By Otis Kirk 

FAYETTEVILLE -- The May 31 deadline to enter the 2023 NBA Draft or withdraw to return to college has come and gone with a mixture of, but expected, news for the University of Arkansas.

Senior guard Davonte "Devo" Davis will return to Arkansas for another season while freshman Jordan Walsh has opted to remain in the draft. In addition, Duncanville (Texas) five-star forward Ronald Holland has opted to head immediately to the G League and play for the Ignite instead of sign with Arkansas. He had originally signed with Texas, but asked out of his letter-of-intent when the Longhorns made a coaching change.

Davis was expected to return to Arkansas, but didn't go public with his decision until Thursday. He worked out for the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday. In 2022-23, Davis played in 35 games averaging 33.1 minutes per game. Davis averaged 10.9 points, 4.4 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.4 steals and 0.4 blocks per outing. He shot 41.5% from the field, 71.9 from the free throw line and 34.6 from behind the 3-point line. 

Walsh is expected to be a 3-and-D wing at the professional level. In one season at Arkansas, Walsh played in 36 games averaging 24.4 minutes each outing. He averaged 7.1 points, 3.9 rebounds, 0.9 assists, 1.1 steals and 0.5 blocks per game. Walsh shot 43.3% from the field, 71.2 from the free throw line and 27.8 from deep.

That leaves Arkansas with 12 scholarship players for 2023-24. A school is allowed 13 scholarship players. Eric Musselman is expected to add another player from the transfer portal with a known target being a familiar face to him in North Dakota State forward Grant Nelson, 6-foot-11, 235-pounds. 

Nelson and his teammates faced Arkansas on Nov. 7 in Bud Walton Arena. The Hogs took a 76-58 victory with Nelson scoring 17 points and pulling down six rebounds. Nelson played 30 games for his team and led them in every statistical category. He averaged 17.9 points, 9.3 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 0.8 steals and 0.8 blocks. Nelson shot 52.1% from the field, 72.0 from the free throw line and 26.9 from 3-point territory. 

Nelson withdrew recently from the NBA Draft and has several options as far as his next school. One would expect Kentucky who lost some key players on Wednesday when they opted to remain in the draft to be in the mix. Oscar Tshiebwe, the 2022 National Player of the Year, opted to leave Kentucky and remain in the draft as did Chris Livingston leaving some holes in the Wildcats roster. It has also been reported by various outlets he plans to visit Alabama.

Photos Courtesy of Craven Whitlow CW3 Action Sports