USC men’s basketball guard AJ Lawson announced on Monday via Twitter that he is declaring for the NBA draft. It is the third time that Lawson has declared for the draft, but this time he is signing with an agent and will not be returning to school.
“When I made the decision out of high school to attend SC, I knew it was going to be tough and that’s what I wanted,” Lawson wrote on Twitter. “I have worked and prepared for this moment my entire life and with that, I am declaring for the 2021 NBA draft and signing with an agent”.
The junior from Toronto, Canada averaged nearly seventeen points and four rebounds per game in just over thirty-one minutes per game for the Gamecocks this past season.
Lawson becomes the 8th member of last season’s roster to announce plans to leave the program. Two of them, Jermaine Couisnard and Keyshawn Bryant, also have declared for the draft but have not retained agents. Frank Martin said last week he expects both to return for next season. A third, Justin Minaya, also has declared for the draft but is also in the transfer portal and won’t be returning.
