Kareem Rush Declares for NBA Draft
4/10/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
April 10, 2002
Columbia, Mo. - University of Missouri junior guard Kareem Rush will declare himself eligible as an early entrant for the 2002 NBA Draft. The 6-foot-6 inch Kansas City, Mo. native made his announcement today in a press conference alongside MU Head Coach Quin Snyder at the Hearnes Center.
An honorable mention Associated Press All-American each of the past two seasons, Rush averaged 19.8 points per game as a junior, and led Missouri to a 24-12 record and an exciting run to the Elite Eight in the NCAA Tournament.
"I'm happy that I have this chance to follow a dream of mine," said Rush, whose 18.9 per-game career scoring average ranks 4th in Tiger history. "Ever since I started playing this game, I always dreamed of playing in the NBA, and I feel I'm at the point now where I can make this move. Missouri has been a special place for me these three years, and I'll always be proud of what we've built with Coach Snyder. I can't express how much I've grown as a player and a person in my time here," he said.
Rush indicated that while he fully intends on playing in the NBA next season, he will finish the spring academic semester at MU, and will proceed without the services of an agent, leaving open the possibility of returning for his senior year.
"Kareem has a wonderful opportunity in front of him," said Snyder, who recently completed his 3rd year at Mizzou. "I think he has the ability to have an outstanding career at the next level. Kareem has been an excellent ambassador of our program for the past three years. He'll always be part of our family, and he'll certainly be missed, but we're all very excited for him at the same time," he said.
Rush is the second Tiger underclassman to declare for the NBA under Snyder. Guard Keyon Dooling bypassed his final two years of eligibility and was drafted 10th in the 2000 Draft by Orlando.
