AUSTIN, Texas, April 30 (UPI) -- Point gaurd T.J. Ford of Texas reportedly has decided to leave school after just two seasons and enter this year's NBA Draft.
Ford and Texas Coach Rick Barnes will hold a news conference Thursday amid multiple reports that Ford has played his final game with the Longhorns.
"When you get to where you can't improve your position, you almost have to go," a source told the Houston Chronicle. "His stock can't get any higher than it is now. You have to support that. I think he's gone."
Ford, considered the best pure point guard in the country, became the first player from Texas to win both the Wooden and Naismith Awards, which are given to the best player in the nation.
The 5-10 Ford averaged 15 points, 7.7 assists, and 2.0 steals per game, and led Texas to its first Final Four appearance in 56 years, where it lost to eventual champion Syracuse.
In the 2001-02 season, he became the first freshman to lead the nation in assists, averaging 8.27 per game.
NBA scouts list high school standout LeBron James, Syracuse freshman Carmelo Anthony, and teenager Darko Milicic from Yugoslavia as the clear top three picks in this year's draft.
The paper said Ford is projected to be among the next group of players.
