After reclassifying so that he could arrive at Auburn early, JT Thor announced his plans to potentially leave Auburn early to enter the the NBA Draft.
Tuesday morning, Thor announced via Twitter that he would be entering the 2021 NBA Draft with the option to return to school. If Thor decides he is not ready to go to the NBA and wants to return to college, he may withdraw from the draft prior to a deadline if he hasn’t signed with an agent. The original withdrawal date was June 3, but in 2020, they extended it to Aug. 3.
The freshman forward was going to be a high school senior in the 2020-2021 academic year, but he reclassified and became a high school freshman instead. As a freshman, he started all of Auburn’s 27 games and averaged 23 minutes per game.
Thor had a few big games early, but he improved as the season went on. He had six games with double-digit points in the first 13 games and nine in the last 14. He increased from an average of four rebounds a game in the first half of the season to six rebounds a game.
By the end of the season, Thor averaged 9.4 points and five rebounds a games as well as 1.4 blocks per game. He had the fifth-highest scoring average, third-highest rebounding average and second-most blocks on the team.
After Auburn’s season was cut short by a self-imposed postseason ban, Thor decided to pursue his dream of the NBA. He thanked Auburn for the opportunities it gave him and the lessons it taught him. Although the season had a lot of ups and downs, he said he “wouldn’t trade it for anything.”
But he feels like his time is now.
“My dream has never been so close, and I look forward to this next chapter with confidence and determination,” Thor wrote.
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