Former UCLA ball player Jalen Hill has died at age 22, the school affirmed early Wednesday morning.
UCLA coach Mick Cronin said in a proclamation that Hill’s death is “tragic” and said the previous Bruins forward “was a cordial young fellow with an extraordinary grin who has left us very soon.”
Hill’s family said in an Instagram post that it learned of his passing as of late after Hill disappeared in Costa Rica, however didn’t reveal further details.
“We realize Jalen has had an impact in the existences of such countless individuals,” his family wrote in the Instagram post. “We likewise recognize the job that so many of you have played in his. As we attempt to explore this overwhelming time in our lives, we ask that you kindly give us an opportunity to grieve.”
Josh Giles, Hill’s mentor at Centennial Secondary School in Crown, California, told the Los Angeles Times that Hill was “an extraordinary ball player, however I simply cherished him personally.”
“I’m so staggered I don’t for a moment even have an inclination at the present time,” said Giles, who likewise let the Times know that he has been in touch with Hill’s loved ones. “To hear something like this is powerful destroying.”
The 6-foot-10 Hill played pieces of three seasons at UCLA prior to resigning after the 2020-21 season, referring to tension and melancholy in an Instagram video declaring his choice. He left the group in February 2021 however didn’t address his status until April, saying he would have rather not diverted from the Bruins’ hurried to the Final Four.
“I just needed to remove myself in light of the fact that the headspace I was in, it was harming the group,” Hill said in the video. “So I would have rather not confined them from accomplishing their objectives, as well.”
Hill was one of three UCLA players, alongside LiAngelo Ball and Cody Riley, who was captured in China on shoplifting charges in November 2017. He was suspended for the 2017-18 season however got back to the program the following season and showed up in 77 games during his profession with the Bruins, averaging 6.5 points and 6.4 rebounds.