TJ Leaf will declare for the NBA draft, UCLA's freshman announced via his Twitter account Thursday afternoon.
The 6-foot-10 power forward said he intends to hire an agent, which would remove any possibility of a return for his sophomore season.
"After much thought and discussion with my family, I have decided to declare for the 2017 NBA draft with the intention to sign with an agent," Leaf tweeted. "I want to thank my UCLA family for a great season and for all of their support."
Leaf's decision is the second domino to fall after freshman point guard Lonzo Ball announced his intention to depart for the NBA in the locker room after UCLA's loss to Kentucky in an NCAA Tournament regional semifinal on March 24.
Ball is projected as a top-three pick in the June 22 NBA draft, but Leaf's status is less certain. He is projected to be selected 11th in The Vertical's latest mock draft, but as low as 22nd by Draft Express and NBADraft.net.
"He's probably a lottery guy," an NBA scout said. "But I'd like him to be tougher. He's more of a mismatch offensively as a stretch four, but I wonder if he'd quick enough to guard a (small forward) or strong enough to guard a (power forward)."
No matter his fate in the NBA, Leaf is a substantial loss for UCLA. The five-star recruit finished his lone season with the Bruins as the team's leading scorer. He averaged 16.7 points and his 61.7 field goal percentage ranked fourth in the country among Power Five conference players.
He also shot 46 percent from 3-point range and displayed plenty of ability to run the floor, both big selling points considering the quickening tempo in the NBA.
Leaf's 8.2 rebounds per game ranked second on the team to center Thomas Welsh, one of three players yet to announce his intentions for next season.
The 7-foot junior is one of three who could reasonably depart for the professional ranks along with freshman center Ike Anigbogu and sophomore point guard Aaron Holiday.
The deadline to declare for the NBA draft is April 23 and the deadline to withdraw is June 12.
Leaf will now run the gamut of NBA pre-draft workouts.
"People want to say he's white-guy athletic, but I think he's athletic no matter the flavor," an NBA scout said. "But I don't see the physicality. He needs to get stronger. There's a weight room in Pauley Pavilion, but I'm not sure how often he went in there. He's athletic, so he'll get put-back dunks and rebounds because he's athletic, not because he's strong. That's on him to fix that."
