Ray Spalding announces he'll leave Louisville, stay in the NBA draft pool

Louisville junior Ray Spalding announced his plan Tuesday to skip his senior year of college, hire an agent and remain in the NBA draft pool.

Spalding, Louisville's top rebounder and second-leading scorer this past season, made the announcement on his Instagram page. He'll be the third definite departure from Louisville's 2017-18 team, with point guard Quentin Snider and center Anas Mahmoud set to graduate this spring.

"It's been a journey like none other that allowed me to grow in areas I didn't even know were possible," said Spalding, a 6-foot-10 junior power forward. "... Most importantly I want to thank the city of Louisville for allowing me to live out my childhood dream and represent my city. At this time I have decided to leave my name in the draft and hire an agent."

A Louisville native who played for Trinity High, Spalding received honorable mention for this past season's All-ACC team. He averaged 12.3 points and 8.7 rebounds in his best campaign yet for the Cardinals, shooting 54.3 percent from the field. He also led Louisville with 54 steals and finished second on the team with 62 blocks.

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"I thought he had a great year," said Trinity coach Mike Szabo, who stays in touch with his former player. "The intensity with which he played, the sense of urgency with which he played ... was much, much improved from the last season. From that standpoint, I think he's really, really trending in the right direction and making a lot of progress. I'm really proud of him. I know he's really committed to do this."

Spalding is ranked No. 56 on ESPN's top 100 draft prospects list. He is considered the 10th-best power forward and 14th-best junior in the draft class.

NBA scouts are intrigued by Spalding's athleticism for his size, and his 7-6 wingspan will draw some attention if he is invited to the NBA combine in May.

College underclassmen have until late May to determine if they'll return to school or stay in the draft, but many around Louisville's program and around Spalding assumed he would pursue a professional career after this past season.

In December, Spalding pointed to the NBA jerseys of former Louisville players in the players' lounge at the KFC Yum Center and called them motivation.

"I’d love to be a household name here," he said at the time. "Someday."

Spalding's departure means Louisville's new coaching staff now knows it can fill three spots on its 2018-19 roster. Fellow junior Deng Adel also entered his name in the NBA draft but has not hired an agent, leaving open the possibility of returning to school.

Louisville contacted three graduate transfers, all guards, in recent days.

Jeff Greer: 502-582-4044; jgreer@courierjournal.com; Twitter: @jeffgreer_cj. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: www.courier-journal.com/jeffg.