After saying no to NBA draft, former Gonzaga guard Hunter Sallis excited about what’s ahead for Wake Forest hoops

Hunter Sallis knew exactly what he was doing when it came time to make a decision about his future.

With the deadline looming to take himself out of the NBA draft, he had a little fun on social media.

“It had people guessing,” Sallis said last week by phone.

For most of the day leading up to the deadline, Sallis had posted on X a picture of LeBron James from his famous news conference more than a decade ago when he declared he was taking his talents to South Beach and the Miami Heat.

In this case, Sallis decided to keep his talents in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and play for coach Steve Forbes of Wake Forest for another season.

Sallis, the former Gonzaga guard whose all-around ability last season reminded a lot of fans of Josh Howard but with a better jump shot, is one of three starters who will be back for Forbes giving them a solid veteran nucleus of Sallis, Efton Reid and Cam Hildreth.

“I feel like last year was needed,” said Sallis, who left GU along with Reid in the spring of 2023. “It was a big reason to come back with just having those pieces in place, and I just think the sky is the limit.”

Sallis, who was All-Atlantic Coast Conference first team last season, made the first call after deciding to pull himself out of the draft to his father, Trevis. Sallis said they had long conversations previously, but he wanted his dad to know first.

He then called Forbes, who was in Iowa visiting his mother, to let him know.

“He was pretty happy,” Sallis said about Forbes’ reaction. “I kept telling him throughout the whole process I have no problem coming back to school. Coach knew it was going to come down to my situation and what was best for me. But he was excited.”

The next phone call went to Reid and Hildreth, and it was obviously well received, according to Sallis.

“After I talked to Cam and Efton, I texted everybody else to let them know,” Sallis said.

The three core players that Forbes returns to his starting lineup (Sallis, Hildreth and Reid) have combined to play 274 college games. That experience will be a big factor as Forbes begins his fifth season at Wake Forest.

Sallis went through the NBA draft combine last month in Chicago doing all the research and learning so much more about the process. He was one of about a dozen players who tested the waters and decided to come back to college.

Sallis also said that while there was some name, image and likeness (NIL) money in his decision to return, that wasn’t the sole reason.

“It’s more than just that,” he said. “I just felt comfortable coming back, knowing that they wanted me back. I’m excited about what we can do this season.”

After going through the draft combine it was believed that Sallis could be a late first-round or early second-round pick. He just turned 21 in March and with another season at Wake Forest his stock for next year’s draft could get a lot higher.

Sallis said he never considered the transfer portal.

“I’m able to come back to a really good team, so I felt like getting back with the guys again with some unfinished business is what we will be all about,” Sallis said.

The Demon Deacons were 21-14 last season but missed out on the NCAA Tournament. They made the NIT for the second time in Forbes’ four seasons but lost in the second round to Georgia as Sallis sat out with an injured ankle.

Forbes and his staff will welcome his team this month back on campus and begin a quest for the program’s first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 2017.

“That should be the goal,” Sallis said about the NCAAs. “I think it should be, and we’ve got some really good guys coming back and a bunch of new guys coming, so I feel expectations will be high.

“I know we’re all looking forward to exceeding those expectations, so I feel like we are going to be really good.”

Sallis said the reaction on social media about his decision brought a smile to his face.

“It was pretty cool to see all the comments and stuff,” Sallis said. “It feels great to see all that. Just knowing that I got a support system behind me from the fans and just knowing they wanted me to come back was very satisfying.”

As for a particular comment that stood out, Sallis said there were too many to count. “The comments were all pretty funny,” he said.