Men’s college basketball transfer portal commits and their fits: Dickinson, Perry and more (2024)

The men’s college basketball transfer portal continues to churn. We have a running list of the best available players that you should continue to check. As players commit to their new schools, we will analyze the fit with their next team. So keep checking back here as well.

1. Hunter Dickinson | 7-1 center | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Michigan to Kansas

The Scout: Dickinson is arguably the most accomplished player to ever hit the transfer portal. He was a second-team All-American as a freshman and has been one of the best bigs in college basketball in his three seasons at Michigan. He’s coming off a season in which he averaged 18.5 points, 9.0 rebounds and 1.8 blocks. You can build an entire offense around him. He’s always been a beast as a low-post scorer. He used to be all right shoulder, but now he can go over either and even has a right jump hook. Where he really progressed last season is stepping away from the basket. He made 24 3-pointers at a 42.1 percent clip. He shot 44 percent on all jump shots, per Synergy. He can play the pick-and-pop game, can initiate dribble hand-off action and also back down his man from the perimeter. He’s a really good passer and has great hands. He’s just a highly-skilled, highly-intelligent player who also knows how to use his massive body. His limitations are on the defensive end. He has no problem near the basket and knows how to stay out of foul trouble — he commits just 2.3 fouls per 40 minutes — but where he’s vulnerable is in space. But he has good feet for a man of his size and you’ll live with that limitation considering he’s so good in every other area of the game. This is a player who could win National Player of the Year in the right system.

The Fit: Dickinson is a terrific fit in KU’s offense. Bill Self is a master at creating post touches for his big man, and everything will be built around Dickinson. Self already got a floor stretcher in Nick Timberlake, and he already has a point guard in Dajuan Harris who should be a good pick-and-roll partner with Dickinson. The challenge is figuring out a way to pair Dickinson with KJ Adams, who played a small-ball center for KU this past season. Adams is a good passer, and excels in the pick-and-roll, making decisions in the middle of the floor. He can still do that with an added element to it: a Dickinson duck-in. This seems like the best spot for Dickinson, if his goal was to max out his production and compete for a national title. KU is immediately in the conversation for preseason No. 1, and Self’s star big men rarely ever disappoint.

2. Tylor Perry | 5-11 guard | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from North Texas to Kansas State

The Scout: The Conference USA Player of the Year has declared for the NBA Draft and also put his name in the transfer portal. Winning the player of the year in that conference should hold more weight than ever before, because not only did FAU make the Final Four, but North Texas won the NIT and beat UAB in the championship. The league was good this year. Perry is one of the best shooters in the country. He has logo range and has shot 41 percent from 3 in two seasons at North Texas. That’s an impressive number considering some of the hard shots he takes. He can make shots all over the floor — off the catch, off the move and off the dribble. He’s elite in all areas. He makes 45 percent of his shots off the bounce, per Synergy, and was the second-most efficient shooter off the dribble among players with at least 100 attempts. He’s got a ton of wiggle and scores well out of ball screens and in isolation. He plays under control when he gets in the paint and his strength makes up for his lack of height. He has a high free throw rate and shoots 88 percent at the line. He is a scoring guard, and ideally, he’s paired with a bigger point guard, which is the setup he had at North Texas alongside 6-foot-3 Kai Huntsberry. Perry can also defend and has played for an elite defensive coach in Grant McCasland. The dude is just a winner who makes huge shots.

The Fit: Give Markquis Nowell one final assist for this one. Kansas State became an attractive spot for Perry because of the success Jerome Tang had in Year 1 building around an undersized guard. Perry isn’t as jet quick as Nowell, but he’s every bit the shotmaker. It’ll be interesting to see if he slides over to point guard or plays more of a shooting guard role, like he did at North Texas. K-State does have some size on the perimeter to play alongside him with either returning starter Cam Carter (6-3) or redshirt freshman point guard Dorian Finister (6-5). However Tang decides to configure his lineup, Perry should take over as the guy who the offense runs through.

3. Jalen Cook | 6-0 guard | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Tulane to LSU

The Scout: Much like how Kendric Davis was an undersized, productive guard out of the AAC last season before becoming one of the most popular targets in the portal, Cook will be similar in 2023. Cook’s goal is to get downhill and get into the paint. As the maestro for the second-fastest offense in the country, Cook constantly pushed tempo and probed, trying to find different ways into the paint where he could either finish at the rim or stop and pop for his little floater. He averaged 20 points and five assists per game on his way to first-team All-AAC honors, the second year in a row that he secured that award. He can run his own show, passing and playmaking well on the move, even if he is certainly more impressive as a scorer. However, he can also play next to a high-level, bigger guard because Cook is also a tremendous shooter off the catch. If you let him get into rhythm, you should expect that the ball is going to go in. Cook is the kind of older, senior, starting high-major guard that every single team in the country covets in today’s college basketball ecosystem. He will be sought after by everyone.

Not listed in the transfer portal as a graduate transfer, Cook will be an interesting litmus test for the rules and regulations regarding the one-time free transfer rule. In 2021, Cook transferred from LSU to Tulane. Is he going to be allowed to play immediately? Or would he be expected to have to sit out for a year? There are going to be players this year that stress test the NCAA stringency in this regard. Cook has also declared for the draft while maintaining his eligibility to play in college, so he has options no matter what. But this will be an interesting dynamic that will not just be limited to Cook.

The Fit: Cook returns to LSU, where he played as a freshman before transferring to Tulane. That season he was behind Javonte Smart and Cameron Thomas. That roster had plenty of firepower. This one is in desperate need of it. He gives the Tigers a scorer/playmaker who is talented enough to get buckets in the SEC. LSU’s offense was third-worst in the SEC. Now it has a legitimate go-to scorer. Odds are Matt McMahon is not finished yet. Cook makes the second transfer addition, joining Vanderbilt wing Jordan Wright.

4. Jesse Edwards | 6-11 center | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Syracuse to West Virginia

The Scout: Edwards is a plug-and-play starter who can make an impact on both ends. He has really made a leap the last two years. It could take some adjusting for him to get used to playing man-to-man defense, but he has the tools to be an effective defender in just about any scheme. He moves well for his size and has active hands. He averaged 2.7 blocks and 1.4 steals this season. He’s ranked in the top 14 nationally in block rate each of the last two years. Offensively, he’s as fundamentally sound as they come. He has good poise with the ball in his hands, usually staying balanced, keeping the ball high and knowing when to go up. He’s always had high free-throw rates and shot a career-best 72.9 percent at the line this past year. He also averaged a double-double (14.5 points and 10.3 rebounds), and he probably should have received more touches in Syracuse’s offense considering his efficiency and skill set. He’s a good rim-roller and lob-catcher. He can catch the ball on the run in transition. He’s also able to operate from the mid-post area, seeing cutters and backing his man down or initiating dribble hand-offs. A creative coach will find plenty of ways to involve Edwards.

The Fit: West Virginia’s offense was much improved this past season, but the one spot where it was missing firepower was the center position. Enter Edwards. The former Syracuse center was one of the most skilled bigs in the portal. He’ll benefit from playing alongside new point guard Kerr Kriisa, who is plenty used to feeding the post from his time at Arizona. Edwards and Tre Mitchell have the potential to be one of the best scoring frontcourts in the Big 12. Edwards also give West Virginia’s some rim protection it lacked a year ago. Considering West Virginia was going up against Kansas and Gonzaga for Edwards, this is a big win for Bob Huggins.

