Iowa men’s basketball player CJ Fredrick entered the NCAA transfer portal Monday morning and will leave the Hawkeyes after three years with the program.

Fredrick joined the Hawkeyes as a walk-on rather than accepting a scholarship to other Division I programs. Eventually becoming a scholarship player for Iowa, Fredrick started 52 games at guard over the past two seasons.

“After talking with coach [Fran] McCaffery and with the statement released this morning from the University of Iowa, I have entered my name into the transfer portal,” Fredrick said in a prepared statement released on Twitter Monday morning. “I have come to the difficult decision to participate in the process. Thank you coach McCaffery and the entire basketball staff, all of my teammates, and to Hawkeye Nation for giving me a chance. I gave you my best and appreciate you letting me be a part of Hawkeye Nation.”

Iowa confirmed Fredrick’s decision with a brief statement: “Iowa head coach Fran McCaffery announced Monday that junior guard CJ Fredrick has submitted his name in the NCAA transfer portal.”

With a free year of eligibility available because of COVID-19, Fredrick will have three years’ worth of eligibility remaining at his next school.

After redshirting in his first year with the program, Fredrick started every game he appeared in for the Hawkeyes. The 6-foot-3 guard from Cincinnati, Ohio, led the Big Ten Conference in 3-point percentage as a freshman (47-of-102, 46.1 percent) and improved that percentage as a sophomore (36-of-76, 47.4 percent).

Fredrick missed four full games and three second halves of other contests with plantar fasciitis last season. The injury hampered him for the final three months of the season. Fredrick did not score in Iowa’s second round NCAA Tournament loss to Oregon despite playing 17 minutes.

As a freshman, Fredrick also missed six games because foot, quad, and ankle injuries.

Fredrick has a career scoring average of 8.8 points per game. Coach Fran McCaffery also frequently referred to Fredrick as Iowa’s best perimeter defender last season.

In high school, Fredrick led Covington Catholic to the Kentucky State Championship as a senior. He was also named the 2018 Gatorade Player of the Year. Part of what drew Fredrick, a three-star recruit according to 247Sports, to Iowa was his relationship with McCaffery. Fredrick’s uncle Joe Fredrick played basketball at Notre Dame from 1986-90, which overlapped with when McCaffery was there as an assistant coach.

But now, Fredrick is the latest departure from last season’s Iowa team.

Luka Garza, the program’s all-time leading scorer, is moving on to a professional career. Joe Wieskamp is also weighing his professional options and entered his name into the NBA Draft, but did not hire an agent. Jordan Bohannon is unlikely to return for a sixth season of eligibility. And earlier this month, Jack Nunge announced he was transferring to Xavier.

Fredrick was expected to be one of Iowa’s few returning starters next season. Now, Iowa’s starting backcourt tandem will likely be some combination of Joe Toussaint, Ahron Ulis, and Tony Perkins. Connor McCaffery also has experience in the backcourt, but played forward for most of last season.