ confidence in me. I intend to honor my commitment to Auburn University, and I am looking forward to wearing the Auburn Tigers jersey for the 2026 season,” Ngoy wrote.
Clippers draft pick Narcisse Ngoy thanks Clippers — and says he plans to play for Auburn Tigers next season pic.twitter.com/5InJuBAQaP
— Law Murray 💊 (@LawMurrayTheNU) June 25, 2026
So, how exactly does that work. Didn’t Ngoy enter his name into the NBA Draft?
Well, not exactly. According to draft expert Jonathan Givony, Ngoy was automatically eligible because he is an international player who will be 22 years old entering the NBA season. The rule was only recently put into place by the NCAA.
Law Murray of The Athletic reports that Ngoy did not expect to be selected in this year’s draft, however, he’s now in touch with the Clippers to sort things out.
There is a potential upside for LA here, however. The Clippers retain the rights to Ngoy moving forward, so if he blows up in the next year at Auburn, they may have gotten an even more valuable player than they ever could have imagined with the 57th pick