5. Max Abmas | 6-1 guard | One year of eligibility remaining | Transferred from Oral Roberts to Texas

The Scout: This was a likely portal entry from the moment that Oral Roberts coach Paul Mills got the job at Wichita State. Abmas has been the conductor of one of the best offenses in the country for the last three years, a dominant pick-and-roll player that was the NCAA’s scoring leader in 2021 before carrying the Golden Eagles to a surprise Sweet 16 berth as a No. 15 seed. After a 2022 season where he struggled with a few injuries, Abmas got back to his old self this season. The counting numbers may have been down by his standards — he averaged almost 22 points per game, still — but that’s just because he had a better team around him. The 2023 Oral Roberts team was probably better than the one that went to the Sweet 16, they just ran into a disastrous matchup in the first round against Duke. Abmas has unlimited range from 3, which Mills took advantage of to great effect by implementing a vicious high screen-and-roll attack that allowed him the green light to fire when ready at any time, even from 30 feet if the shot was there. Over his four seasons, he averaged nine 3-point attempts per game — most of them off of pull-ups — and made them at a 39 percent clip. He took three shots per game from at least 27 feet this past year, making them at a 36 percent clip, per Synergy. And even if the shot wasn’t there, the quick guard had oceans of space to work within to try to force help and create open shots for his teammates. A multi-time Summit League Player of the Year with proven postseason success, Abmas should be very popular. I wouldn’t blame any coach that had a slight hesitation about how he’d fit outside of Mills’ offense, given that the scheme was nearly perfect for Abmas’ gifts. But Abmas is so good within it that you should be willing to adjust the scheme to his talents by setting higher screens 35 feet up the court. One way to mitigate that would be for Abmas to just follow Mills to Wichita. But if he wanted to test himself at the highest level night after night, I wouldn’t blame him for that, either.

The Fit: Texas beats out Kansas State for Abmas. The Longhorns will likely put the ball in his hands in a similar way to how Rodney Terry unleashed Marcus Carr. With Abmas, the Longhorns will want to put him in endless pick-and-rolls and let him work. While he’s not going to experience the same level of spacing around him that he had at Oral Roberts, he does have an excellent pick-and-roll partner in Dylan Disu. Abmas became a real priority when five-star guard AJ Johnson decommitted. The question mark now is Tyrese Hunter and whether he returns to Texas. We’re betting on Hunter returning. Abmas, who is more of a scoring guard than distributor, allows Hunter to play more of a true point and be the table setter for the Longhorns, which is a spot where he thrives. If Hunter returns, Texas is also going to be really small in the backcourt. (They still need to add some depth there, likely through the portal.) Hunter does play slightly bigger than his size defensively, which is where he thrives. Plus, Texas is going to be huge up front and that could make up for lack of backcourt size. Abmas moving up a level at his size is worth wondering how that will work out, but if you’re a special talent, you can make it work. Markquis Nowell just showed us that and Texas is banking on Abmas being one of those special dudes.

6. Ace Baldwin | 6-0 guard | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from VCU to Penn State

The Scout: Baldwin was the Atlantic-10 Player of the Year this season, leading the Rams to an NCAA Tournament berth after they won 22 of their final 26 games this season. On the surface, the numbers don’t jump off of the page with Baldwin. But as soon as you pop on the tape, you understand why he’s so impactful. First and foremost, there may not be a more disruptive guard defensively in the country. Baldwin is an absolute menace as an on-ball defender, annoying every single player that he comes up against with aggressive defense and insane hand-eye coordination. He was the A-10 Defensive Player of the Year this season, settings he tone at the point of attack for everything the Rams’ top-15 defense nationally did on that end. Offensively, Baldwin is a consummate table-setter, averaging six assists per game and finding open teammates with ease all over the court. But don’t sleep on his ability to score, either. He’ll drive play out in transition and draw fouls at a solid level, then will also knock down jumpers both from the midrange and from 3. This is as well-rounded a guard as you’ll find in all of college basketball. He hit the portal following Mike Rhodes’ departure from VCU to Penn State, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him follow Rhodes just up the road to State College. Getting Baldwin would give the Nittany Lions a significant leg up in their journey to return to the NCAA Tournament again.

The Fit: This was a huge win for Rhoades. The fit is obvious. Baldwin just thrived playing for this same coach at VCU and he has the kind of game and athleticism that should translate to the high-major level. In fact, guard play in the Big Ten is not always a strength and was a differentiator for Micah Shrewsberry. He showed you can win a different way, and Baldwin gives Rhoades a piece to start building a more up-tempo offense and pressure defense system around.

7. Graham Ike | 6-9 center | Three years of eligibility | Transferred from Wyoming to Gonzaga

The Scout: The fit matters here a lot. Ike was in one of the most unique offenses in college basketball in 2021-22. Wyoming posted up more than any team ever has in the modern era. Ike had the third-highest usage rate in college hoops. Wyoming coach Jeff Linder would give him the ball and let him back his man down from anywhere on the court. The lefty is as crafty as they come in terms of low-post scorers. He’s got massive hands — bigger than Kawhi Leonard’s — and a 7-foot-5 wingspan, which allows him to deal well with double teams. He didn’t play much in pick-and-roll, but it’s possible his mid-range jumper is good enough to be a good fit in a pick-and-pop system. Not sure he has the speed to be an elite rim roller. Some could have pause with his injury history. He tore his right ACL in high school and missed all of this last season with a lower right leg injury. He’s a good rebounder but offers very little in rim protection. He’ll need to go to a team that’s used to playing drop coverage with its center in pick-and-roll. He’s not going to get pushed around, but defending in space could be a concern. But in the right system that is all about feeding its big man in the post, he’s capable of being a go-to scorer at the high-major level.

ZAG NATION, LET’S GET IT. pic.twitter.com/ikJncIeO4i

— Graham Ike (@Graham_Ike5) April 21, 2023

The Fit: Gonzaga gets its replacement on the block for Drew Timme by bringing in Ike, one of the best post players in college basketball in 2021-22. We ranked Ike lower in the initial portal rankings (No. 17 at time of commitment) because we were worried about what kind of situation he would end up in. Ike is not a player for every scheme. He needs one that will roll him into post-ups, put him on the block, and let the 2022 first-team All-Mountain West big man work. The Zags within their ball-screen continuity-based offense will do just that, and Ike will have an immense amount of success feasting on WCC bigs. In that breakout 2022 season, Ike dropped 26 and 10 on Washington, 25 and 11 on Stanford, and 17 against Arizona. Then in the NCAA Tournament, he had 17 points and nine rebounds against Trayce Jackson-Davis and Indiana. The big question here, as it often is with Gonzaga at the highest levels, is defense. Ike should be an upgrade on Timme on that end just due to his sheer length, but he’s also not an enormous shot-blocker or mobile switch defender, either. Those are problems for the future though. Right now, it’s impossible to look at this as anything other than one of the best transfer fits in the country this upcoming season even with his injury history.

