Former Kansas University standout Ben McLemore, left, works out with Greg St. Jean, a developmental coach with the NBA’s Sacramento Kings, Thursday May 8, 2014, at Allen Fieldhouse. McLemore is back in Lawrence and is planning to take summer classes after his rookie season with the Kings.

Ben McLemore’s friends in the NBA teased him a bit at season’s end when he said he was planning on returning to Lawrence for a long stay.

“When I tell everybody I’m going back to Kansas, they think, ‘Oh, you are going back to go back.’ I’m like, ‘No, I’m going back to work on my classes and get my degree.’ When I tell them that, they’re shocked (and say) ‘Wow, that’s a good thing to do,'” said the 21-year-old former Kansas University wing who just completed his rookie season with the Sacramento Kings.

“A lot of people wait two years until they start trying to go back and it’s too late,” McLemore added. “That makes it even harder to do. I have this opportunity to come back and make it easier for me to do (graduate).”

McLemore estimates he needs about 48 hours to land his degree in a yet-to-be-determined field.

“I’m trying to figure out what I want to do when basketball stuff is all over,” said the 6-foot-5 St. Louis native, who averaged 8.8 points off 37.6 percent shooting while logging a healthy 26.7 minutes a game in 82 games. “Something I can fall back on,” added McLemore, the seventh overall pick in the 2013 Draft who made $2,413,300 last year and will earn $2,521,900 next season. “I’m still working on that. I have time.”

He outlined his reasons he wants to land a college degree.

“It’s very important to me, for anybody to get their degree, especially their college degree,” McLemore said. “Also it’d put a big smile on my mom’s face and my family.”

McLemore — he said he’s rented a “little townhome here” for the summer — also plans on working out individually (Kings staffer Greg St. Jean helped him on Thursday in Allen Fieldhouse) and with KU’s players all summer long.

“I can. I don’t have a problem with that,” McLemore said, asked if he’d take KU’s wings under his wing. “I’m also going to train for myself. I think this will be a big summer for me to get better, work on my game and get better for next season.”

He said he’s looking to improve on all facets.

“The things I needed to work on here at the University of Kansas are the same things I need to work on in the NBA. Everybody is a lot faster, stronger, little things like that,” McLemore said. “Everybody all the way down the bench can play. That’s what I learned through the whole season.”

McLemore said he’s willing to put in the hours needed to be a standout player.

“Everybody knows I like to work hard and learn. I had ups and downs throughout the season,” he said, noting 82 games are “a lot of games especially coming from college where you play 30-plus games. I stuck with it. I finished the season strong. That’s the main thing, finishing up strong, and that’s what I did.”

He’s no longer a rookie and that’s a big relief for McLemore.

“It’s all fun and games,” he said of rookie hazing. “What vets, a lot of older guys do to the rookies … I had to wear a pink backpack — Hello Kitty — it was cool. It was all right. I’m glad I’m out of it now.”

Langford honored: Former KU guard Keith Langford has been named winner of the Alphonso Ford top scorer trophy in the Euroleague. Langford, who averaged 17.6 ppg for Emporio Armani Milan in Italy, was also named first-team all-Euroleague.