The Pitt Panthers have lost their projected starting point guard for the upcoming basketball season.
Dior Johnson, who had transferred to Pitt last summer, has been kicked out of school.
According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Noah Hiles, Johnson was dismissed from the school by university officials, and by anyone associated with the athletics department. The school reportedly feared backlash due to Johnson’s previous criminal activity.
Johnson was a four-star recruit from the 2022 class and committed to Pitt after decommitting from Syracuse and Oregon. He took a redshirt year last season after going through a criminal issue.
The 19-year-old was arrested in October 2022 for a domestic incident in which a woman accused Johnson of holding her in her apartment against her will, slapping, pushing and punching her because he was upset she got his phone wet.
Johnson was initially suspended indefinitely by the team. He pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor counts of simple assault and strangulation and was later reinstated by the team, though he never played in a game last season.
Johnson had been practicing with Pitt and even joined the program for a trip to Spain where they played two exhibition games. He played in both games but was then kicked out of school at some point after returning.
Johnson bounced around in high school, playing for nine different schools across five states.
