Former Oregon guard Damyean Dotson has joined the Houston men's basketball team, the Cougars confirmed Wednesday.
"A lot of people don't get a second chance," Dotson told the Houston Chronicle, which first reported his decision Tuesday. "They say one chance comes in a lifetime. To have a second chance, I can't mess this up."
Along with ex-Oregon teammates Dominic Artis and Brandon Austin, Dotson was dismissed from the school last spring after a sexual assault investigation. The three were accused of sexually assaulting a woman at an off-campus party in March 2014. All three were banned from Oregon's campus for at least four years.
ESPN.com earlier reported that Dotson was the only one initially charged, but none of the three players were ever charged. The investigation eventually was dropped due to a lack of evidence.
Dotson has been taking classes at Houston Community College but wasn't playing basketball at the school.
"After speaking with Damyean, his family and former coaches, I feel confident in Damyean's abilities to be an outstanding person on the University of Houston campus and a great representative of our program," Houston coach Kelvin Sampson said. "He has learned from previous experiences in his life and has shown himself to be worthy of a second chance. I am certain that he will make the most of this opportunity."
Dotson has been working with John Lucas, the former NBA veteran who has helped numerous athletes and coaches with problems ranging from addiction to anger management.
"When Damyean and his family reached out to me, I wanted to see if he was willing to do the work and make the commitment," Lucas said. "Our recommendation was for him to work in our program, go to a junior college and graduate, and he has fulfilled that. He is top of the line and a good kid I have known forever. I really believe Damyean deserves a second chance."
Dotson, a 6-foot-5 Houston native, averaged 9.4 points per game as a sophomore after putting up 11.4 points as a freshman. He should be eligible immediately for the Cougars, who went just 13-19 last season but will bring in six new faces, along with Purdue transfer Ronnie Johnson, who sat out this past season.