Jaylen Brown declares for NBA draft after one season at Cal

BERKELEY, Calif. -- California forward Jaylen Brown is leaving after one season and declaring for the NBA draft.

Brown and the school made the announcement Thursday. It was hardly a surprise, given that Brown, the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year,wasn't expected to stay at Cal beyond his freshman season.

"The journey here at Cal has been nothing short of great," Brown said in a prepared statement. "My experience here has been great. I love it here. However, I'm here to tell you that this year I'll be entering the 2016 Draft."

Brown is the No. 9 prospect on ESPN Insider Chad Ford's latest Big Board. He averaged 14.6 points and 5.4 rebounds and started all 34 games for the Golden Bears, who lost as a No. 4 seed in the first round of the NCAA tournament to Hawaii.

Brown and local Oakland prep star Ivan Rabb made up a top recruiting class for coach Cuonzo Martin, and Cal went 23-10 and tied for third place in the Pac-12 at 12-6.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.