Shamorie Ponds declares for draft but won’t turn back on St. John’s

OMAHA, Neb. — The expected became a reali🎀ty𒉰 Saturday afternoon. St. John’s star Shamorie Ponds will test the NBA draft waters without hiring an agent, , but that doesn’t mean the sophomore guard is leaving Queens for good.

The 6-foot-1 southpaw from Brooklyn, an All-Big East first-team selection who led the league in scoring, is taking advantage of the system in place that allows himಌ to get evaluated by NBA teams while maintaining his eligibility.

“As a kid growing up, my dream was to play in the NBA,” Ponds wrote in the Instagram post. “I would like to thank the St. John’s University coaching staff for putting me in a position to succeed and achieve my goal. … My plan is to get as much NBA experience and knowledge as possible. In addition, I do not want to close any doors. I’d like to keep all options open.”

Players like Ponds who don’t hire an agent have 10 days after the NBA Draft Combine, held May 1ꦇ6-20 in Chicago, to either keep their name in the draft or return to school.

“It makes perfect sense [to do this], because that’s what the rule is for,” his father Shawn told The Post in a phone interview. “You can 💧go around, see🅰 what they think about you, and they give you an evaluation.

“At this point, I think he’ll be back.”

Shawn Ponds said his son will remain in classes at St. John’s and continue to train there. The family met with St. John’s coach Chris Mullin,ℱ who endorsed the decision.

“He wants us to explore 🐟all the possibilities,” Shawn Ponds said.

Ponds had a stellar sophomore season — leading the Big East in sco✨ring at 21.6 points per game, and also averaging 5.0 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 2.3 steals. He led the Red Storm to a strong finish after an 0-11 start in league play, keying upsets of elite opꩵponents Duke and Villanova.

Still, his name isn’t on any mock drafts for 2018. Two scouts recently told The Post it would be in his best interest to stay in school for another year to up his 42 percent shooting percentage, get stronger, improve his decision-making and further develop his playmaking abilities as a point guard. One of the scouts said he believes Ponds could get invited to the combine, depending on who declares for the draft and which players pass on the event. Anoꦿther factor is Ponds is a true sophomore in age, just 19 years old. He never reclassified like so many prospects often do.

The expectation within the p༒rogram is that Ponds will return. The Saturday announcement didn’t get catch anybody off guard. It was expected. It would t♕ake Ponds shooting up draft boards for him to remain in the draft. He won’t be leaving school to be a second-round pick, his father said.

“That’s not going to happen,” Shawn Ponds said.