8. Ryan Nembhard | 6-0 point guard | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Creighton to Gonzaga

The Scout: Nembhard is the best pure point guard in the portal. It’s rare a player of his caliber who had the success he had at a successful program like Creighton hits the portal, but here we are. The obvious connection is Arizona and Tommy Lloyd. Lloyd recruited Nembhard’s older brother, Andrew, to Gonzaga. The younger Nembhard would be an excellent fit in Arizona’s up-tempo, continuity ball-screen system. He knows how to run a team and play out of a ball screen. He has good pace off the bounce and knows how to change speeds. His shot improved this past season. He knocked down 35.6 percent of his 3s and shot 40 percent in conference play. He doesn’t need to score to be effective, but he’s capable when needed. He put up 30 points in the NCAA Tournament against Baylor and then nearly put up a double-double (nine points and eight assists) in the next round against Princeton. He has the feel and intelligence you want at the point guard position. The only knock is he’s undersized, but he showed he can be a part of an elite defensive team. (Creighton ranked 14th in adjusted defensive efficiency this year.) With his experience, he’ll be a major addition for whoever lands him.

The Fit:The battle between Tommy Lloyd and Arizona versus Mark Few and Gonzaga has resulted in Nembhard choosing the Zags. It’s hard to overstate how enormous this commitment is for Few and company. The biggest hole the team had on its roster this season was in the backcourt. Nolan Hickman wasn’t good enough to run the show yet. Hunter Sallis didn’t develop offensively in the way his five-star status would indicate. Rasir Bolton was just a solid floor-spacer at 6-foot-3. And it took the coaching staff a bit of time to gain faith in Malachi Smith. Nembhard will immediately bring the poise and presence the Zags needed more of this season as an elite distributor. The next step for Nembhard will be very similar to what his brother’s was after he transferred to Gonzaga following two years in the SEC at Florida: he needs to improve as a jump shooter. The Zags’ track record there is strong, so this is another home run across the board for everyone.

9. Cam Spencer | 6-4 guard | grad transfer | Transferred from Rutgers to UConn

The Scout: Spencer is the perfect plug-and-play, highly-efficient shooting guard. Spencer is a post-deadline entrant who has attracted the attention of some heavy hitters. He’s going on visits to Miami, UConn, Oklahoma and UCLA, according to Jeff Goodman. He proved in his one season at Rutgers that his game translated to the high-major level, averaging 13.2 points for the Scarlet Knights after playing three seasons at Loyola Maryland. He’s one of the best shooters in the country with a quick and high release. He made 43.4 percent of his 3s in his one season at Rutgers and has shot 40.5 percent from deep on his career. He knows how to read screens and can make shots off the move as well. He could fit the Jordan Hawkins role if he ends up choosing UConn. He’s a very instinctual player who seems to always make the right read, whether he has the ball in his hands or not. He averaged 3.1 assists and can handle point guard duties when needed. He battles defensively. He has strong hands and knows how to sneak into passing lanes. He averaged 2.0 steals per game at Rutgers and 2.3 steals per game in his final season at Loyola. His defense and passing are extra perks. His shooting is what really could be a game-changer for any of the aforementioned programs.

The Fit: This was likely an easy pitch for Connecticut. Simply showing Spencer highlights of Jordan Hawkins likely did the trick. Spencer was the player in the portal best suited to play that role as someone who could run off screens and make 3s. He shot 49.2 percent coming off screens this past year. Dan Hurley does a great job running actions to get his shooters shots, and Spencer has picked a program that will get the most out of his ability. This was the one spot that Connecticut really needed to address, and it’s a big win for Hurley to land Spencer.

10. Ernest Udeh Jr. | 6-11 center | Three years of eligibility | Transferred from Kansas to TCU

The Scout: Udeh has star potential and a chance to be the best defensive center in college basketball, not just in the portal. He struggled to earn consistent playing time for Kansas until late in the season and even had five straight DNPs, but he was a difference-maker once he cemented himself in the rotation. The counting stats shouldn’t matter here because he averaged only 8.3 minutes per game. The per 40 numbers are more appropriate in projecting what Udeh could become, and those were 12.4 points, 8.5 rebounds, 3.2 steals and 2.9 blocks. He can legitimately guard all five spots and has the quickness and length to wreck ball screens. He’s built to get deflections. He also committed 7.7 fouls per 40 minutes, and if he’s going to become a starter — and that’s likely to happen wherever he lands — then he’s going to need to figure out how to play without fouling. That said, he could play with reckless abandon because he knew he was playing in short spurts. Offensively, Kansas did not trust him in the post and his shooting mechanics beg to be fixed, but he is a real weapon as a vertical lob presence. It turned into lob city anytime he touched the floor, because KU’s guards had the faith they could throw it up anywhere near the rim and he’d get it. He simply needed time to develop, figuring out the intricacies of screening and all the little things that would keep him on the floor for KU. The Jayhawks ran a lot of ball screens, and Udeh fit well in that scheme, but Self also prefers to be able to throw it into the post and that’s where the player and system didn’t exactly align. Maybe Udeh would have got there, but once KU landed Hunter Dickinson, the opportunity for starter minutes as a sophom*ore was no longer present. Udeh should seek a system that is ball-screen heavy and can take advantage of the pressure he puts on the rim. Defensively, he fits just about anywhere. He was a McDonald’s All-American a year ago, and while the numbers make it look like he underwhelmed, do not be fooled. The tape says otherwise, and the interest he’s about to see from high-majors will as well.

The fit: TCU was the best transition team in the country this past season and Udeh only enhances the Horned Frogs ability to play fast. He’s an excellent shot blocker and showed in limited minutes the ability to create turnovers. He had a 4.6 percent steal rate, which — had he played enough minutes to qualify — would have ranked 16th nationally. No player taller than 6-10 has ever ranked in the top 20 in steals rate at KenPom.com. Udeh is a deflection machine. He forces mistakes with his length and activity. This could take TCU’s defense to another level. He’s also as fast as any big running end to end, so he should benefit from the speed at which the Frogs operate.
Udeh also fills the one spot where TCU was thin at center. Jamie Dixon needed a replacement for Eddie Lampkin Jr., whose rim protection was missed when he wasn’t on the floor. In Udeh, TCU lands the best available player at that position and also vertical lob threat who can put pressure on the rim and open up driving lanes for its guards. For a team that has struggled to make 3s, Udeh’s ability to generate some easy buckets will be a big plus.

11. RayJ Dennis | 6-2 point guard | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Toledo to Baylor

The Scout: This is a big late addition to the portal. The MAC Player of the Year put up big numbers — 19.6 points, 5.8 assists and 4.3 rebounds per game — while piloting the most efficient offense in college hoops and leading Toledo to a regular-season MAC title. Dennis is also testing the NBA Draft waters. Dennis has the ball on a string and has sort of an old-man game. He loves turning his back to his defender, able to spin either direction. He knows how to get his man off balance and can also knock down a turnaround jumper. He also has a good feel for how to play out of ball screens and read secondary defenders. Toledo played fast, and he’s used to pushing the ball up the court. He sees the floor well and can spray it out to shooters — the Rockets were the second-best 3-point shooting team by percentage in the country. Dennis’s ability to get defenders’ eyes on him helped create a lot of those good looks. Dennis was never much of a shooter until this season when he knocked down a respectable 36.5 percent of his 3s. That’s not his biggest strength, but it’s at least part of his game now and made him a more well-rounded scorer. The MAC is a solid mid-major league, and Dennis looks capable of making the leap to the high-major level. He’s proven he can produce at a higher level, averaging 8.6 points and 2.9 assists per game as a sophom*ore at Boise State.

The Fit: Scott Drew has talent but a young roster and he needed a floor leader. Dennis fits exactly what he needed and is going to a spot where his strengths should be magnified. Drew gives his guards a lot of freedom and they play out of ball screens. That’s where Dennis excels. It’s going to be an adjustment in levels, but the offense he ran at Toledo has some similarities to how he’ll be asked to play at Baylor. This was a good choice for Dennis to prove he can do the type of things he did at Toledo at the high-major level.

