Kansas Jayhawks’ Ochai Agbaji withdraws from NBA Draft and will return to KU
Kansas Jayhawks senior guard Ochai Agbaji has decided to remove his name from the 2021 NBA Draft and return to KU to continue his college basketball career.
Agbaji, a 6-foot-5 graduate of Oak Park High School, placed his name in the 2021 NBA Draft pool on April 8.
He and KU men’s basketball coach Bill Self announced Tuesday that Agbaji would return to Lawrence.
“Jayhawk Nation, I’m coming back to KU this season,” Agbaji said in a release. “Going through the process at the NBA Combine and team workouts has been a really good experience. I cannot thank my family enough, the NBA teams, my KU coaches and teammates, as well as everyone who supported me in this process. I am so looking forward to next season, playing in front of the best fans in basketball and contending for a national championship.”
Self said: “We are all very excited Ochai has made the decision to return for one more year. He did exactly what the process allows and encourages players to considering the Draft to do. He will be better for it and so will our basketball team. We believe Ochai is a first-round talent and I look forward to pushing him daily towards that. I can’t wait to have Ochai and our full complement of players here very soon.”
Agbaji — he was invited to and attended the 2021 NBA Combine for pro prospects — averaged 14.1 points and 3.7 rebounds a game a year ago. He was an all-Big 12 honorable mention selection for the second-straight season. He ranked fourth in the Big 12 in three-point field goal percentage (38.3%), while leading the conference in threes made per game (2.6).
Agbaji has started 77 straight games for KU and has 920 career points. His 147 career three-pointers made rank 18th in KU history and his 418 threes attempted rank 16th.
The deadline to withdraw from the draft pool and retain college eligibility is 10:59 p.m. Central time Wednesday.
KU redshirt sophomore Jalen Wilson announced Friday that he would return to KU to continue his college career.
KU senior transfer Remy Martin will reportedly return to the Jayhawks as well and play his final season of college basketball, according to CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein.
Martin’s dad, Sam, told the Arizona Republic that Martin plans to play at KU this season, citing the fact the 6-foot senior guard did not get an invitation to the G League Elite camp or the NBA Combine.
Martin, who hails from Chatsworth, California, announced plans to transfer from Arizona State to Kansas on May 17, only if he ultimately withdrew from the draft.
The fact he was not invited to either the NBA G League Elite Camp or NBA Combine indicates he would not be taken in the two-round NBA Draft, set for July 29 in Brooklyn, New York, an NBA official told The Star.
Self had not yet confirmed the report of Martin withdrawing from the draft. Martin did not answer text messages from The Star.
Martin averaged 19.1 points a game in each of the past two seasons.
This story was originally published July 6, 2021 at 11:31 AM.
