Murray State’s
Cameron Payne announced Monday that he will enter the 2015 National Basketball Association draft, thus ended one of the greatest two-year careers in Racer Basketball history.
Payne, a sophomore from Memphis, made the announcement at MSU’s CFSB Center – Murray Room with teammates, fans and media in attendance.
Payne recorded one of the best two seasons in school history. In the 2014-15 season, he was the leading scorer in the Ohio Valley Conference at 20.2 points per game and 13th in NCAA D-I. His 6.0 assists per game ranked 13th. He scored 707 points to become the second player at Murray State to reach 700. Payne’s 209 assists made him the second to reach 200 and he was only three off the record. According to KenPom.com, Payne was third ranked nationally in efficiency behind only Frank Kaminsky of Wisconsin and Tyler Haws of BYU.
At season’s end, Payne was lauded as Associated Press Honorable Mention All-America and was the Lute Olson National Player of the Year. He was the Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year as a sophomore after being named OVC Freshman of the Year.
The NBA Draft will take place June 25.
Payne is the first sophomore from the OVC to enter the NBA Draft and one of just four OVC players all-time to enter the NBA Draft with eligibility remaining and remain in the draft. He joins Murray State's Michael McDuffen (1982), Austin Peay's Trenton Hassell (2001), Tennessee State's Bruce Price (2008) and Tennessee Tech's Darnell Lindsay (2009); Hassell was the only one of that group to be drafted. Numerous other OVC players have declared for the NBA Draft only to withdraw and return to school.