Kansas Jayhawks freshman Joel Embiid will turn professional as he announced on Wednesday that he will enter the 2014 NBA Draft, joining teammate Andrew Wiggins in the stacked rookie pool.
Embiid, who averaged 11.2 points to go along with 8.1 rebounds and 2.6 blocks in his freshman season in Kansas, was considered as the potential first overall pick in June's draft, but his stock went down recently.
The 7-foot Cameroonian center missed the team's campaign in the 2014 NCAA Tournament due to an ailing back, and there are growing concerns that his draft stock could slide down significantly once teams arrange workouts before the draft.
Embiid was not even considered as a lottery talent entering the season, but made a huge jump in most draft boards after having an impressive season with the Jayhawks.
Embiid is still considered raw by most NBA scouts, but Kansas head coach Bill Self pointed out that the 20-year-old center made the right decision to enter the draft.
"I don't think anybody could say Jo was making a poor decision by entering the draft," Self said. "Under almost all circumstances this would be the obvious choice to make. The thing with Jo, what he was weighing was he's still so young in the sport."
Embiid admitted that he strongly considered returning for his sophomore year, but he revealed that his conversations with mentor Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, Hakeem Olajuwon, and Nicolas Batum before making his decision.
Embiid and Wiggins, along with Duke Blue Devils freshman Jabari Parker is expected to end up as the first three picks in the highly anticipated draft.
However, Parker, who averaged 19.1 points and 8.7 rebounds this season, is strongly considering returning to Duke for his sophomore season with reports indicating that the forward applied for sophomore year housing.
Meanwhile, Kentucky Wildcats star Julius Randle quashed reports suggesting that he is set to announce his draft plans, saying that he has yet to talk to his family about turning pro this summer.
"I haven't made up my mind about the draft yet. Haven't even talked to my family about it. So it's all false," Randle posted on his Twitter account.
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