LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Kansas forward Silvio de Sousa is opting out of the upcoming college basketball season, potentially ending what has been one of the most controversial tenures of any player to have joined coach Bill Self’s blueblood program.
Self said in a statement that de Sousa was opting out to “focus on matters in his personal life.” Self added that it became clear in recent workouts that de Sousa was distracted, and after the two of them talked recently, “it was clear this was the best decision for him and Kansas basketball to leave the program.”
De Sousa said in a statement on social media that he is unsure what direction his career will take him.
De Sousa joined the Jayhawks midway through the 2017-18 season and helped them to reach the Final Four. But he was forced to sit out the next season amid eligibility questions after his name surfaced in the FBI probe into college basketball corruption, then served a 12-game suspension last year for his role in a brawl against Kansas State.
