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South Carolina guard A.J. Lawson gave the Gamecocks some good news on Wednesday, announcing on Twitter that he’s withdrawn his name from consideration for the NBA Draft and will return to Columbia next season.
I’m happy to announce that I am withdrawing my name from the NBA Draft and returning to school for my junior season as a Gamecock! I want to thank all of the teams that gave me the opportunity to speak with them over the last couple of months, and I’m excited to be back in Colum pic.twitter.com/K209vEOBcH
— AJ Lawson ⚡️ (@ItsAJLawson) July 29, 2020
The sophomore winger averaged a team-high 13.4 points and 3.7 rebounds per game in the shortened 2019-20 campaign after coming off a promising rookie season that saw him earn a spot on the SEC All-Freshman Team.
While Lawson entered this year with talk that he could be a first-round NBA Draft pick, those projections steadily slipped by the wayside as the season progressed, and his chances appeared to dim altogether. With the coronavirus pandemic then canceling the season and throwing a wrench into the draft/combine process, which prevented workouts and other evaluations, it’s not surprising to see many players outside of one-and-dones electing to return to school.
At any rate, this is great news for South Carolina, and another chance for Lawson to properly put his talent on display for the NBA.