Kansas’ Tharpe to transfer for final season

Kansas point guard Naadir Tharpe will transfer closer to home for his final season of eligibility, the school announced Thursday.

“Naadir and I have talked numerous times since he’s been here about his role and about his situation back home with his daughter,” coach Bill Self said in a statement. “He’s told me many times how much he misses his little girl and she’s had some health issues that has certainly made it difficult for him to be away from her for this extended period of time. She’s doing very well now, but Naadir approached me after the season was over about him wanting to be closer to her. This is his decision to try and accomplish that.”

Tharpe made his first career start in the second game of the 2013-14 season, leading the Jayhawks to a win against fourth-ranked Duke in Chicago’s United Center. A rough stretch of play in non-conference action kept him from the starting lineup for two games before the 5-foot-11 Worcester, Mass., guard took over as floor general for the remainder of the season.

With Tharpe at point guard, Kansas went 25-10 overall and 14-4 in Big 12 play to capture its 10th consecutive regular-season conference title in 2013-14.

In January of his freshman season, Tharpe’s daughter, Amara, was born.

“Due to extenuating circumstances within my personal life, I will no longer be attending the University of Kansas,” Tharpe said. “My daughter has current medical issues that require weekly visits to her physician, as well as with a specialist. At this juncture, I feel it is best to be closer to home where I can assist and support in any way necessary.”

For his career, Tharpe played in 103 games for Kansas with 31 starts. He averaged 5.5 minutes during the Jayhawks’ 2011-12 Final Four season and 19.4 minutes with a 5.5 scoring average his sophomore season in 2012-13. He averaged 5.1 points for his career.

Tharpe drew a one-game suspension before the season when he played in an unauthorized summer league game.