Forward Lloyd Pandi is leaving the Carleton Ravens men’s basketball team and entering the 2022 NBA draft, the star forward announced in a social media post Sunday.
Pandi, 22, was named U Sports Player of the Year earlier this month. He won his second national championship in as many seasons with the Ravens on April 3 in Edmonton, Alta.
In his first U Sports season in 2019-20, Pandi won Rookie of the Year. He redshirted for the Ravens in 2018-19.
“I am grateful for the opportunity given to me by coach [Dave] Smart to develop my game in the city that made me—Ottawa,” Pandi, an Ottawa native, wrote on social media. “Smart, coach Taffe [Charles] and the entire basketball staff have immensely contributed to my growth as a person, player and most importantly, as a teammate.”
Glory to God. Thank you Carleton, thank you to everyone supporting me.🙏🏾 pic.twitter.com/7XkTCmX3bc
— Lloyd Pandi (@lloydpandi) April 10, 2022
Pandi already has two years of pro experience with the Niagara River Lions and Ottawa BlackJacks of the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL). With Niagara in 2021, Pandi appeared in all 14 games and averaged 7.5 points with 42 per cent from the three-point line.
He was named CEBL U Sports Player of the Year in both 2020 and 2021.
In his career with the Ravens, Pandi averaged 15.4 points and 6.9 rebounds in the regular season. In 2021-22, he led the team with 14.7 points per game.
“Being able to have the opportunity to become a professional basketball player has always been a dream of mine,” Pandi said on the TSN 1200 3 in the Key podcast. “I managed to help this team to win two championships. At the same time, I’m almost done school, so I feel like it would be the best decision for me to leave right now.”
With Pandi’s departure, Carleton is left with a roster that bears little resemblance to what it looked like just one week ago when the Ravens won the national championship. Pandi was a leader on the team and joins the likes of veterans Alain Louis and Grant Shephard in leaving Carleton this season.
Now, the Ravens will have to turn to two new starters in the 2022-23 season.
The NBA draft will take place June 23.
Featured image by L. Manuel Baechlin.
