Shaedon Sharpe, the former No. 1 recruit in the Class of 2022, is expected to announce that he will enter his name into the 2022 NBA Draft while maintaining college eligibility, Travis Branham of 247Sports reports. 

Branham says that Sharpe’s official announcement could come as early as Tuesday afternoon. 

Sharpe is currently listed as the sixth best available player in the draft, according to ESPN’s latest projections. 

After committing to Kentucky as a member of the Class of 2022, he eventually made the decision to reclassify and enroll at UK early, arriving for the spring semester. He then joined the basketball team in the beginning of January and began to practice. 

As Sharpe began to get reps with the team, fans began to wonder if the London, Ontario native would see time on the court as UK’s season progressed. Eventually, head coach John Calipari put an end to the speculation, saying that Sharpe was going to continue to practice but not see the court in-game, unless it was an emergency. 

Calipari was adamant at first that Sharpe was going to return to Lexington next season, but as the year went along, the 6-foot-5 shooting guard’s decision loomed larger, with the NBA Draft becoming a more likely option. 

Sharpe’s decision to maintain college eligibility does not rule out a potential return to Kentucky, although testing the draft waters will show the Canadian his high value and projections. 

The deadline for players to remove their name from the draft is June 1.