Guard Melvin Council Jr., who tentatively agreed to an Exhibit 10 contract with the Pelicans in June after he didn’t hear his name called during the draft, was granted a preliminary injunction to play a fifth college season and will “immediately” begin practicing with Kansas, head coach Bill Self said in a statement from the men’s basketball program (Twitter link).

“Melvin was the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year last season, and had a major impact on our program off and on the court,” Self added. “He brings a lot of experience and leadership to our roster, and we are excited to welcome him back.”

According to Jeff Borzello of ESPN (Twitter link), Council was granted the preliminary injunction last week. He’s the second former Jayhawk who is attempting to return to Kansas for a fifth college season, along with Tre White, who played for the Heat’s Summer League team and began practicing with the Jayhawks last week.

Council, 24, played in three Summer League contests with New Orleans in July, averaging 8.0 points, 3.7 assists, 1.7 rebounds and 1.3 steals in 23.6 minutes per game. He was a full-time starter for Kansas last season, averaging 12.7 PPG, 5.1 APG, 5.0 RPG and 1.0 SPG in 35 games (34.8 MPG).

While Council drew pre-draft praise for his athleticism and competitiveness, evaluators noted that he needed to become a more efficient offensive player — his shooting line was .405/.291/.775 over the last three seasons. Council played two years of junior college basketball prior to joining the NCAA ranks, where he spent time with Wagner and St. Bonaventure before transferring to Kansas.