Xaivian Lee’s time with the Princeton men’s basketball team has come to an end.
Lee will enter the transfer portal while also going through the NBA Draft process, his agent George S. Landberg told On3Sports on Friday.
The 6-4 junior point guard averaged 16.9 points, 6.1 rebounds and 5.4 assists in 30 games this season. He posted the first two recorded triple-doubles in program history (at St. Joe’s and vs. Penn) and was a unanimous First Team All-Ivy selection. Lee ranks 17th all-time in program history with 1,154 points.
The Toronto native was one of the most popular players in the Ivy League in his three seasons on Old Nassau thanks to his style of play and social media following. Crowds of youngsters filled the corners of Jadwin Gym seeking autographs after games, all of which Lee handled in stride.
“He’s just unique. There’s no one else really (like him) in college basketball,” St. Joe’s coach Billy Lange said after Lee posted an 18-13-10 triple-double. “He’s got like the moxie of Devin Booker. There just aren’t many guys who I’ve gone against who are like him.”
Lee had his breakout campaign as a sophomore when he averaged 17.1 points, 5.7 rebounds and 3.2 assists, but opted to return to school after going through the NBA Draft process.
His agent told On3Sports he’ll go through the draft process once again. If he does return to school, it will certainly be at a Power 5 program.
There were high expectations this season with Lee and Caden Pierce both returning for their junior seasons, but the Tigers were inconsistent in Ivy League play and ended up finishing in fourth place. Even though they snuck into the Ivy League Tournament with a win on the final day of the regular season, a second-half rally in the semifinal came up short against Yale with the game ending when Lee’s 3-pointer to win at the buzzer rimmed out.
Lee’s departure follows a coaching staff shakeup in which a pair of assistants didn’t have their contracts renewed.
