Jean Montero leads Dominicans eligible for the 2022 Draft

The Overtime Elite product would be selected in the second round while Justin Minaya and Lester Quiñones wait for a chance.

With Jean Montero As the main and only figure born in the Dominican Republic, the 2022 NBA Draft will take place this Thursday.

The player who was in the historic first season of the new Overtime Elite league would be in the best position to be chosen with one of the 58 picks available at the event where the new stars of the league will enter.

This year he will have two fewer picks than the usual 60 as both the Chicago Bulls and Miami Heat will be without picks due to a violation of free agency talks.

Montero, 18, is a 6-foot-2-inch, 172-pound guard who, according to several publications, has great agility and ball handling, although he must work on his physique for the demands of the NBA.

Nonetheless, he is an interesting talent who even appeared in the first mock drafts of the season as a possible first-round pick.

Jean Montero gearing up for his pre-draft workout with the Hawks 💪 @jeanmontero03 pic.twitter.com/j3mX6EBj9h

— Overtime Elite (@OvertimeElite) June 9, 2022

The Villa Juana native participated in the NBA Draft Combine in addition to training for teams such as the Charlotte Hornets, Atlanta Hawks, Washington Wizards, among others.

Montero revealed in a 2021 interview with ESPNDigital that as a good Dominican he practiced baseball but found his passion in basketball.

“I played ball, in all positions as I had size and skill. But I’m too restless, moving was my thing and I couldn’t stand waiting for someone to hit to get me going“, he pointed.

In the last ESPN mock draft, Montero would be in 49th place being selected by the Sacramento Kings.

Other players of Dominican descent who will be available to be selected in the Draft are Justin Minaya and Lester Quiñones.

Minaya declared himself eligible for the Draft on April 6 after a successful stage in Providence.

Justin is the son of Omar Minaya, former general manager of the Montreal Expos and New York Mets, who is now a special adviser to Major League Baseball.

Quiñones is a Dominican-American player who has already participated with the Dominican National Team in the U-18 categories.

Take a look at Friday’s prospects putting in work 💪

⬛️ PJ Pipes
⬛️ Ryan Rollins
⬛️ Lester Quinones
⬛️ Julian Champagnie
⬛️ Michael Foster
⬛️ Fanbo Zeng

Watch the full workout ➡️ https://t.co/NtFlPr5xTn pic.twitter.com/wbXjL9k7vA

— Sacramento Kings (@SacramentoKings) June 20, 2022

At 6 feet 5 inches, he has trained for the Sacramento Kings and the New York Knicks, completing the trio of Dominicans for the 2022 Draft.

The Caribbean country is coming off having Chris Duarte as its representative at the event when he was selected with the 13th pick in 2021, having a good rookie season with the Indiana Pacers.