Purdue senior and Boilermaker legacy Kendall Stephens has been granted his release to examine options to transfer from the program for his final season of eligibility, following a tumultuous junior season.
Matt Painter, though, told Stephens last week that he can maintain the option to return if he so chooses.
“Kendall has asked for his release to explore the possibility of transferring, but he remains a member of our team and the door remains open for his return,” Painter said in a released statement. “Right now, he is weighing his options.”
Stephens, a key contributor for Purdue his freshman and sophomore years, fell out of the Boilermakers' playing rotation following his return from a three-game leave of absence taken from the team mid-season, taken for personal reasons related to the death of a close friend.
As Painter said often, "it was the best thing for him as a person," but set him back from a basketball perspective. Sophomore Dakota Mathias and freshman Ryan Cline had already impacted Stephens' minutes prior to his leave, before which Stephens had played a career-low nine minutes against Penn State, followed two games later by a new-low five vs. Ohio State.
After returning to the team, Stephens played in only four of the Boilermakers' final 12 games, totaling just 23 minutes, 12 of which came in the Big Ten Tournament blowout of Illinois.
Stephens, the son of former Purdue star Everette Stephens, averaged 21.5 minutes over his first two seasons, despite playing through assorted injury, and made 137 three-pointers on 37.7-percent shooting and averaged 8.4 points over that time. He started 32 of the 66 games he played in those two seasons.
His highlight this season, though, came early in the season, when he made a series of second-half three-pointers against Old Dominion to separate Purdue en route to a dominant win at the Hall of Fame Tip-Off.
Stephens has been considering his transfer options since the end of the season, but Purdue had left the option on the table for him to return if he so chose.
IUPUI might be a consideration for Stephens, who'd have to sit out a year to play one season, barring an immediate-eligibility waiver of some kind.
Stephens was slated to be Purdue's only returning scholarship senior next season, at least as of right now. Purdue is actively recruiting fifth-year transfers.
Should Stephens depart, he'd join redshirt freshman Grant Weatherford as those that have left the program this off-season thus far.
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