CJ Fredrick Using One Final Season of Eligibility

CJ Fredrick is a college basketball journeyman whose journey is seemingly never-ending. Just when you thought he was done, he is getting pulled back in for one more year of college hoops.

Jon Rothstein reports Fredrick will return to Cincinnati for his final season of eligibility in 2024-25. Many folks reading this first learned about Fredrick when he led Covington Catholic to a Sweet 16 title in 2018. That was the same year Zion Williamson was the most coveted high school basketball prospect in the country.

There’s no doubt that CJ Fredrick will trend at some point on Twitter during the college basketball season. Perry Ellis jokes will be made. “How is that guy still in college?” The serious answer to that question is injuries.

He started in at least 25 games in each of his two seasons at Iowa, but there were nagging injuries that sidelined him periodically. When the sharpshooter made the move to Kentucky, the injury bug bit hard. He suffered a significant hamstring injury while warming up ahead of the Duke game. Ultimately, he ended up taking a medical redshirt in the 2021-22 season.

Fredrick was poised to play a big role for the Cats in 2022-23 until more nagging injuries surfaced. He dislocated a finger on his shooting hand which required him to wear a cast for a few weeks. In his second game back he knocked down three three-pointers to help the Cats upset Tennessee on the road. As soon as things started going his way, he fell into a camera on the sidelines and broke a rib.

Murphy’s Law has not been kind to Fredrick. The bad injury luck followed him to his hometown of Cincinnati. Last year he only played in 15 games for the Bearcats, averaging 6.1 points when he was healthy enough to be on the court.

Fredrick has faced adversity time and time again, yet he’s taken it all to the chin. Hopefully, he can end his college basketball career on the court instead of in the Cincinnati training room.

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