St. John’s sophomore guard Rysheed Jordan, who is listed as day-to-day with a knee injury, got himself into hot water with a homophobic Tweet and has since taken down the post and apologized.
“I apologize for the language I used on Twitter in a conversation with my friends,” Jordan, who has yet to do an interview with the St. John’s media during his two years at the school, said in a statement provided by the school. “It was insensitive and something I regret because I did not mean to hurt anyone.”
St. John’s says that “Inappropriate and offensive messages in any form are unacceptable in accordance with the University’s student code of conduct. Matters like this are taken seriously and addressed internally per University policy for all student conduct issues. We place a priority on educating our students to being sensitive in a diverse world.”
“All of the young men representing our University and basketball program are held to high standards,” St. John’s coach Steve Lavin said in a statement. “This is an example of very poor judgment by Rysheed. We will address it within our basketball family and use this unfortunate instance as a vehicle to further educate and promote personal development. Growing up in a family that emphasized both education and tolerance shaped a perspective that I continue to use in my teaching of young people. We can all learn from this experience.”
Meantime, Jordan is listed as “day-to-day” with a strained patella tendon in left knee.
St. John’s (13-7, 2-5 Big East) faces Providence (16-5, 6-2) in another must-win game Saturday at Madison Square Garden. The Johnnies have lost six of eight.
The story was previously reported by the Daily News.