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Ben McLemore will leave Kansas, enter NBA Draft

Michigan v Kansas

ARLINGTON, TX - MARCH 29: Ben McLemore #23 of the Kansas Jayhawks dunks over Spike Albrecht #2 of the Michigan Wolverines in the second half during the South Regional Semifinal round of the 2013 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Dallas Cowboys Stadium on March 29, 2013 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

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Add Ben McLemore to the growing list of players declaring for the NBA Draft today.

The Kansas redshirt freshman will forgo his final three seasons of eligibility and enter the draft, making the announcement at a Tuesday afternoon press conference.

The St. Louis native made a huge impact during his one season in Lawrence, averaging 15.9 points and 5.2 rebounds per game while shooting 87-percent from the free throw line and picking up first team All-Big 12 Conference honors along the way.

“I want to thank my teammates a lot for supporting me and always pushing me each and every day at practice,” McLemore said in the press conference. “I love those guys. It was great playing with those guys. I want to thank my family and the coaching staff, too, but most of all I want to thank the KU fans. Without the KU fans, Kansas wouldn’t be like this. The KU fans are great and I’d like to thank them a lot for cheering me on and cheering this whole program on. I love that about Kansas. That’s the reason I came here.”

His scoring average broke Danny Manning’s school freshman record that’s stood since 1985. McLemore was also tabbed to the Associated Press, Wooden, NABC, Lute Olson and USWBA all-american teams, according to the release.

Tough to argue with his decision, especially if you’ve read Eric Prisbell’s great story on the struggle of McLemore’s family, living in poverty and having one of his brothers in prison. He’s projected as a first-rounder by many mock draft sites, and that guaranteed three-year contract will go a long way to helping out his family.

Follow David Harten on Twitter at @David_Harten