PSN Talks to Jared Wilson-Frame About His Release From Pitt

Another day and another player has asked for his release from the Pitt basketball program.

A couple of days ago, Jared Wilson-Frame requested a release from this scholarship and now we’re learning Pitt has indeed granted his wish.

Some believed that the Pitt administration would delay granting a release to anyone until a new coach was hired. The full release seems to imply that Wilson-Frame is free to transfer to a school of his choice.

Following his release, PSN spoke to Wilson-Frame about the release and what’s in store for his future.

Jared Wilson-Frame (0) February 21, 2018 — DAVID HAGUE

“I didn’t start thinking about doing this until a few days ago,” he said. “At first, I took time to reflect on the past season and on Coach. We all wanted Coach Stallings to return and we all looked forward to our futures together. We knew that we could be good going forward. We might not have been as good as we all wanted to be next season, but we would be solid and continue to get better going forward and after I was gone. I talked with all the guys and reflected on things and talked about what we all were going to do moving forward.”

If Wilson-Frame leaves Pitt after just one season, that’ll be a bit unusual for a college basketball player. But it’s not something totally foreign to Wilson-Frame.

“This is something I’m actually used to having gone through it in prep school,” he said. “It’s not like I’m new to it, but this situation has been harder mentally. This was more difficult because it’s a higher level. Everything was picked apart and we seemed to be in a fish bowl all season.”

While Kevin Stallings wasn’t a popular figure among the Pitt fan base, he was loved by his players. Although he only played for him just one season, Stallings is someone that left a major impression on Wilson-Frame.

“I talked to him the day of (the firing) and then talked again a couple of days later,” Wilson-Frame said. “The conversation was really hard because coming from a junior-college and a place that I didn’t feel like I trusted my old coach much and didn’t feel that comfortable to finally get a guy like him.

“When things weren’t going well for me and when I was mad or in a mood and negative, he was always there to pick me up and I built a love for him as a person let alone as a basketball coach. That was the thing I wanted to express to him the most was how he impacted me as a person and how he helped me moving forward dealing with difficult situations.”

In his first season at Pitt, Wilson-Frame led the Panthers in scoring with 13 points per game. The junior college transfer started 23 games this season and will probably draw plenty of interest because of his ability to score and value from three-point range.

As many as nine players have requested their released from Pitt. A couple of days ago, freshman guard Parker Stewart received the news that he was free to shop himself around and Friday, PSN reported that seven more players requested their release.

Jared Wilson-Frame(0) goes in for the layup as the Pitt Panthers take on West Virginia on December 9, 2017 — DAVID HAGUE

Being granted a release does not definitively mean that a player will transfer. Signees Danya Kingsby and Bryce Golden have also requested their release from the program.

So, is Wilson-Frame definitely leaving or depending on the coach, could he decide to return for his senior season?

“I’m definitely waiting to see who gets hired because that will have a big impact on things, I might come back,” he said.

Corey Evans from Rivals.com was first to report that Pitt had granted Wilson-Frame his full release.