Kentucky Wildcats guard, De’Aaron Fox, declared for the 2017 NBA Draft and said he is completely ready for the next level.

Fox, a Freshman player at Kentucky, was expected to be a one and done player even before he signed with UK coach, John Calipari. According to Fox though, he did not decide to declare for the draft until he performed well in the NCAA Tournament.

“If I needed another year, I would have done it,” explained Fox. “I wouldn’t have forced my way into the draft If I wasn’t ready. But honestly, it was really just the competitiveness coming out of me. Even if I knew I was going one year, that loss [in the Elite Eight] would have still hurt because that was our chance to win a national championship. That was our goal with all of us freshmen coming together. So that was really just the competitiveness coming out of me. I was angry that we lost. I kind of knew that was my last ride, but that doesn’t stop my competitive juices from flowing.”

Fox is projected to be a top 10 pick in many mock drafts. He is believed to be the third point guard selected behind University of California Los Angeles phenom, Lonzo Ball, and Washington University standout, Markelle Fultz. Fox said he was not bothered by the possibility of being drafted behind Ball and Fultz. He thoroughly outplayed Lonzo Ball in the NCAA Tournament although Kentucky lost to UCLA earlier in the year.