OU men's basketball sophomore forward Ryan Humphrey announced Monday that he was granted permission by OU head coach Kelvin Sampson to transfer to another university.

"I have a lot of respect for the coaching staff and the players," Humphrey said. "This was hard for me to do. I still feel that I will have good friends on this team and in the coaching staff. This is just something I have to do for myself."

Sampson said Humphrey's request was a surprise to him.

"Ryan was a good player for us and a good kid," he said. "It came as a surprise to me, but kids are allowed to make decisions. I wish him the best. Ryan Humphrey will go on, and I hope he will have a good career somewhere, and Oklahoma will continue on and will do fine."

Humphrey said it is hard to say how long he has been considering leaving OU.

"When I sit back and look at the season, it wasn't like what I wanted it to be," he said. "I have to get to a new environment."

OU forward Eduardo Najera said Humphrey commented a few weeks ago about leaving the Sooners, but he said he did not take his teammate seriously.

"He mentioned it a couple of times at the end of the season, but I thought he was kidding," Najera said. "That's why I didn't pay attention to it. I thought he would be here next year."

Humphrey said he does not know where he will go, but he said Sampson told him if he does not decide to go somewhere else, he will still be welcome at OU. Humphrey said he has not ruled that option out.

"Anything is possible," he said. "I'm not closing any doors."

OU center Victor Avila said the coaches and players do not want to lose Humphrey, but they also want him to be happy.

"It would help us if he stayed, but if he's not happy, it would be hard for him to get up and go to practice," Avila said. "The main thing is for him to be happy, and I hope he gets a place where he is happy."

Humphrey said his decision is not because of a fight with the coaching staff or the other players.

"It's nothing against my teammates. I love those guys," he said. "It's nothing against my teammates or the coaching staff."

Najera said he has no hard feelings toward Humphrey for wanting to leave.

"Not at all. I just think that he's not happy here," Najera said. "I don't know the reason. He's been just like family to us, and that's the way he feels about us, too. But there's no hard feelings with anybody, it's just that he's not happy with his role."

Sampson said he is very close to each of his players, and he will be friends with Humphrey no matter what he decides to do.

"I'll always support Ryan," Sampson said. "No matter where he goes, I'll be very supportive and will have no ill feelings whatsoever. I just wish Ryan all the best."
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