12. Steven Ashworth | 6-1 point guard | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Utah State to Creighton

The Scout: Ashworth is in constant motion. The respect level for his shooting is so high that some teams will face-guard him, but it’s an exhausting task. He is so well-conditioned that he can run all day and will eventually break open. He makes quick decisions and sees the floor really well. He’s not just a scorer; he can pass too, averaging 4.5 assists per game. But his ability to score (16.2 points per game) and do so efficiently is impressive. He made 43.4 percent of his 3s on 7.3 attempts per game, and the level of difficulty of those attempts is high because taking away clean looks is the upmost importance to every defense. Among players who used at least 20 percent of their team’s possessions, he had the fifth-highest offensive rating (127.7) in the country. He shot 49.6 percent off the dribble, the most efficient shooter off the bounce in the country among players with at least 50 attempts, per Synergy. He was a first-team All-Mountain West player, and he’s one of the oldest guards in the portal. Ashworth was part of the 2018 high school recruiting class and then served a two-year mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He’s been a part of multiple coaching changes during that time. He played for Ryan Odom, who left for VCU last month, and Craig Smith, now at Utah, and was originally recruited to Utah State by Tim Duryea, who is now an assistant at Boise State.

The Fit:Creighton lost Ryan Nembhard to the portal, but they gain a point guard in return in Ashworth. Greg McDermott will get to be super creative with one of the truly elite shooters that will change teams via the portal this season. The first-team All-Mountain West guard is an absolute sniper from distance and he mixes it with the ability to genuinely run the show on offense, getting guys into the right spots at the right time. The Bluejays still have some balls in the air in terms of their roster with potential NBA Draft decisions, but Ashworth’s shooting ability would really help unlock things for guys like Trey Alexander and Arthur Kaluma if those two return on the wing and in the backcourt.

13. Jordan Dingle | 6-3 guard | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Penn to St. John’s

The Scout: The nation’s second-leading scorer and Ivy League Player of the Year should have no shortage of suitors. This is a big one to hit the portal late. Dingle’s father, Dana Dingle, is the director of the New York Lightning, a Nike EYBL grassroots team, so he has relationships all over college basketball. Dana also played for John Calipari at UMass. His son is a three-level scorer who averaged 23.4 points and did so efficiently for such a high-usage player. Dingle helps himself get buckets with his movement off the ball. He knows how to free himself, back-cutting or using screens to get loose. He’s also so strong that a teammate can just lob the ball to him and he’s able to hold his defender off. Dingle is a good catch-and-shoot guy — 40.2 percent on those opportunities, per Synergy — but he had to do most of his work off the bounce because he always had a defender glued to him. He knows how to create space and get to his spots. He can play through contact at the rim, and he also has a nice floater in traffic. He’s also a willing passer when he draws two to the ball. It’s clear through his numbers he’s put the work in to be a good shooter. He shot 33.9 percent from 3 and only 58.3 percent at the free throw line as a freshman in 2019-20. The Ivy League did not play the next season and when he returned as a third-year sophom*ore, he shot a nearly identical percentage from 3 on a higher volume but bumped his free throw percentage up to 81 percent. This past season he shot a career-best 35.6 percent from 3 and 85.6 percent at the line. Dingle is also testing the NBA Draft waters.

The Fit: Rick Pitino has been building depth this spring and now he has his go-to guy on offense. Dingle becomes the fourth guard to sign with the Red Storm, and you can lock him into the starting shooting guard spot. The two had a chance to face each other this past season when Iona blew out Penn, 78-50, and Dingle scored 16 points in that contest. Pitino has a reputation for getting the most out of his players, so it’s a good spot for Dingle to land and maximize his stock as a future pro.

14. Aziz Bandaogo | 7-foot center | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Utah Valley to Cincinnati

The Scout: The WAC Defensive Player of the Year is the best defensive weapon available in the transfer portal. Bandaogo averaged 11.5 points, 10.4 rebounds and 2.9 blocks in a breakout season after spending two years at Akron. Bandaogo told ESPN’s Jonathan Givony that he is transferring for his mental health, so he’ll obviously be trying to get a mental health waiver, which he would need to play right away. Even if he’s not able to secure a waiver, considering his rapid rate of improvement, it might be worth it for a high-major program to stash him for a redshirt year and then have two seasons of eligibility remaining. Bandaogo is quick-twitched and can really move for his size. He’s able to defend out on the perimeter and then is an elite rim protector. Utah Valley opponents shot just 39.8 percent inside the arc and scored 0.88 points per possession when Bandaogo was on the floor, per hooplens.com. Bandaogo is a vertical lob presence at the rim who can get off the ground quickly and go get the ball in the air. He’s also an effective roller, able to get out of a screen and cover ground in a hurry. He had 105 dunks for Utah Valley this season. He also stepped out and made five 3s on 13 attempts. He was also used on the perimeter to initiate handoff actions. He runs the floor hard and is a guy who will steal a couple easy buckets every game just because of the pressure he puts on the rim. Bandaogo was part of the NBA African Academy, and he’s originally from Dakar, Senegal. He played only 15 minutes in seven games his freshman year at Akron and then averaged just 12.2 minutes per game as a sophom*ore. He blossomed under Mark Madsen at Utah Valley, replacing Fardaws Aimaq, who transferred to Texas Tech. Aimaq just followed Madsen to California. Bandaogo, unlike Aimaq, is not much of a post-up threat, and will fit well with any team that uses a lot of pick-and-roll.

The Fit: Love what Wes Miller has done in the portal. Bandaogo and Butler transfer Simas Lukosius are two names that aren’t well known nationally, but both can really play. The great thing here for Miller with Bandaogo is that if he’s not able to get a waiver to play right away, the Bearcats still have plenty of talent inside for next season. Viktor Lakhin is solid as a starter. Lakhin would be a terrific option as a backup if Bandaogo is eligible, but Cincinnati is still in good shape if Bandaogo doesn’t get the waiver. As for his fit, he’ll strengthen the defense and right away becomes the best defensive center in the Big 12. Miller runs a good dose of pick-and-rolls, where Bandaogo excels.

15. Grant Nelson | 6-11 forward | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from North Dakota State to Alabama

The Scout: He is a Swiss Army knife that fits in just about any system. He’s got the size to play center but is more of a playmaking four. His shooting is the one area where he could really help his stock by returning, and that’s been the focus of his pre-draft preparation. He shot just 26.9 percent from 3 this season on 3.1 attempts per game and is a career 30.7 percent 3-point shooter. He does most of his damage inside 15 feet. He’s a long and fluid athlete who was a constant mismatch in the Summit League. He handles the ball really well for his size and has a nice hook shot on the move and is really good with long finishes at the basket. He shot 66.9 percent at the rim, per Synergy. He averaged 17.9 points, 9.3 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.7 blocks this season. While he had some huge scoring games — twice going over 30 — one Summit League coach told The Athletic he doesn’t think he’s “an alpha male.” That coach predicted on a Top 20 team, Nelson would average eight to 10 points but “help them win a lot of games.” We see him more in the 12 to 15 ppg range. North Dakota State used him a lot in pick-and-pop settings, and he can mix up screening angles, flip a screen or ghost. Get him in space and he’s able to score or find open teammates. He would be a great pick-and-roll partner with a high-level guard. Defensively, he’s switchable, but he can get lost in space. Oral Roberts really picked on him in the Summit League title game. He may also have to adjust to the physicality of the high-major level. But there’s a lot to like offensively. His fluidity with the ball in his hands and his potential defensive versatility is what makes him an interesting pro prospect. His rate of improvement is also striking. He went from averaging 6.3 points and starting only five games as a freshman to someone legitimately discussed as an NBA prospect as a junior.

