I had assumed it proved how badly a part of him wanted outa Provo. And that Pope was the main thing keeping him here. But as I'd said in posts months back, I wondered if Pope didn't plan to RS him next year to get him fully on track health-wise after his surgery. (Let's face it — for so subpar an athlete as he is — it's a crying shame he always has to play through so much pain & extreme tightness on top of it. The dude proved himself as a genuine tough-guy, no doubt.)

As of now, I kinda think one reason he jumped as quickly as he did — is because Pope & he indeed had a 1-year hiatus plan in place for him (essentially what Louisville is reported to be doing for him) — but that KY told him Day-1 that he couldn't make good on that plan.

And so off to the Portal Khalifa went — aiming for a program that would give him the 1-year hiatus that he & Pope had planned out. Really, Khalifa's future as a Euro-pro needs to see him take a year off & get himself fully healthy. Or get as close to that as he can.