National Basketball Association

Fare thee well, Cliff: Alexander becomes second Jayhawk to turn pro

Published Apr. 7, 2015 6:35 p.m. ET

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He came in via the front porch, welcomed with a blaze of glory. But Cliff Alexander left Lawrence via the back door, and under a cloud of confusion.

Kansas' power forward on Tuesday afternoon joined classmate Kelly Oubre in the one-and-done club, as coach Bill Self announced that the 6-foot-8 freshman will declare for the NBA Draft.

"This should come as no surprise to anybody," Self said of Alexander in a statement released by the university. "Cliff had a very interesting and educational year."

To put it mildly.

On the plus side, the big man averaged 7.1 points and 5.3 rebounds per game and led the Jayhawks in field-goal percentage (.566) while tying for the team lead in blocks (37). Tapped as the Big 12's preseason Freshman of the Year (along with Texas' Myles Turner), Alexander was a preseason top 50 candidate for the John R. Wooden Award; got named to the watch list for the Wayman Tisdale Award, presented to the top freshman in college basketball; and came to campus drawing comparisons that ranged from ex-KU great Thomas Robinson to Amar'e Stoudamire.

But he never quite got there -- not as a freshman, at least.

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The burly Chicago native and former McDonald's All-American developed into the Jayhawks' best rim protector -- as much by default as anything else -- during league play, ranking ninth among Big 12 players in blocks per game (1.3). But Alexander hit a wall in mid-February and his season came to a premature end after KU's stunning 70-63 loss at rival Kansas State on Feb. 23. Before hosting Texas on Feb. 28, the school announced that it was withholding Alexander from competition because it had been made aware of potential "issues" that could have affected big No. 2's eligibility.

On Tuesday, Alexander said through a statement: "I talked this over with my mom and dad and we decided the timing was right for me to enter the NBA draft. Kansas has been a great experience."

And back on that final day in February, it was reports linking Alexander's mother with a financial firm that specializes in pre-draft loans for athletes looking to turn pro that kept the big man off the floor -- for good.

And much to his chagrin, apparently; during the Big 12 tournament in Kansas City, a lawyer representing Alexander released a statement saying that his client had complied with NCAA demands and that the suits in Indianapolis were asking for materials he didn't have and were delaying the process.

It's probably a moot point now. Alexander was earmarked as a potential first-round pick in 2015 before he took the floor with the Jayhawks, although the travails of the past few months may have bruised his stock a bit. He is projected by DraftExpress.com to be the first player taken in the second round of June's NBA Draft.

"Big, strong kid -- he's athletic, he's long and he can rebound," DraftEXpress.com's Jonathan Givony told FOXSportsKansasCity.com. "He's got decent height for a four man. I'm thinking he might be more of an (NBA) center right now, because he's long, he's competitive and he gets to the free-throw line -- he's aggressive.

"He's got a long way to go at the same time. ... His offensive game, he's probably more of a power guy, he's not really a skill guy or a steal guy, not a great passer. He can do that at the college level, but against NBA players, it's going to be a completely different story."

You can follow Sean Keeler on Twitter at @SeanKeeler or email him at seanmkeeler@gmail.com.