The Fit: Nelson will absolutely be a weapon in the Alabama offense, which prioritizes pace and spacing. He’ll be a good pick-and-roll partner for the Alabama guards and get plenty of opportunity to show he’s more of a shooter than he’s shown so far in his career. That’s the main area offensively he still needs to prove himself. Alabama really needed a big man with the surprise loss of Charles Bediako, who left for the NBA. It’s possible center is a better spot for Nelson as a defender. He might struggle with some of the more physical bigs in the SEC, but there aren’t many of those types in the league who will make Nate Oats worry. Out of the players left in the portal, this was definitely the best option for the Crimson Tide.

16. Arthur Kaluma | 6-7 wing | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Creighton to Kansas State

The Scout: Kaluma is a player NBA scouts have had eyes on. He made only gradual improvements from his freshman season in 2022-23 but the idea of what he can become is still intriguing. Kaluma is a rangy athlete with good ball skills for his size. He put up solid numbers as a sophom*ore — 11.8 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.6 assists — but there’s potential for him to be an all-league type performer and potentially a first-round draft pick. Not many guys can move like him, with explosion and smoothness. He needs to be a more consistent defender and improve his jumper to get there. He shot only 31.1 percent from 3 and has made 29.1 percent of his 3s in his two seasons at Creighton. He’s actually better shooting off the bounce than the catch — 38.2 percent compared to 29.8 percent, per Synergy. He was on a team with a lot of weapons, so the counting numbers may not look as flashy as some players with his talent on worse teams. Kaluma should have a ton of interest. He’s been a starter for two seasons on a winning team and has NBA talent. He could play either forward position and fit into just about any scheme. Creighton seemed like a good system for him, and this is the second starter the Jays have lost to the portal.

The Fit: Kansas State has found its replacement for Keyontae Johnson. Kaluma will see his usage shoot up in this role and look for a lot of two-man game with him Tylor Perry, as they try to replicate what Markquis Nowell and Johnson did in the KSU offense. Kaluma has never been as consistent a scorer as Johnson but he’s shown flashes. He’ll get an opportunity at K-State and also gives Jerome Tang some lineup versatility. He can go big with lineups that feature Kaluma, Nae’Qwan Tomlin and one of his centers or if he wants more scoring and playmaking on the floor, a Kaluma-Tomlin frontline could work.

17. Olivier Nkamhoua | 6-8 forward | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Tennessee to Michigan

The Scout: Expect that Nkamhoua will be one of the more popular players in the portal. It’s surprising that he’d leave Tennessee, as he really came on late in the year. He likely would have been a preseason first-team All-SEC pick if he decided to go back. His 27-point outburst against Duke in the second round of the NCAA Tournament was one of the best performances we’ve seen in this Big Dance, and it was far from his only monster game. He only averaged 10 points and five rebounds per game for the Vols, but Rick Barnes’ team tended to spread the wealth on offense. Nkamhoua shot 51 percent from the field and grew into a potential 3-point threat over the course of the season. The 6-foot-8 forward was also a big part of one of the most stifling defenses in the country this year, constantly being aware of what’s happening around him rotationally and taking on tough frontcourt assignments. He’s been a reliable two-year starter, and he looks like he’s on the verge of breaking out into something even bigger. The question is whether or not that will be in college basketball or in a professional setting. Nkamhoua is a native of Finland, and won’t have any issues finding gainful employment overseas in a really strong league to start his career. That’s probably the more sensible move for him financially long-term. But if Nkamhoua does return to college, he’d likely be an all-conference player next season wherever he suits up.

The Fit: Michigan needed a scorer up front after losing Hunter Dickinson, and Nkamhoua has the potential to become a go-to guy and will get that opportunity with as much scoring as Michigan lost. He also is a good enough shooter to fit alongside Tarris Reed. This is a team that’s going to need to lean on its frontcourt. Nkamhoua and fellow transfer Tray Jackson should also be able to play together. Michigan could still use some weapons in the backcourt, but Juwan Howard has to feel better about his frontcourt now.

18. Tre White | 6-7 wing | Three years of eligibility | Transferred from USC to Louisville

The Scout: A bit of a surprise entrant, as White was seen as a big piece of what could be a terrific USC team next season led by incoming freshman point guard Isaiah Collier and returning combo scoring guard Boogie Ellis. A former top-50, four-star recruit who was seen as a sneaky potential one-and-done player entering the year if things really broke right, White was the upside swing that had potential to elevate the Trojans to different heights. A 6-7 wing with real athleticism and scoring ability, White had a good year. He was an All-Freshman pick in the Pac-12 who averaged nine points, five rebounds and shot 47 percent from the field. He’s physical as a driver and versatile in how you can use him across the two through four positions. Defensively, White was really good for a freshman and gave the team real size and athleticism on the wing to place next to another stout defender in Kobe Johnson, a solid scoring wing in Reese Dixon-Waters, and older 6-8 scoring wing Drew Peterson. White was the one that could tie it all together at times, though. A two-way player with legitimate NBA upside whom scouts believe has a real shot to elevate into being a real prospect as soon as next season. It’s kind of hard to overestimate how important this loss is for the Trojans. Honestly, I think every school in the country should make a call on him. He’s the kind of versatile player whom teams hunt across the country to try to find, and one that I don’t think gets to his fourth year in college before turning pro.

The Fit: This recruiting cycle has made it clear that Kenny Payne wants big wings, and he landed one of the best ones available in White. He now has two guys who were five-star recruits on the wing in White and Trentyn Flowers, and in addition to those two, he’s signed three other perimeter players who are 6-foot-6 or taller and also returns 6-5 guard Mike James. Even Skyy Clark, a 6-3 point guard transferring from Illinois, has good positional size. Then he has a 7-foot-1 center joining the program in four-star Dennis Evans. It was clear Louisville’s talent just wasn’t good enough in Year 1. While the core is really young, there is hope that Louisville at least has the talent to compete. For White, you wonder if he left a good situation to end up on a team that will struggle because of its youth, but he should get an opportunity to be more of a focal point of the offense and Payne does have a strong reputation in player development from his time at Kentucky.

19. Caleb Love | 6-3 guard | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from North Carolina to Arizona

The Scout: Love might be the most complicated evaluation in the portal, a player who has experienced the dizzying heights of being named to an All-NCAA Tournament team in 2022 and the drastic lows of being the most inefficient freshman at the high-major level in decades. His junior year was a mix of both, but more a repeat of his freshman year. Love became the third high-major player of the last decade to take at least seven 3s per game and make under 30 percent of them. It takes real skill to generate those shots, hence why Anthony Edwards is one of the other two that met those inauspicious thresholds, but his ability to convert requires a lot of work. And largely, I think that comes back to decision-making for Love. Far too many of Love’s shots are extremely difficult opportunities off of complex moves off the bounce. He needs to be willing to pass on contested shots to make reads to his teammates as opposed to going on his own more often than he should. He has displayed the ability to make those passes. He just often doesn’t at the expense of being a tunnel-visioned scorer. It’s a mindset adjustment more so than a talent adjustment. It’s possible that the humbling nature of this season could spark a change in his game, as well as a new coaching staff bringing a different perspective to the table. Love has every chance to be a great player; he just needs to be willing to make better choices on the court.

