The ongoing saga surrounding Pitt graduate transfer Cam Johnson–a 6-foot-7 guard who averaged nearly 12 points per game last season–has nearly reached its conclusion.

Johnson announced Tuesday he will finish out his collegiate playing career at UNC under head coach Roy Williams.

Since the Tar Heels took home the national championship two months ago, rumors have suggested Johnson could head to UNC as a potential replacement for ACC Player of the Year Justin Jackson–who declared for the NBA Draft.

The story gained traction nationally because Pittsburgh and head coach Kevin Stallings have prevented Johnson from making a move to another school within the ACC without sitting out a season.

That issue is still clouding the process, but ESPN’s Jeff Goodman reported that Johnson is confident he will be allowed to play next year–based on information the graduate transfer received from the Tar Heel coaching staff.

While transfer rules often force undergraduates to sit out a season before playing for a new team, Johnson’s case is a little more tricky because of the fact he has already graduated school.

Goodman also reported through Twitter that Johnson is prepared to go the legal route, if that becomes necessary.

A shoulder injury forced him to take a medical redshirt for the 2014-15 season, which will allow Johnson two more years of basketball if he chooses–despite him taking three years to graduate at Pitt.

Johnson’s best game last season also happened to come inside the Dean Smith Center, where he scored 24 points on Jan. 31 as Pitt narrowly lost to UNC by a score of 80-78.

Johnson sent a statement to several media outlets, including Inside Carolina, detailing his decision to commit to UNC amidst the effort by Pittsburgh to block the move:

My name is Cameron Johnson and I am a proud graduate of the University of Pittsburgh. I was a member of the Panther basketball team for three seasons (I sat out one year due to injury) but earned my degree in just three years this spring.

I grew up less than 20 miles from Pitt’s campus. My dad played basketball at Pitt. I love the city of Pittsburgh, the students and faculty and, of course, the fans in the Zoo, but for a number of reasons I wish to continue my studies as a graduate student and play the final two years of my college basketball eligibility at another university.

I have spent the last two months looking at schools and the one that fits my academic and basketball interests the most is the University of North Carolina.

Unfortunately, Pitt has attempted to block me from going to an ACC school, or even having contact with one, since I first announced my intention to transfer following my graduation. After requesting, in writing, permission to be released to ACC schools and being denied by the Pitt Athletic Department, I asked for a hearing, per my right as a student-athlete, from an outside faculty committee.

Shortly following this May 2nd hearing, Pitt’s acting Faculty Athletics Representative, Dr. James J. Irrgang, informed me via letter dated May 4th that he was granting me permission to contact other ACC schools and, “immediately receive athletically related financial aid if you decide to transfer to an ACC institution.” Dr. Irrgang wrote this decision was based on,“the combination of your academic achievement of graduating Summa Cum Laude within three years of your initial full time enrollment and the exceptional service that you have provided to the community during your tenure at Pitt.” Though they granted me permission to contact an ACC school, they stated I must “serve a year of residence prior to being eligible for competition, per NCAA legislation.”

Twenty-four days after receiving permission from the faculty committee to attend an ACC school, I visited North Carolina on my final official visit (May 29). A week after this visit, I informed Coach Williams that I was committing to North Carolina.

On June 2nd, I was informed that the NCAA had determined that Pitt’s attempt to make me “serve a year of residence prior to being eligible for competition” does not apply to graduate transfers, per bylaw 14.6.1. According to the NCAA, this bylaw means graduate transfers must either be immediately eligible or totally denied from attending a school. Having already won the right to “immediately receive athletically related financial aid” from an ACC institution at my appeal hearing, I believe, as does my family’s legal counsel, that I should be immediately eligible at North Carolina. Because Pitt did not interpret the NCAA rule correctly, the faculty committee would have to reverse their original decision and deny me the right to receive aid from an ACC institution. Pitt, in their own statements, has even consistently said “If Cameron were to transfer within the ACC, we would be eligible to receive financial aid immediately.”

Besides incorrectly attempting to block me, there are other reasons Pitt should have immediately granted my full release. During my last season at Pitt, Coach Dixon left to become the head coach at TCU, Coach Stallings left Vanderbilt to come to Pitt, we had one director of athletics leave and another (Heather Lyke) come to Pitt, and just in the last week the associate AD at Pitt who presented the case against me in my hearing has left to join another school.

All five of these individuals left their jobs under contract and all had the freedom to move as they pleased. As a student-athlete, who is not a paid employee of the school, and a graduate, shouldn’t I be granted the same freedom of movement?

Further, there is precedent in the ACC, for men’s basketball and football players to play at two different ACC schools in consecutive seasons, following their graduate transfers.

I started this process believing that having graduated from Pitt, I should have instantly been granted an unconditional release. I feel that should be available to any student-athlete who earns their degree. Unfortunately, Pitt has continued to try and block my wish to attend North Carolina. Now that I have learned that their attempt to make me sit a year before competing at an ACC school is against NCAA rules, I see no reason why the faculty committee, or anybody associated with Pitt, should be able to reverse a ruling they already made. Quite simply, I should be immediately eligible at North Carolina.

Sincerely,
Cameron Johnson