J.R. Giddens will transfer from Kansas University, head coach Bill Self announced today.

Self, who stressed that this was a mutual decision and not a disciplinary action, said he and Giddens came to this conclusion around 8 p.m. Wednesday night. He added that he didn’t know where Giddens would be transfering to, but that he would help Giddens in finding another school.

“The last six weeks have been a difficult situation for all parties involved following the May 19 incident,” Self said. “J.R. and I have both taken enough time to remove the emotion of the decision and come to the conclusion that a fresh start for both parties would be best. We certainly appreciate his efforts the last two years and wish him the best in the future.”

Giddens, who averaged 10.1 points last year as a sophomore, was stabbed May 19 during a fight outside the Moon Bar. The Douglas County District Attorney’s office has said it would be sometime in July, at the earliest, before it decided whether the evidence warranted filing charges.

Self, who mentioned during Thursday’s news conference the negativity brought to the program by the incident, said no single factor led to the decision. Self also said that the results of the police investigation into the Moon Bar incident did not affect the decision for the transfer.

“Our decision was based solely on what was best for our program and J.R. at this time,” he said.

“With everything that has transpired with this situation, coach and I are in total agreement that a fresh start would be best for Kansas and me,” Giddens said in a statement. “I’m sorry for what has transpired. Regardless of guilt or innocence, I put our program and myself in a bad situation. That does not take away from the fact that I loved my time here. I appreciate the support my teammates, the coaching staff and fans have shown me.”

Self said he notified the team of the decision around 9:30 p.m. or 10 p.m. Wednesday night and they were caught off-guard by the announcement.

He added that this incident won’t change any rules within the program.

“We don’t need to do things differently,” he said. “We just need to keep reinforcing what we do.”

Self said that he didn’t expect to add another player now that a scholarship was open, but he didn’t rule out such a signing.

See 6Sports video reports on Giddens’ transfer at 6 p.m. and 10 p.m. on Sunflower Broadband Channel 6News and a full story in Friday’s Journal-World and KUsports.com.