The Gopher men’s basketball team will be noticeably different next season.

After declaring for the NBA draft in April, junior guard Amir Coffey has officially announced his intentions to stay in the NBA draft, opting not to return to the University of Minnesota for his senior season. 

Coffey had until Wednesday May 29 at 10:59 p.m. to decide whether to remove his name from the NBA draft and return to the Gophers, or forego his final season and move on to the NBA. The NBA draft is scheduled for Thursday June 20. 

Coffey is trying to be the first Gopher drafted in the NBA since Kris Humphries was drafted 14th by the Utah Jazz in the 2004 NBA draft. 

The junior was the Gophers’ leading scorer last season, averaging 16.6 points per game. He also led the team with 115 assists. 

Coffey was a key piece in the Gophers’ best NCAA tournament finish since 2013. In March, the Hopkins, native scored 18 points in Minnesota’s 86-76 second round victory over Louisville and a team-high 27 points in the Gophers’ third round loss to Michigan State.

The Gophers head into the 2019-20 season with just two of their starters from a year ago, incoming sophomores Gabe Kalscheur and Daniel Oturu. Along with Coffey, Minnesota lost starters and graduating seniors Jordan Murphy and Dupree McBrayer.