UNC’s Lawson, Ellington, Green to return

Tuesday, June 17th, 2008 at 12:34 pm

The three UNC players who were testing their status in the NBA draft all said they would return to campus for next season, setting the Tar Heels up for a national title run.

Point guard Ty Lawson, forward Wayne Ellington and last year’s sixth man, Danny Green, withdrew their names from the draft Monday, the deadline for doing so. The players had entered the names in the draft, but did not hire agents to leave open the possibility of returning to school.

In statements released by UNC, the players spoke of a desire to capture the national title, something that eluded the Heels this season in a Final Four loss to Kansas.

Said Ellington: ““I am looking forward to working toward our goal of winning a national championship.”

“I look forward,” Lawson said, “to playing next season and trying to win a national championship.”

Coach Roy Williams said he supported the players’ decisions, no matter what they had been. Williams had been involved in talking with NBA teams about where the players might be drafted.

“Everyone should have the right to be evaluated in terms of possibly reaching his dreams,” Williams said in a statement. “I feel strongly that all of these young men will eventually be NBA players. The timing was just not exactly right at this point.”

The three join All-America center Tyler Hansbrough, who earlier announced he would return to UNC for his senior season.

Lawson, a rising junior, has averaged 11.3 points and 5.4 assists in his first two seasons