ANN ARBOR, Mich — University of Michigan men's basketball junior forward Isaiah Livers announced on Monday that he will apply for early entry into the 2020 NBA Draft.
The Kalamazoo native has until June 15th to withdraw his name from the Draft if he wants to return to Ann Arbor for his senior year.
"Following the cancellation of the season, my family and our coaching staff have had several discussions on my future as a basketball player," Livers said in a statement released by the university. "After much reflection and prayer, I have decided to enter my name into the 2020 NBA Draft and start the full evaluation process. The University of Michigan has done so much for me and helped me get to a position where I might be able to reach my goal of playing professional basketball. While this is only the start of the evaluation, I have appreciated your encouragement and will continue to need it as this process moves on."
The NBA is shut down for the moment due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but Livers and University of Michigan head basketball coach Juwan Howard still did their due diligence before reaching this decision.
"We know Isaiah has had the desire to reach the next level of playing professional basketball, and going through the NBA Draft process will give him the information he is looking for to make the proper decision," said Howard in a statement. "Even with everything going on with COVID-19, myself, and our staff, will continue to work closely with Isaiah and his family to gain as much information as possible in the weeks ahead before he reaches his final decision."
Livers was the 2017 Michigan Mr. Basketball winner out of Kalamazoo Central high school. He made an immediate impact at Michigan, coming off the bench during his freshman season. In total he started 46 of his 96 career games for the Wolverines. He helped the Wolverines win two straight Big Ten Tournament titles, helped Michigan advance to two straight Sweet 16's and the 2018 National Championship game.
This past season he led the Wolverines in scoring with 12.9 points per game, while shooting 40% from three, and nearly 96% from the free throw line. In addition to his scoring, he averaged career bests in rebounds (4.0.) and assists (1.1).
However, he played just 21 games, missing 10 games due to injuries.
