Ty Lawson and Wayne Ellington, the starting backcourt for the North Carolina Tar Heels, both declared themselves eligible for the 2009 NBA Draft.
The teammates held a joint press conference on Thursday afternoon to announce their decision. Both players declared for the draft last year before ultimately deciding to return to school. This season, Lawson and Ellington are expected to be first-round selections, according to several mock drafts.
Lawson was a second-team All-American and unseated teammate Tyler Hansbrough as Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year. He was second on the team in scoring with 16.6 points per game and led the team with 6.6 assists and 2.1 steals. He closed his career with 21 points and a championship game-record eight steals in the 89-72 win against Michigan State at Ford Field in Detroit.
"It's hard to leave Carolina because of all the great memories and things you learn in college," Lawson said. "All the fun I had with my teammates made it a hard decision. It's just tough leaving here."
Ellington was third in scoring with 15.8 points and was named most outstanding player of the Final Four after scoring 39 points against Villanova in the national semifinal and Michigan State in the championship.
Just like they did after winning the championship in 2005, UNC will have to rebuild. The Tar Heels lose their top four scorers, including Hansbrough and swingman Danny Green. In 2005, they also lost their top four scorers: Raymond Felton, Rashad McCants, Sean May and Marvin Williams. All four were selected in the first round of the 2005 NBA Draft.
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