LSU junior Johnny O’Bryant III declared his intent to enter the NBA draft in a press conference today, tweets Matthew Harris of The Advocate. Steve and Alyssa Schneider of WAFB-TV in Baton Rouge originally reported the news. O’Bryant is the 65th-best prospect in Jonathan Givony’s DraftExpress rankings but just No. 101 with Chad Ford of ESPN.com.
The 6’9″ 20-year-old appears to be primarily suited to play power forward as a pro, and he cut down on an occasional tendency to wander outside his range this season, attempting just a pair of three-point shots. The Mississippi native averaged 15.4 points and 7.7 rebounds. He suffered from bouts of inconsistency, scoring 25 points against Vanderbilt and just five against Georgia two nights later, though he saw 18 shots in the first game and just eight in the second.
LSU’s season ended with a loss to SMU in the second round of the NIT. O’Bryant has until April 15th to decide whether to return to the Tigers for his senior season.