Brannen Greene Declares for 2016 NBA Draft: Latest Comments and Reaction

Kansas wing Brannen Greene announced on Wednesday that he will be entering the 2016 NBA draft and hiring an agent, according to the school.

The junior had the following message for Jayhawks fans, via Kansas Basketball:  

His head coach wished him the best of luck in his NBA aspirations.

"Brannen has elected to declare for the NBA draft with the intent of hiring an agent at some point," Bill Self said, per the team's website. "I certainly understand Brannen making this decision. We wish him nothing but the very best. He has an NBA skill that I think will translate very well to the next level. We appreciate his efforts during his time at Kansas."

His father, Jeffrey Greene, spoke to Jeff Eisenberg of Yahoo Sports about his son's somewhat surprising decision to enter the NBA draft.

"He's spent the past few days in discussion with the coaching staff and feels that from the feedback he's heard regarding NBA tryouts, he's confident he can join an NBA team next season," he said. "He feels like the only way to make this decision is to fully commit and will not entertain going back to college." 

Greene's father added (per Eisenberg): "He wouldn't even consider transferring. He wanted to be known as a former KU basketball player."

Greene, who came off the bench almost exclusively in his three years at Kansas, averaged 5.4 points and 2.1 rebounds in 12.4 minutes per game this season while shooting an impressive 49.2 percent from beyond the arc.

His ability to be a perimeter shooting specialist gives him a specific role to play at the next level, though given his limited playing time at Kansas, he seems unlikely to crack the first round. Derek Bodner didn't have Greene in the first round of his latest mock for USA Today, and Greene seems like a candidate to be a second-round pick or an undrafted free agent.

He's now the third Kansas player to announce his intentions for the NBA draft. Guard Wayne Selden announced Tuesday via the school that he would be entering the draft and hiring an agent, like Greene, while Cheick Diallo will enter the draft but has abstainedfrom hiring an agent, meaning he could still return to Kansas next season.

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