Spencer Hawes Staying in the Draft; Maureece Rice Returning

Not surprisingly, Washington freshman center Spencer Hawes has made it official, according to the Seattle Times: he is going to keep his name in the NBA Draft and not return to the Huskies for his sophomore season. "After meeting with everyone, getting all the appropriate feedback and going through the entire evaluative process, I made a decision I believe is the best for my future and that is to remain eligible for the NBA Draft,'' Hawes said. “The decision to further my career in the NBA at this point in time was difficult. Every day I had different feelings about it. But at the end of the game, I have to be realistic and trust my instincts.'' He added that Washington’s struggles this past season made his decision even harder. “Certainly there are some things I would have liked to accomplish in college,” Hawes said. “But, I feel I made the best decision for my family and my future.'' Coach Lorenzo Romar said the UW will move on without Hawes. “Other guys are capable of stepping up,” he said. "We'll just have to do things a little differently. But here at Washington, that's not new, because that's what we did before Spencer.'' Hawes is projected to be drafted in the lottery. He averaged 14.9 points and 6.4 rebounds per game this past season.

According to the Associated Press, George Washington junior guard Maureece Rice has withdrawn his name from the NBA Draft and will return to the Colonials for his senior season. As a junior, Rice led the Colonials in scoring, averaging 15.8 points, and in 3-pointers made, with 64. He was the 2006 Atlantic 10 sixth man of the year. Rice was not projected to be drafted, according to most mock drafts.