Incoming freshman point guard Emmanuel Mudiay, who some project to be a possible No. 1 overall pick in the NBA draft, has decided to resend his scholarship to SMU and play basketball overseas instead.
Mudiay had originally chose to play for Larry Brown at SMU over the University of Kentucky and Kansas University, who have become popular one-year and done stops for top basketball talent.
“He’s the most special point guard I’ve ever seen at that age,” Brown told ESPN on Monday. “He plays the right way, and God has given him incredible gifts. We all know [the NBA is] a point guard’s league.”
According to ESPN, Mudiay’s mother and two brothers informed Brown and members of SMU’s staff in a meeting Sunday (July 13, 2014) about the phenom’s intentions of playing overseas.
“I was excited about going to SMU and playing college basketball for Coach Brown and his staff and preparing for the NBA, but I was tired of seeing my mom struggle,” Mudiay’s brother, Stephane, said in quotes his brother provided to SI.com. “And after sitting down with Coach Brown and my family, we decided that the best way for me to provide for my mom was to forgo college and pursue professional basketball opportunities.
“I am grateful for Prime Prep coach [Ray] Forsett for developing me into the player and man that I am, and I am also grateful for Coach Brown’s guidance and his support. This has nothing to do with my eligibility in any way.”