Jalek Felton speaks on camera for the first time since leaving UNC

Jalek Felton says he had interest from South Carolina, Texas, Texas A&M, St. John's and others after deciding to leave North Carolina last winter. Felton was suspended by the school back in January of this year for reasons that have never been made officially public.

His initial hope after retaining a legal team was to have the suspension lifted and return to the team. That option never materialized and he decided to leave UNC a month later.

Speaking to ABC Columbia at a local summer league in South Carolina, Felton didn't want to get into any specifics about his situation at North Carolina, intimating that his conduct review with the school would not be resolved until at least January of next year.

Despite the college offers, Felton ultimately decided he couldn't afford to sit out a season to transfer elsewhere.

Instead, he's headed to Slovenia on Friday to start his pro career with Petrol Olimpija, the defending Slovenian champs. His goal, in his words, "join my uncle in the league next year."

Felton didn't seem to have any residual bitterness toward UNC; in fact, he spoke of going through this darkness and hoping that his experiences will prevent his younger relatives from similar situations.