Jordan Bell is off to the NBA Draft and will sign an agent, he announced through a letter posted to riselongbeach.com on Tuesday morning.
The news comes two days after Yahoo Sports’ The Vertical reported — and Bell refuted — that he had decided on forgoing his remaining time at Oregon. Bell becomes the third Duck to leave early to pursue the NBA.
“After talking it over with my family and friends,” Bell wrote, “I have decided that now is the best time for me to pursue my dream of playing in the NBA. With that being said, I’m going to enter my name in the NBA Draft and plan to sign with an agent.”
Bell exploded onto the collegiate scene as a freshman during the 2014-15 season when he recorded a then school-record 94 blocks. His season average of 2.7 blocks per game that year ranks second all-time in program history behind only teammate Chris Boucher’s 2.9 blocks per game recorded a season later. The 88 blocks Bell logged as a junior also ranks third all-time in program history.
The 6-foot-9 forward improved in every season at Oregon. He increased his scoring average from 5.1 points per game as a freshman, to 7.9 points per game as a sophomore and 10.1 per game his junior year.
As a junior, Bell earned the Pac-12 defensive player of the year award and was named to the first team all-defensive team.
He also greatly improved his draft stock this season, especially with his performance in the NCAA Tournament. Bell averaged 12.6 points, 13.2 rebounds and 3.2 blocks per game and helped lead Oregon to its first Final Four in almost 80 years.
We are proud to announce Jordan Bell has decided to enter the NBA Draft! Read more about his decision here: https://t.co/Uny1a4L9K5 pic.twitter.com/biJkwSieZY
— Rise Long Beach (@RiseLBC) April 18, 2017
Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @JustGusMorris
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