Villanova forward Saddiq Bey announced Tuesday that he officially will give up his last two years of eligibility with the Wildcats and remain in the 2020 NBA Draft.
The 6-foot-8 Bey, who won the 2020 Julius Erving Award as the nation's best small forward, filed for early entry into the draft in April. Since then, the pandemic has created much uncertainty on when the draft would be held, which affects the NBA combine and pre-draft workouts.
Bey said he also has thought a lot recently about the death of George Floyd while in the custody of Minneapolis police and the resulting protests.
"This has been a pivotal time in our country and honestly not how I imagined the last few months playing out," he said in a statement. "Between the pandemic and the national outcry against racial injustice, it has given me a lot of time to think and gain perspective outside of basketball.
"I have thought a lot about my decision to enter the NBA Draft and specifically how that would impact my coaching staff, teammates and professors. Villanova has the greatest fans in the world and I will miss playing in front of them next year. While I will always be a Wildcat, I have decided to stay in the NBA Draft in pursuit of playing in the NBA."
Bey led the Wildcats in scoring last season with a 16.1-point average and shot 45.1% on three-pointers, fourth in the nation, for a team that won a share of the Big East regular-season title. He is considered a mid-first-round pick by many mock NBA drafts and could climb into the lottery with a good showing in pre-draft workouts and the combine.
Wildcats coach Jay Wright called Bey "the consummate Villanova basketball player and teammate ... an excellent student (who) has always thought of the team first and always takes pride in representing Villanova.
"Saddiq is making the right decision. He's ready to be an outstanding player, teammate and leader in the NBA. The entire Villanova basketball and university community supports Saddiq's decision and anticipates following his promising NBA career."
The NBA has rescheduled the draft for Oct. 15, with the lottery taking place on Aug. 25.