The Fit: This is an even better landing spot for Love than his initial choice of Michigan. Love needs to show that he can be an efficient player and that was the selling point for Arizona. Tommy Lloyd has had a top 10 efficient offense in his two seasons in Tucson and runs the continuity ball screen offense, where the ball hardly ever sticks. While Love took hard shots at UNC, part of the problem was putting him in those spots. For Arizona, the one thing Lloyd needed more of last season was someone who could get downhill and create his own shot in late-clock scenarios. He now has two potential players who can do that in Love and Jaden Bradley to go along with freshman Kylan Boswell. Love and Boswell can also share point guard duties when Bradley isn’t on the floor and is an insurance policy at that position if Bradley isn’t ready to play starter minutes. Playing alongside a smart, low-usage, highly-efficient connector like Pelle Larsson should also help both players. This is a little bit of a risk for Arizona if Love is as reckless with his shot selection as he was at UNC, but considering Love should be aware he’s in reputation rehab, Lloyd has a good shot of reeling him in.

20. JJ Starling | 6-4 guard | Three years of eligibility | Transferred from Notre Dame to Syracuse

The Scout: Starling was a five-star prospect and a potential one-and-done in the 2022 recruiting class as a creative combo guard who would take up the mantle from outgoing star Blake Wesley and lead Notre Dame back to the NCAA Tournament. That did not happen. Starling struggled to adjust to ACC play in his first year, averaging 11.2 points over his freshman season. Particularly, his shooting was a surprise, as he made only 29.9 percent of his 3-point attempts as a player who entered college as a terrific, attack-oriented scorer. The thing that I always liked about Starling at lower levels was that he never seemed to over-dribble. He didn’t have to dance to get to his spots; he just got there, did so in straight lines, and scored. He plays with great pace off of two feet out of ball-screens, and is an aggressive attacker of the rim. He can also stop and pop in the midrange with a nice little floater or a solid midrange pull-up. His preference is to attack out of spot-ups as opposed to shooting, but ultimately Starling will need to shoot. He has a bit of a low release point, but there is no reason why he won’t be able to shoot long-term. He has strong touch. I would expect Starling to spend one season in his new spot, play exceedingly well, and then head to the NBA.

The Fit: That new spot will be Syracuse, Starling has already announced. So this will be the only time he features on this list as opposed to the committed transfer list. A native of upstate New York, Starling is the perfect commitment to jumpstart the Adrian Autry era in Syracuse. He’ll either be a perfect replacement for Judah Mintz in the backcourt if Mintz decides to turn pro, or could even work together with Mintz to form what might be the best offensive backcourt in the ACC next season. The Orange have a long way to go to fill out the roster around Starling, as they’ll need to hit the portal hard for frontcourt players and wings. But it’s hard to envision a better start than getting one of the best transfers on the market to commit in your first month on the job.

21. Jaden Bradley | 6-3 guard | Three years of eligibility remaining | Transferred from Alabama to Arizona

The Scout: Bradley is a former five-star recruit whose situation reminds me of Davion Mitchell when he transferred from Auburn to Baylor. If Bradley puts in the work and ends up in the right system, he could explode like Mitchell did. Like Mitchell at the time, Bradley has defensive potential, elite speed with the ball and concerns about his shooting. Bradley actually put up better numbers as a freshman, averaging 6.4 points and 3.1 assists in 19.8 minutes per game. He made the all-freshman team in the SEC and started 22 games but saw his minutes decline late in the season. He didn’t shoot it great (31.8 percent from 3), struggled to finish at the rim and had his share of sloppy turnovers, but some of that is playing in the SEC as a freshman. His passing is where he’s probably furthest along right now. He has a good sense for how to set up teammates and find people when he’s on the move. He has tools to become a pro if the shooting improves. He needs to get into a program with a good track record of player development, and maybe he has a similar career arc as Mitchell.

The Fit: Former Baylor graduate assistant Rem Bakamus played such a big role in the development of Mitchell that he invited Bakamus to join him at the NBA Draft in 2021. Why is this relevant? Well, go re-read that scouting report on Bradley again. Bakamus is now at Arizona. Bradley finds a spot in need of a point guard after losing Kerr Kriisa to West Virginia and then missing out on Ryan Nembhard, who picked Gonzaga over Arizona. Bradley might have the highest ceiling of those three. Tommy Lloyd has a good track record with point guards going back to his time at Gonzaga, and the position is important in his continuity ball screen offense. Bradley gives the Wildcats a breakdown guard they didn’t have this season when they were reliant mostly on their post players to score. If Bradley puts in the work like Mitchell did, this good end up a great marriage for both parties.

22. LJ Cryer | 6-1 guard | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Baylor to Houston

The Scout: Cryer is one of the best shooters in the country and has proven it on a winning team the last two seasons. He can shoot both off the catch and off the bounce, and he’s well-versed in playing out of ball screens. The two knocks on his game are his size and the challenges that present on the defensive side of the ball. He’s listed at 6-1, but that’s probably a reach. It would help to pair him with a bigger guard, and Baylor’s defense suffered this year because the Bears were just too small in the backcourt. Cryer is likely in the portal to find a spot where he can be the lead ball handler and play point guard. He’ll certainly generate plenty of interest because it’s not easy to find elite shooting.

The Fit: Houston has now found replacements for Tramon Mark (Damian Dunn) and Marcus Sasser (Cryer). Kelvin Sampson gives his guards a lot of offensive freedom, and Cryer should fit well in the Sasser role. He can play both on the ball and off, sharing playmaking responsibilities with Houston’s returning point guard Jamal Shead. The one concern is a lack of size in the backcourt, which is something that really hurt Baylor’s defense this last year. Houston, however, has better defensive pieces at other spots and Shead, while only 6-1, is able to guard bigger players. Sampson will want more out of Cryer on that end, but the offensive fit is a no-doubter.

23. TJ Bamba | 6-5 wing | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Washington State to Villanova

The Scout: A ridiculous omission from the All-Pac-12 teams this season, Bamba carried the offensive load for the Cougars this year and was probably the second-most improved player in the conference behind Oumar Ballo. After being mostly a dynamic defender who just chipped in on offense in 2022, Bamba blossomed in 2023. He averaged 15.2 points per game operating mostly as a slasher that excels getting downhill toward the rim. His game is very uncomplicated in that way. If he can’t get to the rim, he’s comfortable shooting from 3, particularly off the catch. He made 43 percent of his catch-and-shoot 3s this season, per Synergy. Where he struggles is when he has to actually create his own jumper off the bounce. Washington State preaches 3s and layups, but even in the opportunities Bamba took from midrange, they weren’t all that successful. Basically, Bamba looks like a perfect fourth option on a legitimately good team, or a solid second option on an average team. Having said that, his growth trajectory to this point has been positive. With any sort of improvement in his game off the bounce and as a passer, Bamba could take that next step and become an all-conference player in any league. He’d fit just about anywhere.

The Fit: Bamba is a good match for the way Villanova plays. He’s an excellent catch-and-shoot guy with the ability to attack a closeout. The Wildcats need scoring and shooting after losing Cam Whitemore to the NBA and graduating both Caleb Daniels and Brandon Slater. This is a guy Kyle Neptune can slide into the starting lineup and a trio of Justin Moore, Eric Dixon and Bamba looks good on paper.

