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Published Jul 29, 2021
Isaiah Jackson taken No. 22 in NBA Draft, headed to Indiana in trade
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Jeff Drummond  •  CatsIllustrated
Managing Editor
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@JDrumUK

Kentucky saw its streak of years with a first-round NBA Draft pick reach 12 on Thursday as freshman forward Isaiah Jackson was selected with the No. 22 pick.

Jackson was picked by the Los Angeles Lakers but subsequently dealt to the Indiana Pacers via the Washington Wizards in connection with the high-profile trade that sent Russell Westbrook to the Lakers earlier in the day.

Under the NBA's rookie salary scale, Jackson is set to earn $2.04 million during his first year and $2.14 million in his second year. He'll have a third-year club option of $2.24 million.

The 6-foot-10 Jackson, who averaged 8.4 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 2.6 blocks per game as a freshman, was the lone Wildcat selected on Thursday. That broke a streak of multiple UK players being drafted in the first round since the beginning of the John Calipari era.

Kentucky freshman guard BJ Boston was later selected in the second round, going No. 51 and eventually traded to the Los Angeles Clippers.

In 12 seasons with Calipari at the helm, Kentucky has churned out three No. 1 selections, 32 first-rounders, 21 lottery picks and 43 total players in the NBA Draft. The 43 draft picks are 15 more than the next closest school (Duke).

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