UPDATED: Dec. 7, 2017 at 1:16 a.m.

Former Syracuse graduate transfer Geno Thorpe left the program last week because of his “slow-to-heal” right ankle, which contributed to diminished playing time, his father, Gene, said.

Syracuse announced Friday that Thorpe, who arrived at SU as the team’s most experienced player, had left the program due to “personal reasons.” Multiple sources told The Daily Orange last week Thorpe left the program because he was unhappy with his playing time.

An injury to his right ankle in the preseason reduced his playing time, which led to him being unhappy and leaving the program, his father said. He played a season-low four minutes against Maryland last Monday, his sixth and final game with the Orange.

Thorpe left Penn State at the end of the 2014-15 season because he said he didn’t play the minutes he was promised when recruited.

Thorpe did not reply to two phone calls and a text message seeking comment.

Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim declined through a spokesperson further comment other than the tweet below.

Thorpe’s ankle injury decelerated his progression into the SU backcourt, his father said. Thorpe said before the season that he wanted to be a starter. He came off the bench in each of Syracuse’s games during which he was a member of the team, averaging 14.3 minutes and six points per game.

“It all started with his injury,” Gene said. “It was slow to heal. He wasn’t healing much at all. That’s all. It’s unfortunate that it happened.”

After the Syracuse-Maryland game last Monday, Thorpe asked Boeheim to set up a meeting. Thorpe told his father over the phone that night that he would meet with Boeheim “soon.” Gene said Thorpe called him “early last week” to tell him he had quit the team. Gene said he is still not exactly sure why and has not spoken with his son for a “couple of days.”

“Everything went downhill after the Maryland game,” Gene said. “Next thing I know, I get a call from Geno and he’s not on the team. In retrospect, he probably should have let the ankle heal fully before trying to play.”

Thorpe, who led South Florida in scoring last season as a senior, has Von Willebrand disease, Gene said, which, according to The Mayo Clinic, is a lifelong bleeding disorder in which blood doesn’t clot well. Most people with the disease are born with it, though its warning signs may not show up for years. Results include abnormal swelling and pain.

It can make healing from injuries like Thorpe’s difficult, Gene said. Geno had planned to be back at 100 percent sooner, but the injury nagged him for weeks. He did not have his normal speed or quickness, Gene said. That led to diminished playing time and a “frustrated” Thorpe, his father said.

“He just doesn’t have his push off of his ankle yet,” Boeheim said after the second exhibition game. “He’s just had a couple of days of practice really, in the last 14, so I think it will take him a while.”

“He’s good with the ball,” Boeheim said last month. “He doesn’t have his explosiveness, and he needs that. It will probably take some time.”

“Physically, I feel pretty ready,” Thorpe said last month. “Right now my ankle is still working back to 100 percent.”

Thorpe’s departure leaves SU with three scholarship guards: junior Frank Howard, sophomore Tyus Battle and freshman Howard Washington. The graduate transfer was brought in from South Florida to provide depth, and was a part of Syracuse’s three-guard lineups, with Howard and Battle.

As for whether Thorpe will continue his graduate study at SU, where he is taking one class that meets once per week, his father said: “I doubt it.”

“There’s a big hole in my stomach,” Gene said. “It’s unfortunate.”

This post has been updated with appropriate style.

Published on December 7, 2017 at 12:42 am

Contact Matthew: [email protected] | @MatthewGut21