24. Simas Lukosius | 6-7 wing | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Butler to Cincinnati

The Scout: Every once in a while you’ll come across a player who makes you perk up in your seat and get excited about studying the film. That’s Lukosius. Before Butler, Lukosius played in the highest league in Germany and he’s the son of a coach. It shows. He’s the type of player that gets coaches to say the international game is ahead of us in teaching the game. He really knows how to move without the ball, read screens and read defenses. After shooting only 26.5 percent from 3 as a freshman, he bumped that up to 37.8 percent this year and I believe has the potential to go even higher. He’s got a high, repeatable release and is always on balance. The real fun happens when he puts the ball on the floor. Bodies bounce off him and the way he moves with the ball and his footwork reminds me some of Jaime Jaquez. He always plays with his head up and passes well too. His numbers do not put off the page — 11.6 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game — but coaches will fall in love with his tape. I know I did.

The Fit: Once leading scorer Landers Nolley II elected to declare for and remain in the NBA Draft, Cincinnati was suddenly in desperate need of shooting and scoring pop on the wing. Butler transfer Simas Lukosius fills that void, and should immediately slot in to Nolley’s vacated starting spot. The 6-foot-7 Lithuanian isn’t quite the established, go-to scorer that Nolley was, but entering his third season, Lukosius has the potential to develop into that role or something close to it. He was Butler’s second-leading scorer in 2022-23, averaging 11.6 points on 10 shot attempts per game, including 37.8 percent from 3-point range, filling another need for the Bearcats. He’s also a good passer and decent rebounder, with the size to play as a small-ball four. The Bulldogs struggled last season but Lukosius emerged as a vital roster piece, starting all 32 games and averaging 30-plus minutes as sophom*ore. Cincinnati and head coach Wes Miller will have similar expectations, with hopes he can take another step forward in his development in 2023-24. — Justin Williams

25. Tyler Burton | 6-7 wing | grad transfer | Transferred from Richmond to Villanova

The Scout: Burton was a three-year starter at Richmond and a second-team All-Atlantic 10 member this past season when he averaged a career-best 19.0 points per game. He’s a slithery slasher who can drive either direction and finish with either hand at the bucket. That’s where he does most of his scoring. His jump shot is not reliable. He shot just 29.3 percent from 3 and was even worse from the mid-range. He did make better than 36 percent from 3 his previous two seasons on fewer attempts, but he has some mechanical issues that impact his consistency. He’s a righty who is a left-eye shooter and he misses left and right too often. He obviously can still be an effective scorer without his shot. He does make his free throws (77.8 percent for his career), and he gets there often. He made 4.7 free throws per game this past season. He’s also a strong defensive rebounder. He finished with better than a 20 percent defensive rebounding rate every season at Richmond. While the Spiders were mediocre this past season, Burton has shown he can be a starter on a winning team. The Spiders made the NCAA Tournament his junior year and would have likely made the 2020 field in his freshman season when the tournament was canceled. With his size and skill, he’s capable of playing both forward positions and could even fit as a big shooting guard.

The Fit: It’s clear that Kyle Neptune has a type based off this portal season. Burton is the third big guard/wing that Neptune has landed, joining 6-foot-5 T.J. Bamba and 6-7 Hakim Hart. Villanova also returns 6-4 guard Justin Moore and then recently signed former Kentucky center Lance Ware, who will allow Neptune to play 6-foot-8 Eric Dixon at the four. Burton is the best slasher of the group. For a team that spreads the floor and plays out of concepts, chemistry is important and that’ll be the challenge here. But these are all veteran players with a good feel for how to play, so there’s hope it’ll work. Neptune’s next challenge will be convincing one or two of those veterans to come off the bench

26. Hakim Hart | 6-8 wing | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Maryland to Villanova

The Scout: It’s harder to find well-rounded wings than you would think even on the college level. Hart certainly applies. A three-year starter at Maryland, Hart just does a lot of things well. All due respect to Jahmir Young, but no one was more impactful on winning this year for the Terps than Hart. With him on the court, Maryland beat its opponents by nearly 15 points per 100 possessions. When he was off the court, they lost those minutes by almost nine points per 100, per Pivot Analysis. It’s a staggering differential. Hart has been an efficient scorer the last three seasons. He doesn’t have the game to be a go-to guy, but he’s fine as the secondary or third scorer. He can knock down a 3-pointer. His release is quick but funky. He’s shot around 33 percent from 3 each of the last three seasons, and his shot is what the numbers say. Where he’s best is attacking the basket. He handles it really well for his size and can even play out of ball screens. He’s best suited as a mismatch four. He takes some questionable shots and has some bad misses, but again, the efficiency is solid. He had the highest offensive rating during Big Ten games in his junior year. He can play both wing positions but he’s better guarding up than down. He struggles to keep quicker players in front of him and can get hung up on screens. But his diverse skill set in a 6-8 package is certainly intriguing.

The Fit:Look, Villanova on some level just needs bodies. Realistically, any starter-quality high-major commitment would have been a win here. But to get Hart is an even bigger victory. The duo of T.J. Bamba and Hart is likely going to be the best duo of transfers entering the Big East this season. Both players are Villanova-style guys who play hard on both ends, have some shot-creation ability, and make smart decisions. They’re not just talent fits; they’re program fits for Kyle Neptune as he tries to get back to establishing the culture that made the Cats so successful under Jay Wright. Bamba slots perfectly into the Caleb Daniels role, Hart perfectly into the spots vacated by Cam Whitmore and Brandon Slater. Now, the key for Villanova will be finding more answers on the interior next to Eric Dixon, and another option at lead guard in case Mark Armstrong doesn’t take the next step forward. Villanova’s job isn’t done yet, but it’s off to a perfect start getting two switchable, intelligent players who profile exceedingly well toward winning in this scheme.

27. Aaron Estrada | 6-4 guard | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Hofstra to Alabama

The Scout: A two-time CAA Player of the Year, Estrada automatically becomes one of the most sought-after players in the portal. Estrada is a terrific, attack-oriented guard who is a legitimate three-level scorer. He gets all the way to the rim regularly with terrific change-of-pace skills and long strides that allow him to cover ground quickly. He’s creative and shifty, with all sorts of craft. But more than that, Estrada can just score from all over the court. The lefty gunner can get penetration and then stop and pop from anywhere. He loves the areas around the elbows, where he can stop on a dime and raise up for an easy shot. It used to be that he was more of a midrange shooter, but now Estrada is not just hitting 3s at a high level, but he’s starting to hit them off of movement. He averaged more than six 3-point attempts per game, and hit 37 percent of them. He hit 39 percent off of his catch-and-shoots, with a ton of them being guarded, per Synergy. Then he even made 34 percent of his pull-up 3s, which is a pretty strong number. Basically, Estrada is as well-rounded and developed a scorer as the mid-major level has seen in the last two years. Having said that, it’s worth noting that we have seen Estrada at the high-major level at Oregon, where he was merely a bench player. The St. Benedict’s Prep fifth-year guard has improved drastically since then, particularly as a shooter. That should allow him to have a lot more success in his second go-around. It also helps that he’s had a pair of terrific seasons as a passer, averaging 4.6 assists in his two years at Hofstra. He also averaged nearly 20 points per game in that time with 5.6 rebounds. It’s hard to find production like that in the portal. Estrada is an awesome, older guard scoring prospect for a high-major to take a shot on. He’ll be a starter at that level, with a shot to be an all-conference guy if the shooting and passing game translates better than it did at Oregon.

