After a standout performance at the NBA Combine, Penn State center Yanic Konan Niedershauser is officially turning pro. Niederhauser will remain in the NBA draft and not return to the Nittany Lions for his senior year, ESPN reported on Wednesday.
The 7-foot, 243-pound Niederhauser, who originally declared for the draft on April 2 while maintaining his collegiate eligibility, impressed at a pair of pre-draft showcases, boosting his stock significantly.
Niederhauser averaged 15.5 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game while shooting 82.4 percent from the field over two games at the G League Elite Camp. That performance earned him an invite to the combine, where his testing numbers continued to stand out.
Niederhauser’s 33.5-inch vertical jump ranked second overall at the combine while his 37.5-inch maximum vertical jump, 2.84-second shuttle run and 3.20-second three-quarter court sprint were best among centers.
Following the combine, he was projected by ESPN as the No. 41 overall pick in June’s draft. He would become the first Penn State player selected since Jalen Pickett and Seth Lundy were each taken in the second round in 2023.
Niederhauser was a beacon of light for a team that widely underperformed and did not qualify for the Big Ten Tournament this past season. He averaged 12.9 points, 6.3 rebounds and led the Big Ten with 2.3 blocks per game in his lone year with the Nittany Lions after transferring from Northern Illinois.
Niederhauser leaves behind a Penn State roster that has now lost 10 players from last season.
A group of five players — Ace Baldwin Jr., D’Marco Dunn, Nick Kern Jr., Puff Johnson and Zach Hicks — exhausted their eligibility. Meanwhile, four others have transferred out: Jahvin Carter, Miles Goodman, Hudson Ward and Kachi Nzeh.
With Niederhauser’s departure, Rhoades has just nine total players on his current roster, five of whom are freshmen. Josh Reed, who transferred from Cincinnati this offseason, will be the team’s lone senior. Freddie Dilione V, the last remaining starter from a year ago, will likely be asked to pick up a prominent leadership role.
Niederhauser was a beacon of light for a Penn State team that widely underperformed and did not qualify for the Big Ten Tournament this past season. He averaged 12.9 points, 6.3 rebounds and led the Big Ten with 2.3 blocks per game in his lone year with the Nittany Lions after transferring from Northern Illinois.
Mike Rhoades will also likely turn to freshman guard Kayden Mingo, the highest-rated recruit in program history, to take on a significant workload in his first year of collegiate action. Mingo will be joined by forward Masin Blackwood, forward Justin Houser, guard Reggie Grodin and Croatian center Ivan Juric as part of a five-legged 2025 signing class.
