Indiana's Jerome Hunter Won't Return for 2021-22 Season

Jerome Hunter spent three years at Indiana, playing off the bench the past two seasons after a mysterious leg injury sidelined him his freshman year. He's leaving the program.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana's athletic department announced on Thursday that Hoosiers forward Jerome Hunter will not return to the team this season.

“We appreciate everything that Jerome has done as a member of the program and wish him nothing but the best in the future,” Indiana coach Mike Woodson said in a statement from the school.

Hunter, a 6-foot-7 redshirt sophomore forward from Pickerington, Ohio, has spent three years in the Indiana program during Archie Miller's tenure. He missed his entire first season with a mysterious leg injury, and played off the bench in the 2019-20 season, averaging 3.8 points and 2.1 rebounds per game.

Hunter played in 25 games this season, and he started four games late in the year when Armaan Franklin went down with ankle and foot injuries. But he was also suspended for two games by Miller for violating team rules. He came to hit a huge shot in his first game, the double-overtime win at Indiana.

When Miller got a chance to start and play a lot in Indiana's final six games, he didn't play particularly well. He was 4-for-22 from three, 18 percent. And the Hoosiers lostd all six games.

Miller was fired on March 15, and at the time several Indiana players entered their name into the NCAA transfer portal. Franklin left for Virginia, Al Durham went to Providence, and Joey Brunk went to Ohio State.

Race Thompson, Khristian Lander, Jordan Geronimo and Parker Stewart all entered the portal as well, but returned to the Hoosiers after Woodson, an all-time great Indiana player who has played and coached in the NBA for nearly 40 years, was named head coach on March 29.

Indiana has also since added several other pieces to the roster, including transfers Xavier Johnson (Pitt) and Miller Kopp (Northwestern), plus standout recruit Tamar Bates. All of the moves could have affected Hunter's playing time going forward.

Indiana was full at 13 scholarships before Hunter's departure. They have been actively pursuing other players to add this year, so with Hunter leaving, another transaction could soon follow.

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• FINAL GRADES: Breaking down Jerome Hunter's 2020-21 season with Indiana, and a final grade as well. CLICK HERE
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