It is official: Jaxson Robinson won’t be returning to BYU basketball

PROVO — A couple of moments after sixth-seeded BYU’s beautiful 71-67 loss to Duquesne within the opening spherical of the NCAA Event, Jaxson Robinson caught himself, lamenting how he wished he had one other likelihood to return again to the Cougars.

Then-head coach Mark Pope caught his star shooter, wrapped his arm round Robinson, and jokingly mentioned into the microphone, “We will make that occur proper now” — an icebreaker that elicited a number of chuckles and probably gave BYU followers hope of the highest scorer returning for his last season of eligibility supplied by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Any lingering hope of the reigning Huge 12 Sixth Man of the 12 months returning to BYU turned official Tuesday afternoon, although: Robinson is declaring for the NBA draft.

The 6-foot-7 senior from Ada, Oklahoma, who averaged 14.2 factors, 2.5 rebounds and 1.3 assists per sport in turning into arguably the highest reserve within the Huge 12 posted the announcement on social media.

He thanked BYU coaches, employees, directors, professors and followers “who’ve helped me develop a lot as an individual” for the previous Arkansas and Texas A&M switch’s two seasons in Provo. He additionally made no point out of getting into the NCAA switch portal.

“I might be pursuing my dream and declaring for the 2024 NBA Draft,” mentioned Robinson, a communications main who’s graduating this weekend. “I’m trying ahead to this subsequent chapter of my life and what God has in retailer for me.”

Robinson performed an integral function as anybody in main the Cougars to a fifth-place end within the Huge 12 and second NCAA Event look in 4 years, main the staff in scoring and anchoring top-of-the-line 3-point taking pictures groups within the nation.

The 42.6% shooter and a 35.4% 3-point marksman began 36 of his 66 video games in two seasons with the Cougars, however discovered his footing as Pope — who went on to educate at his alma mater Kentucky — off the bench.

After beginning 30 of 33 video games as a junior in 2022-23 for simply 8.5 factors and a pair of.9 rebounds per sport, Robinson got here off the bench in all however six video games of his senior marketing campaign when he elevated his completion proportion by 40 proportion factors for practically double his scoring output.

He is at present projected as a second-round choose on this summer time’s NBA draft.