Jarreau withdraws from NBA draft
DeJon Jarreau will withdraw from the NBA draft and return to the University of Houston for his senior season.
Jarreau, a 6-5 guard, declared for the draft in mid-April but did not hire an agent, keeping his amateur status and allowing for a return to college.
“I always had the decision I was going to come back,” Jarreau said Monday. “I was really testing the waters, because you really never know what opportunity might present itself.”
Jarreau’s decision is key for the Cougars, who are coming off back-to-back American Athletic Conference regular-season titles and should be a Top 25 team entering the 2020-21 season. Nate Hinton, another UH guard, announced in May that he will keep his name in the NBA Draft pool, and forward Fabian White Jr. suffered a knee injury that will sideline him for the season.
Jarreau, who will graduate in December, said his motivation to return was unfinished business after the Cougars were denied a third straight NCAA Tournament appearance due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“We didn’t get to finish the season,” he said. “I was looking forward to the conference and NCAA tournaments.”
A rising senior from New Orleans,
Jarreau split time between the starting lineup and coming off the bench last season, averaging 9.0 points and 3.7 assists, which ranked eighth in the AAC.
Jarreau said he spoke with NBA teams through video conference but travel restrictions due to COVID-19 “kind of slowed (the process) down.”
“I just wanted some feedback,” Jarreau said.