Citing “a bunch of anxiety and depression problems” that started when he was arrested for shoplifting in China before his collegiate debut, UCLA redshirt junior forward Jalen Hill said Tuesday that he is retiring from basketball.
Hill made his announcement during a six-minute Instagram video, acknowledging that he did not speak publicly earlier because he did not want to distract from his team’s run to the Final Four. He had departed the Bruins in early February, with the team citing personal reasons.
“I just had to distance myself because the headspace I was in, it was damaging the team,” Hill said in the video.