DJ Burns was a sensation during March Madness, leading the No. 11 seed NC State basketball team to the Final Four, where the program lost to Purdue in the semifinal, but now he is trying to maximize his status ahead of the NBA Draft that is fast approaching, and he has reportedly dropped a ton of weight since the conclusion of the March Madness run.

“This is a fun one, this is not a very serious scoop, but so the agency pro day is going on as these prospects get ready for the NBA Draft next month, and I went to one yesterday,” Shams Charania said on FanDuel TV. “DJ Burns Jr, NC State big man led that team to the Final Four. ACC Tournament MVP. Everyone, there was a big deal made about his size, his frame, his weight. He was listed at 275 pounds when he finished the season in college. I saw him at the pro day yesterday. He looked totally different. I talked to him afterward, I think we have a photo here. DJ Burns told me he has lost 45 pounds in the last six and a half weeks. He said he's doing cardio workouts at 5 a.m. He told me no Ozempic, he said he's been doing workouts four days a week at 5 a.m. Cardio workouts specifically that early in the morning, and him and his rep actually made a point to say no Ozempic was used during these 45 pounds lost. So I saw him, he looked totally different, shout out to DJ Burns Jr., he's trying to make a name for himself in this.”

It is interesting to see Burns make these types of changes, but it is not exactly surprising. There are certain types of players who succeed on the college level, but just do not have the transferrable skills to the NBA. By dropping weight, Burns is making himself more mobile than he was in his days at the NC State basketball program. That will give him a better chance at making it in the NBA, especially when it comes to playing good enough defense to stay on the floor.

DJ Burns' college career

Burns attended Tennessee, Winthrop and NC State for basketball in his college career. He was a redshirt at Tennessee in the 2018-2019 season, before going to Winthrop and playing three years there. He earned numerous Big South honors in his three seasons, before transferring to NC State for the 2022-2023 season, earning honors there as well and of course bringing his team to the Final Four, pulling off a number of upsets on the way.

It appears Burns is doing all he can to up his stock for the NBA, and it will be interesting to see where he ends up and how he fares professionally.