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Brandon Rush Declares for NBA Draft

I will have much more on this later, but Brandon Rush declared for the 2007 NBA Draft today. I think that this is a smart decision by Brandon, to test the waters and get a feel for where he will be picked, but depending on what they say I think he should come back for one more year. He is getting up there for rookies (he is 22 right now) and if he came back and didn't vastly improve his game (much like Julian) his draft stock might drop out of the 1st round. Of course, he also would have the potential to become a Lottery pick as the star of our team next season. That is all looking at it from a Brandon Rush perspective, with Brandon we have a chance to make a run at a National Championship next season.

The key is still the fact that he didn't sign with an agent, leaving a return to Kansas still a possibility. Right now I think that he will figure out he is a mid-20's pick and want to come back for one more year in Lawrence, but I wouldn't be surprised if he decided to become a pro.

Again, I'll have much more on this later but for the time being, we now have a scholarship opened up so look out for our name in what is left over in the recruiting market. For now, I'll leave you with an extended Bill Self quote, per the article above:

"Whenever guys declare that are going to be high draft picks or have a great shot to make a roster, I think it's difficult for a lot of those guys to come back," Self said. "That's what he wants to do (play in NBA next year). We approach it like there is a window for him to come back, but also approach it we need to do whatever we can to help our team next year.
"Nothing would surprise me. I told him if he does this he needs to go for it. He needs to take that approach. If he does the best job preparing it will guarantee him a future in the league. I feel my personal opinion is the team we have returning now is our team. Anything else (as in Rush) would be a bonus."