Missouri sophomore forward Johnathan Williams III asked to be released on Tuesday. He plans on transferring to another school.
The release comes after assistant head coach Tim Fuller announced last week that he wasn’t returning to the school next season. Fuller helped recruit Williams along with former Missouri head coach Frank Haith. Fuller leaving wasn’t related to Williams’ decision. Williams thought that he wasn’t developing enough as a player and didn’t mesh with his teammates on or off the court, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. That led him to ask to be released from his scholarship.
“The thought process is that he said wanted to grow a little bit more,” Johnny Williams, Williams III’s father said. “He spoke with (Anderson) and the coach assured him that he’s the go-to guy. But Johnathan felt like he needed to spread his wings a little bit more and grow. His role wasn’t bad because he could shoot the ball whenever he got his shot. He got his rebounds. He wanted to grow more. He felt like he wasn’t growing like he should at this time in his career.”
Williams is a native of Memphis. He chose to go to Missouri over Georgetown, Memphis, Michigan State, and Tennessee. In his two seasons at Missouri he played in every game. This season Williams averaged 11.9 points and 7.1 rebounds, according to CBS Sports. He also averaged 0.6 blocks per game. He led Missouri in scoring (11.9) and rebounding (7.1) as a sophomore. Missouri was 9-23 this season.
It is unknown where Williams will transfer. He will have to sit out the 2015-16 season if he transfers to another Division I program. Williams has two years of eligibility left.