Russian forward Sergey Karasev will enter the 2013 NBA draft, the 19-year-old revealed to R-Sport today. Vladimir Spivak first reported (via Twitter) that Karasev was expected to declare his intent, with an official announcement on the way.
"I was thinking for a long time with my father and agent and we finally made the decision that I will put myself on the draft list this year," Karasev told R-Sport. "I've decided that I won't lose another year."
As Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress.com notes (via Twitter), Karasev isn't bound by NCAA restrictions, since he's an international prospect. So unlike NCAA underclassmen, Karasev will have the opportunity to gauge his stock up until 10 day before the June draft. If he withdraws his name by June 17th, he'd be eligible to re-enter next year.
While ESPN.com's Chad Ford rates Karasev as this year's 46th-best prospect, Givony appears more bullish on the Russian's potential, placing him 27th on his top 100 list. In the Russian Professional Basketball League this season, Karasev averaged 18.5 PPG in 11 contests. He also averaged 16.1 PPG in 11 Eurocup games, shooting 49.0% on three-pointers.