North Carolina freshman forward Day’Ron Sharpe will enter the NBA draft, he announced Wednesday afternoon with a post on Twitter.

Sharpe, who is 6-foot-11 and 250 pounds, averaged 9.5 points and 7.6 rebounds for the Tar Heels this season, also averaging 19.1 minutes per game.

“First, I would like to give thanks to God for allowing me to be here today,” Sharpe wrote in his tweet. “This has really been a journey. I would also like to give a special thanks to all those who have pushed me to a be a better man and player. Thank you to my parents for being my biggest supporters. It hasn’t been easy to maintain good grades, practice and training every day in a time such as this, but with the help of you all and God, I was able to do it.

“I’ve always said that I wanted to go to UNC. I received plenty of offers, but chose to wait for UNC to offer me – believe me, I don’t regret that decision. In this past year I’ve met people that I never thought would such an impact on my life. My teammates and I have worked together, loved together, laughed, played and cried together. I love the bond we’ve created, I also really want to thank the coaching staff for believing that I would be a great addition to the team.

“I feel that I’m now ready for the next level. I’ve made it this far and there’s no reason for me to stop now! I may be saying this for the rest of my life, but I’ll say it again: Thank you mom and dad, thank you family and friends, thank you coaches, trainers, teachers and fans. This is only the beginning of a dream I have worked so hard to accomplish. With that being said, I will be declaring for the NBA draft with high hopes for the support of my Carolina family. Once a Tar Heel, always a Tar Heel!”

A native of Greenville, NC, Sharpe scored in double figures in 12 games, with highs of 25 in a win over Notre Dame in December and 21 in a win over Louisville in February. He grabbed 10 or more rebounds in a game eight times and his best overall performances were 25 and 10 versus the Irish and 21 and 11 versus the Cardinals.

“Day’Ron is going to be a fantastic professional player,” UNC head coach Roy Williams said in a release. “I loved coaching him. He has a tremendously high motor. He’s naturally one of the greatest rebounders I’ve ever coached and a young man I truly just enjoyed. I think over the next few years if he gets even a little more disciplined, a little more focused, we are going to see an unbelievable player at the professional level, just like I think he had a chance to be an unbelievable player here for us. I loved coaching him and will cheer for him forever.”

Sharpe currently leads the country in offensive rebound percentage (.183) and the ACC in offensive rebounds (3.4 per game). Sharpe tied for the team lead in blocks (26), was second in rebounding, third in steals (23) and fourth in scoring.

Sharpe shot 51.9 percent from the floor, missing his only two three-point attempts, and 50.5 percent from the free throw line. He started four games and played in all 29 for the 18-11 Tar Heels. He is projected by most draft boards to go late in the first round.