Alabama star Lewis declares for NBA draft
Alabama star Kira Lewis and backcourt mate John Petty have declared for the NBA draft, head coach Nate Oats announced Tuesday.
"Based on feedback that they get, they both may leave," Oats told reporters, including Matt Zenitz of Alabama.com, during a Tuesday conference call. "We're planning on possibly not having either of them back."
Lewis led the Crimson Tide in points (18.5 per game), assists (5.2), and steals (1.8) this past season en route to earning All-SEC first-team honors. While he drilled a conference-leading 206 field goals in 2019-20, Lewis also topped all SEC players with 109 turnovers.
The 18-year-old was the 45th-ranked recruit on the ESPN 100 for the class of 2018. Lewis is projected to be taken near the end of the first round in the latest mock draft by The Athletic's Sam Vecenie.
Petty has also been a vital contributor for Alabama over the past three seasons. He averaged a career-high 14.5 points per contest in 2019-20 to go along with team highs in rebounding (6.6 boards per game) and 3-point percentage (44%).
The junior guard was an All-SEC second-team selection this past season.