According to the New York Post, former UCLA basketball star Billy Knight, 39, was found dead on a roadway near downtown Phoenix early Sunday. Knight died after posting an apparent goodbye video titled, “I am sorry Lord,” in which he said it was probably his “last message on Earth.”
The medical examiners’ office has not released a cause of death. However, the Phoenix police say there were no signs of foul play.
“I just want to say that I lived a life of sin. I lied. I cheated, and I stole from many people. I was a taker. That’s why my life ended up where it is now,” Knight says in the video. He repeatedly references the importance of mental health saying he had been hearing voices and isolated himself from his support system.
“I’m lost in life, and I feel like there’s no hope,” he said. “I have no friends with me here. I have no wife, girlfriend. I have nothing, and I just feel like I can’t continue on.”
The video was deleted shortly on July 11.
Knight was a guard/forward at UCLA from 1998 to 2002. He averaged 14.1 points and 3.5 rebounds per game as a senior but wasn’t drafted by the NBA in 2002 and went on to play professionally in France and Japan. UCLA Basketball released a statement asking the Bruin family to keep Knight’s family in their thoughts and prayers.
Our hearts are heavy after learning Billy Knight has passed away. We ask that the Bruin family keep Billy’s loved ones in their thoughts during this difficult time. pic.twitter.com/9WssEUnvbY
— UCLA Men’s Basketball (@UCLAMBB) July 10, 2018
Knight worked as a basketball operations assistant for the Northern Arizona Suns of the G League, the NBA’s minor league, in the 2016-17 season.
