Arizona Wildcats guard Stanley Johnson declares for NBA Draft

Stanley Johnson arrived in Tucson as a projected one-and-done player.

And that he is.

Johnson announced Thursday he has decided to leave school after his freshman season to enter the 2015 NBA Draft. He said it was the toughest decision of his life.

He also strongly considered returning for a sophomore season.

“I put a hell of a lot of thought into coming back,” he said at a press conference Thursday. “For me, especially the first week (after losing in the Elite 8), it was like, season’s over, what’s going on? For me, it was like let’s go, I want another shot at doing this and for me, people were saying NBA Draft and I was like, ‘I’m not done yet’ and stuff like that.

“It took a lot of thought, but at the end of the day you’ve got to make the right decision, in my opinion. I talked to my family and Coach Miller — and all the coaches, really — extensively, very long, and I put a lot of hard thought into it. And I thought at the end of the day, for me to do what I have to, I thought this was the best decision.”

The 2015 Pac-12 Freshman of the Year, Johnson led Arizona in scoring at 13.8 points per game while pulling down 6.5 rebounds and dishing out 1.7 assists per contest.

“This is always a bittersweet moment for me and I think for our program,” Arizona coach Sean Miller said. “On one hand, it’s incredibly exciting to see a young guy like Stanley go from where he was when he came here to, here we go, into the NBA Draft, which I have no doubt he’ll be a high pick and go on and have a long career that we’ll all be proud of.”

A 6-foot-7, 245-pound forward with guard-like handle, Johnson is projected to be the eighth pick in the draft by NBADraft.net and the ninth selection in the draft by DraftExpress.com.

ESPN.com’s Chad Ford (Insider) lists Johnson as the 11th-best prospect in draft, writing:

Johnson’s tournament was solid, just like his season. He clearly has an NBA body, shot the ball better this season than anyone could’ve hoped, and when he dials in defensively, he looks to be a strong two-way player in the pros. But NBA scouts think Winslow is a better athlete and has an even better motor. They think both Hezonja and Kansas’ Kelly Oubre will be better shooters long term. Johnson is stuck somewhere in between: the guy who does just about everything well but lacks that one elite skill. Still, I think there’s almost no way he falls out of the lottery. He could go as high as No. 6, but I think the range is more likely Nos. 8 to 14.

Johnson is the fourth member of Arizona’s starting lineup to leave school. Point guard T.J. McConnell graduated, while forwards Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and Brandon Ashley, like Johnson, declared for the NBA Draft.

Last season, Arizona went 34-4 and won the Pac-12 regular season title as well as the Pac-12 Tournament. Their season ended in the Elite 8 with a loss to Wisconsin.