Ron Patterson to transfer from IU

Ron Patterson, a member of Indiana’s 2012 basketball recruiting class that came to be known as “The Movement,” will not join his fellow recruits in suiting up for IU this season due to not meeting academic standards in his summer school classes and will transfer from IU.

Patterson, a 6-foot-3-inch guard from Broad Ripple High School in Indianapolis, committed to IU two years ago Wednesday, becoming the second member of “The Movement” after center Peter Jurkin.

Chris Hawkins, one of Patterson’s coaches with the Amateur Athletic Union team Indiana Elite, confirmed there is no NCAA eligibility issue at play in this case.

“We think very highly of Ron and will continue to work with him as allowed to help him reach his goals,” IU Coach Tom Crean said in a statement released Wednesday. “He has the chance to do some special things for himself and his family, and we will be supportive of whatever he chooses to do.”

Patterson is exploring a number of possibilities, including attending a preparatory school for a year or transferring to another four-year university.

Hawkins said several prep schools have already contacted Patterson to inquire about his situation and his interest in playing for them.

He has not yet been released from his IU scholarship, but Hawkins said he thinks the process will occur soon. The final verdict on Patterson’s status came Wednesday morning.

Hawkins said this development is unrelated to the team’s oversign of 14 players for 13 scholarships.

If he attends a prep school for a year, Patterson could theoretically commit to IU again as a member of the class of 2013. However, Hawkins said IU already has four commitments in that class and could only lose three players to graduation if Maurice Creek returns for a fifth year at IU. The team is also known to already be recruiting several more players for the class of 2013.

Hawkins said this is not the first instance in which academics threatened to derail Patterson from joining the team and that Patterson knew for several weeks of the possibility that he would not be allowed to play.

Hawkins said Patterson was “devastated” that he cannot play for IU this season but was prepared to move forward.

“You’ve got to understand you’ve got to do what you’re supposed to do,” Hawkins said. “Now you just sit back, think about everything and go from there. Lesson learned.”