Shannon Sharpe Transferring from Colorado
Colorado Buffaloes guard Shannon Sharpe has left the program and returned to his Southern California home, likely for good. The redshirt sophomore intends to find a school near his hometown of Corona so that he can be closer to his family, according to Buffzone.com.
Sharpe saw his minutes cut in half during his sophomore season in Boulder. After logging 13.1 minutes per game as a redshirt freshman, the California native averaged just 6.4 during his third year with the program. Sharpe did not play in any of Colorado’s three Pac-12 tournament tilts or either of the Buffaloes’ two NCAA tournament games last season.
An athletic 6-foot-1 guard, Sharpe redshirted as a true freshman after suffering a knee injury during his first-ever college practice.
Sharpe cited his desire to take care of “family responsibilities” as the reason behind the transfer. The Colorado transfer endured some trying times in the years leading up to his college commencement. Both his mother and father died of heart failure while he was in high school, leaving his grandmother to raise him and his sister.
From a strictly basketball standpoint, Sharpe’s departure is not a devastating blow for the Buffaloes backcourt. The reigning Pac-12 tournament champs return freshmen Askia Booker and Spencer Dinwiddie, who together combined for 19.1 points per game last season. The freshman duo figures to be the starting backcourt for the Buffs next season, with former starter Carlon Brown—who led the team in points last season—lost to graduation.
Booker and the sharpshooting Dinwiddie will team up with rising junior Andre Roberson, who came along during his sophomore campaign to lead the Buffaloes in field goal percentage and rank second, behind only Brown, in points per game. Backcourt depth will be a hot topic for the Boulders in light of Sharpe’s sudden exodus.
If Colorado wishes to repeat as Pac-12 champions, incoming freshmen Eli Stalzer and Xavier Talton may have to take on more responsibility than initially forecast.