Syracuse's Chris McCullough to enter NBA draft

Syracuse forward Chris McCullough has had a change of heart.

The injured power forward will enter the NBA draft, the university announced Thursday.

"We appreciate the contributions Chris made to our program during his time at Syracuse University," head coach Jim Boeheim said in a statement. "We wish him the best in his future endeavors."

The news comes after McCullough announced early in March he would be returning to Syracuse for his sophomore season.

McCullough averaged 9.3 points, 6.9 rebounds and 2.1 blocks before his freshman season was cut short due to surgery to repair a torn ACL suffered on Jan. 11.

Before the injury, McCullough was projected as a likely first-round pick. However, the injury moved him down to No. 40 on ESPN's Top 100 and No. 52 on DraftExpress's board.