Elijah Stewart will return to USC after deciding against filing NBA draft paperwork

USC guard Elijah Stewart did not file his paperwork to declare for the NBA draft and will return to USC, Stewart said on Tuesday.

Stewart had initially said he would declare without hiring an agent, which would allow him to return to USC. But he never felt fully committed. At the time, he told The Times he was likely to return to USC.

Stewart’s return means only two USC players have declared for the draft: forward Bennie Boatwright and guard Shaqquan Aaron. Neither has hired an agent.

A report by the website Draft Express said Stewart did not declare because he forgot to file his draft paperwork. Stewart disputed that report, saying on Twitter that he was busy studying for exams. “No one forgot,” he said.

He later told The Times that such reports were “just ridiculous.”

Privately, Stewart was never seriously contemplating remaining in the draft. Initial rumors of his flirtation with the draft, which emerged while Stewart was still awaiting feedback from coaches and evaluators, caught him off guard, he said. He decided he would declare to end speculation but admitted at the time he wasn’t familiar with the process and expressed concern that the workout process would conflict with his schoolwork.

Stewart was a starter for a Trojans team that won two NCAA tournament games last season. He hit the game-winning three-pointer in a first-round win over Southern Methodist. Now, he’ll return as a senior to one of USC’s deepest backcourts in years.

zach.helfand@latimes.com

Follow Zach Helfand on Twitter @zhelfand