Kansas' Silvio De Sousa Enters 2019 NBA Draft amid Appeal of NCAA Suspension

Kansas Jayhawks sophomore Silvio De Sousa is waiting for the NCAA to decide on his appeal against his suspension.

In the meantime, the 6'9", 245-pound forward has made a decision of his own.

The Kansas City Star's Sam Mellinger and Jesse Newell reported Friday evening that De Sousa will declare for the 2019 NBA draft.

"De Sousa, speaking with his lawyer Friday at a Lawrence hotel, said he would return to Kansas if his appeal is granted and pursue a professional career if the appeal is rejected," the reporters relayed.

De Sousa was suspended through the 2019-2020 season in February after the NCAA found his guardian to have received payments from a university booster and agent.

He has not appeared in a game for Kansas since the 2017-18 Final Four, when the Jayhawks fell to eventual champion Villanova on March 31, 2018.

In 2017-18, De Sousa's freshman year and lone season playing for KU, the Angola native averaged four points, 3.7 rebounds, 0.2 assists and 0.2 blocks across 20 games.

At the time of De Sousa's suspension, Jayhawks head coach Bill Self condemned the NCAA (h/t Kyle Boone of CBS Sports):

"In my 30-plus years of coaching college basketball, I have never witnessed such a mean-spirited and vindictive punishment against a young man who did nothing wrong. To take away his opportunity to play college basketball is shameful and a failure of the NCAA. 

"Silvio is a tremendous young man who absolutely deserves to be on the court with his teammates in a Jayhawk uniform. This process took way too long to address these issues. We will support Silvio as he considers his options."

On Tuesday, Self told the Kansas City Star that it may be in De Sousa's best interest to declare for the NBA. However, Self admitted the 20-year-old "needs another year of college to definitely create the most earning power he could possibly have. Right now he doesn't have that much. Nobody's seen him play."

The appeal was filed on De Sousa's behalf through the university Thursday and can be viewed here in full. De Sousa's lawyer, Scott Tompsett, asserts that De Sousa "was not involved in or aware of whatever the adults did or may have done in violation of NCAA rules."

Tompsett added, "Your Committee has an opportunity in this case to make a decision that will be life-altering for Silvio."

All players declaring for the NBA draft have until May 29 to withdraw and maintain NCAA eligibility. In De Sousa's case, if the NCAA doesn't rule on his appeal before May 29 or denies it at any time beforehand, he will be forced to test his chances prematurely in the draft.