Duke's Gerald Henderson joined the growing list of college players yesterday who want to move on to the NBA by declaring his intentions to enter the league's June amateur draft.
Henderson, in a prepared statement released by Duke, said that he isn't immediately hiring an agent, which will preserve his eligibility if he doesn't find his draft status to his liking and decides to return to school for a fourth season.
"After a lot of thought and discussion with my family and the Duke coaching staff, I have decided to enter the NBA Draft," Henderson said in his statement.
"Playing in the NBA has been a goal of mine since a young age and I am thrilled to have the opportunity. My three years at Duke have been a tremendous learning experience and have helped me develop both as a person and as a player."
Henderson, a three-season starter, would appear to be an appealing draft prospect for the NBA because of his smooth shooting and athletic ability.
The website NBADraft.net projects Henderson the No. 9 pick by Toronto and the first ACC player taken. ESPN's projected draft has Henderson going No. 12 to the Charlotte Bobcats as the second ACC player taken.
Henderson will have until June 16 to withdraw from the draft and return to school with no loss of eligibility. If he stays in the draft, Duke will return four starters next season and nine lettermen.
Henderson was Duke's leading scorer this season with a 16.5-points average in helping the team finish 30-7 and win the ACC Tournament championship. He was an All-ACC first-team selection and All-ACC Tournament pick.
He ranked second on the Blue Devils this season in rebounding, averaging 4.9, and was third in blocked shots with 28 and steals with 46.
He has scored 1,262 points at Duke and ranks No. 39 at the school in career scoring. He has played in 103 career Duke games and made 79 starts for Coach Mike Krzyzewski.
"Gerald is an impressive young man on and off the court," Krzyzewski said in a prepared statement. "We had great conversations about his NBA prospects and we are 100 percent behind his decision.
"Gerald is coming off a great season and he has an extremely bright future as a professional. We are ready to help him in any and every way during this process."
Henderson will follow in the footsteps of his father, Gerald Sr., if he stays in the draft and is selected. His father played 13 seasons in the NBA and was a member of league title teams in 1981 and '84 with the Boston Celtics and in '90 with the Detroit Pistons.
Henderson is the ninth ACC player to declare for the draft. Among the other six is North Carolina's Wayne Ellington, a former high-school teammate at Episcopal Academy in Merion, Pa.
The other ACC payers who are entering the draft to at least determine their draft status are North Carolina's Ty Lawson; Wake Forest's James Johnson and Jeff Teague; N.C. State's Brandon Costner; Miami's Dwayne Collins; Maryland's Greivis Vasquez and Georgia Tech's Gani Lawal.
Davidson's Stephen Curry has also declared for the draft and will hire an agent.
-Bill Cole can be reached at bcole@wsjournal.com.
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