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Former UCLA basketball player Billy Knight found dead after posting apologetic YouTube video

Billy Knight was reportedly found dead on a Phoenix roadside early Sunday morning. (Getty)
Billy Knight was reportedly found dead on a Phoenix roadside early Sunday morning. (Getty)

Former UCLA basketball player Billy Knight was found dead early Sunday morning in Arizona at age 39.

Officials pronounced Knight dead around 2:45 a.m. Sunday after the Phoenix fire department found Knight on a roadway, the Los Angeles Daily News reports. No evidence of foul play was found, according to the report.

Knight’s death comes after he posted a July 8 video on YouTube.

“This is probably my last message on Earth,” Knight says on the video we’re not linking to. He talks about depression and apologizes to loved ones in the video.

Former Bruins, media respond to Billy Knight’s death

Former Bruin Lorenzo Mata shared the news on Twitter early Tuesday encouraging people struggling with mental health concerns to seek help.

CalHi Sports journalist Ronnie Flores reports that members of the UCLA basketball community attempted to reach out to Knight after the video was posted.

Former Bruin Tracy Murray echoed Mata’s sentiment for people considering suicide to seek help.

Knight played guard for the Bruins from 1997-2002 where he averaged 8 points and 2.2 rebounds per game, including 14.1 points per game in a breakout senior year where he started all 33 games. He played in the D-League and in France and Japan after college.

Knight’s death comes just days after former UCLA basketball player Tyler Honeycutt fatally shot himself during a standoff with police on Friday.

If you or someone you know is having suicidal thoughts, please get help by calling the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.

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