Auburn freshman point guard Tahaad Pettiford will declare for the NBA draft while maintaining his college eligibility, a source with knowledge of the decision confirmed to AL.com.

ESPN’s Jonathan Givony was first to report the news.

Pettiford told ESPN that if he returns to college, he’ll play for Auburn next season. He’ll have until May 28 to decide whether or not to withdraw from the draft to remain eligible for next season. Pettiford is currently the No. 39 overall prospect in ESPN’s NBA draft rankings.

Pettiford just finished off his freshman season at Auburn, in which he averaged 11.6 points and three assists per game, shooting 42.1% from the field and 36.6% from 3-point range.

He was particularly impressive for the Tigers in the NCAA tournament, averaging 15.2 points per game. That included a 23-point outing against Creighton in the Round of 32 and a 20-point outing versus Michigan in the Sweet 16.

Many of his best games came against top opposition, including those two tournament games, a 21-point outing at Kentucky, 18 points against Purdue, 20 points at Duke and 21 points in Game 2 of the season against Houston.

Peter Rauterkus covers Auburn sports for AL.com. You can follow him on X at @peter_rauterkus or email him at [email protected]m