As expected, sophomore point guard Jordan Farmar announced
Sunday that he will keep his name in this year’s
NBA Draft and will forgo his final two years of eligibility at
UCLA.
Farmar, who led the 2005-2006 Bruins to their first Final Four
appearance in 11 years, said all along he would only give up his
eligibility if it was guaranteed that he would be picked in the
first round. Despite not hearing those magic words as of 2 p.m.
Sunday, he still felt it was time to go.
“It was a really tough decision; it went down
to the wire,� Farmar said. “But I
had to go with my gut instinct and my heart, and that was to follow
my dream of playing in the NBA.�
Farmar made the decision Saturday night and slept on it to make
sure it felt right. His decision appeared to be helped by his
performance at the 2006 NBA Pre-Draft Camp in Orlando, Fla., last
week. Farmar was praised highly by NBA scouts, and was widely
considered the best player in the camp.
“I got nothing but positive feedback from all
the teams and going through that process really helped me
out,� Farmar said.
Farmar, who has already worked out for five teams, will now wait
to hear from other prospective teams before the June 28 draft. He
is expected to retain an agent within the next few days and may
work out for additional teams if they are interested.
“Other teams have shown
interest,� Farmar said.
“We’ll just see if the
situations work out.�
As of Sunday, the two teams most likely to pursue Farmar are the
New Jersey Nets, who have picks No. 21 and 22 in the first round,
and the Sacramento Kings, who have the No. 19 pick. Both have
indicated they are looking for a point guard.
“Both teams have said positive
things,� Farmar said.
“It’s just a matter of who is
on the draft board and what the circumstances
are.�
Despite the prospect of being drafted, Farmar was still
sentimental about the program he was leaving behind.
“We did some special things, not as much as we
may have wanted, but I have no regrets,� Farmar said.
“The relationships I made, the people I met, are
the things that I will miss the most.�
Farmar pointed out that the Bruins will have plenty in reserve
next year without him. Farmar’s backcourt mate
Arron Afflalo decided to return to the Bruins on Saturday, and
backup freshman guard Darren Collison played a critical role on
this year’s team.
“The team will be fine,� Farmar
said. “Darren has been in there all offseason,
shooting and working out, and he looks ready to
go.�
Despite those factors, Farmar will surely be missed. Farmar
finished the season as the Pac-10’s assist
leader and second for the Bruins in scoring at 13.5 points per
game.
More importantly, Farmar leaves as one of the key players who
helped turn around the UCLA basketball program.
“He is a winner; that is the best thing about
him,� coach Ben Howland said. “He
came ready to work every day, and we will surely miss
him.�
NBA mock drafts currently have Farmar slated anywhere from the
late teens of the first round to early in the second round.
Farmar also indicated that he intends to eventually earn his
degree and will work with the academic advisors at UCLA to
accomplish that goal.
“That has always been one of my goals and was
one of the factors in the decision,� Farmar said.
“But the academic advisors have assured that we
can work out my classes in the future, and I can
graduate.�
And now Farmar is ready to move on.
“UCLA has given me all that I can ask for, and
I feel I’m mentally ready to move on to the next
level.