Purdue Forward Vince Edwards Withdraws from 2016 NBA Draft

While it was expected, Purdue forward Vince Edwards has announced that he has withdrawn from the 2016 NBA Draft and will be returning to Purdue for his junior season.

Purdue's Vince Edwards has withdrawn from the NBA Draft, school announces.

— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanESPN) May 24, 2016

This isn't a huge surprise, with the thought process being that Edwards was utilizing the draft process as a way to work out with NBA teams, get some feedback on his game and continue to work towards a potential career at the NBA level in the future. While Edwards is one of the best players on the Purdue roster, he wasn't projected to be drafted and was low enough on most prospect rankings that the idea of him bolting for the NBA this year made little sense, leading most to assume he'd return when everything was said and done.

That being said, the current rules pertaining to the draft did allow Edwards to meet and workout with NBA teams, providing valuable feedback and potential contacts for the future. Edwards took advantage of the current rules and ended up working out for a number of teams, including the Boston Celtics, Memphis Grizzlies and Utah Jazz.

""After getting the NBA experience and going through the evaluation process, I have talked with my family and Coach Painter and decided it is best for me to return for my junior year. Although the NBA is still a dream for me one day, I am coming back to Purdue to make next year a special one," mentioned Edwards in a release announcing his decision to return next season.

The decision to return to Purdue makes a ton of sense for Edwards, especially as it's still a tad early for the forward to head to the pros. As of late the Big Ten has been producing more and more NBA prospects that have spent more than one or two seasons at the college level and the idea of Edwards developing into a future draft pick is a realistic possibility. The versatile wing averaged 11.3 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game for the Boilermakers while averaging 45% from the field, 40.7% from three and 82% from the free throw line.

Now that Purdue knows for sure that Edwards will return, the fan base will keep an eye on Caleb Swanigan. Swanigan is more of a toss up and could end up staying in the draft, with his decision needing to be made by tomorrow at the latest if he is going to return to Purdue in 2016-17.