Vanderbilt freshman Simisola Shittu has declared for the NBA Draft and will hire an agent, effectively ending his Commodore career.
In his statement posted to Twitter on Wednesday, Shittu says he “will test the waters and hire an agent” with the intention of staying in the NBA Draft.
Shittu, who was a McDonald’s All-American with Commodores teammate and fellow NBA draft entrant Darius Garland, was the seventh-best player in the country out of high school according to Rivals.com.
He ends his college career after a freshman season in which he averaged 10.9 points and 6.7 rebounds per game. He started 31 of 32 games during the 2018-19 season.
ESPN ranks Shittu 81st on its list of the top 100 prospects in the NBA Draft this June.
Shittu concluded his statement by saying that he will forever be a Commodore and was grateful for the opportunity to play for Vanderbilt.
“I would like to thank my family for their love and support, my coaching staff, my teammates, and the entire Vanderbilt family who have shown me so much love during my time here in Nashville,” he said.
While Shittu has hired an agent, a recent change in NCAA rules allows players to return to school should they go undrafted even if an agent is hired.
With Shittu and Garland going to the NBA Draft, Joe Toye graduating, Yanni Wetzell and Matt Ryan potentially transferring and a new head coaching coming into the program, 2019 could be a year of massive change for the Commodores.