The Fit: Alabama just continues to reload. The Crimson Tide lose all of their coaches to head jobs? Sure, replace them with a loaded group that includes a young, up-and-coming sitting head coach (Austin Claunch) and a very well-respected NBA assistant (Ryan Pannone). Lose Brandon Miller and likely Noah Clowney? Go to the portal and find stars. The first one is Estrada, a perfect fit for the Alabama offense due to his driving ability and willingness to knock down shots from distance. He’ll fit perfectly within the team’s well-spaced offense, and he’ll even add a degree of midrange shot-making. If they can add one more depth guard, and one more defensively-minded bigger wing, they’ll be in business at the top of college basketball yet again.

28. Nick Timberlake | 6-5 wing | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Towson to Kansas

The Scout: Timberlake will be a sixth-year senior this coming campaign, and he’ll enter it essentially as a professional floor-spacer and shooter. Genuinely, Timberlake is one of the best shooters in all of college basketball. Over his last two seasons, he’s hit 41 percent from 3 on over six attempts per game. The mechanics are pristine; he takes them off the hop or off of a 1-2 step, he’ll hit them off of movement. He’s lethal if you leave him open, and that translates to any level of play. He’s been first-team All-CAA the last two years, and for good reason given the way that he can fill it up. At Towson, he was also asked to be the primary scoring option, and he developed a bit as a ballhandler and driver. But he could also get a bit wild from time to time being asked to do so much, and my bet is that those parts of his game will get cleaned up in a new stop at the high-major level playing around better players. Timberlake has already started taking visits, and North Carolina is seen as a potential landing spot along with St. John’s.

The Fit: KU desperately needed shooting, and Timberlake is one of the best shooters in the portal, so he was an obvious target. Bill Self has really embraced positional size at the two through four spots, and Timberlake provides that. Timberlake is known as a shooter but he can really pass it too. He even played some point guard at Towson and should be a good secondary handler/creator next to Dajuan Harris Jr. Timberlake had to really work for his shots at Towson because taking away open looks was at the top of the scouting report. So the fact he shot as efficiently as he did is promising. His shot-making and gravity will be well utilized at Kansas. Similar to KU’s last shooting specialist, Gradey Dick, the concern is Timberlake’s defense and his ability to keep the ball in front of him. That will be tested in the Big 12. But from an offensive standpoint, he has a game that should really fit in at KU.

29. RJ Luis | 6-7 wing | Three years of eligibility | Transferred from Massachusetts to St. John’s

The Scout: A clearly terrific get for Frank Martin and company out of Martin’s hometown in Miami, Luis hits the portal after a tremendous close to the season for a freshman. In his final 15 games, he averaged 14.4 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.6 assists while shooting 51 percent from the field, 37 percent from 3, and 86 percent from the line — terrific numbers for a freshman that spent the first half of the year still trying to find his way for a disciplinarian coach. He’s not a perfect player at this point. His feel can be a bit questionable sometimes. He’s not always the most conscientious defensive player. Passing isn’t necessarily a strong suit yet, although it has potential. But he’s aggressive and has terrific touch from all over the court — particularly from the midrange where he can create shots with a bevy of inside-out dribbles and hesitation moves. Even when he misses, he crashes the glass hard and tries to cover up for his own mistakes. If he can improve his feel and the way he plays the game, there is a ton of upside here in a way that I think went drastically underrated within a down Atlantic-10 this season.

The Fit: A player with high upside going to Rick Pitino usually works out nicely. Luis becomes the sixth transfer to sign with the Red Storm, and Pitino now has a good core he can put around returning big man Joel Soriano. In Luis, he lands a player who is still in the early stages of his development but has a chance to blossom into a star. Luis was more of a mid-range scorer at UMass and he’d help himself by extending his range and he goes to a coach who will encourage that. Pitino should also refine some of the weaknesses in his game. Maybe it takes a year or two, but this one could really hit for Pitino down the road.

30. Jaylon Tyson | 6-6 wing | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Texas Tech to Cal

The Scout: Tyson, originally a Texas Tech commitment out of high school, followed Chris Beard to Texas and then only played a semester at UT before transferring to Texas Tech. Now he’s back in the portal, and he could have to sit a year before he’d be able to play unless he’s able to secure a waiver. There is a lot to like about his game. He has a picture-perfect jumper. He’s always shot ready and gets it off quick. He shot 40.2 percent from 3 this past season. He averaged 10.7 points and 6.1 rebounds, and he was streaky as a scorer. When Texas Tech got him shots, he usually produced. He moves well without the ball and utilizes his size when he’s cutting to the basket. He is the 3-and-D wing prototype with his size and jump shot. Right now he’s a good role player who can blend into any offense. He occasionally gets in trouble when he tries to get too cute off the dribble, but he usually keeps it pretty simple. Go under a ball screen and he can make you pay. He’s not an explosive athlete but he’s smooth, and when he gets to his spots in rhythm, he’s efficient. Even if he has to sit out a year, he’s a player worth investing in with still two years left of eligibility.

The Fit: Mark Madsen continues to improve the talent at Cal, as Tyson is the fifth transfer he’s signed and the second from Texas Tech. Tyson joins Fardaws Aimaq in Berkeley. Madsen has a nice core now and a chance to actually compete in the Pac-12 this season. Tyson was one of the best wings in the portal and still has two years of eligibility remaining. There’s a chance he’ll have to sit out a year, but that wouldn’t be the worst thing for Madsen. If he keeps recruiting like he has since he took over, it’s possible that would fit more in line with his timeline for when Cal would be ready to compete for an NCAA Tournament bid.

31. Matthew Cleveland | 6-7 wing | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Florida State to Miami

The Scout: The former five-star recruit was Florida State’s best player this season, averaging 13.7 points, 7.4 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game, but that’s not the flattering title it would usually be. The Seminoles were a mediocre basketball team, and Cleveland doesn’t quite have the game to be the go-to guy on a winning team. He could be a useful role player. He’s a rangy athlete capable of guarding multiple positions and best suited to play a small-ball four spot. He doesn’t have any wiggle to his game, but he covers ground quickly. He has an unorthodox release on his jumper, and he lives a little too much in the mid-range. That’s why he hasn’t been very efficient. He made 21 3-pointers and shot a decent clip from deep (35 percent) this season after making only 17.6 percent of his 3s as a freshman. He’s capable of making plays for others and appears to make good reads when he looks to pass. He’d benefit from a role where he looked to be more of a connector than a scorer. Florida State rarely used him as a roller or pick-and-pop guy, but that’d be a spot he might be useful, especially in short rolls. Cleveland will likely generate a lot of high-major interest because with the right players around him he could be an effective player. He just needs to be surrounded by better talent where he’s the third or fourth option instead of a guy relied upon to score.

MATTHEW CLEVELAND WINS IT FOR @FSUHoops AT THE BUZZER 😱

The Noles were down as many as 25, but stormed back to shock their in-state rivals 🔥

(via @accmbb)pic.twitter.com/fngnBzqH7V

— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) February 25, 2023

The Fit: Cleveland lands in a spot where he’ll be surrounded by better talent in an offense with better spacing. Miami saw the best of him this season when he scored 20 points and hit the game-winner in a late-February upset. He replaces Jordan Miller as the small-ball four for the Hurricanes. When Miller went to Miami from George Mason, his usage went down and his efficiency went up. That’ll be the hope for Cleveland.

32. Darrion Williams | 6-6 wing/forward | Three years of eligibility | Transferred from Nevada to Texas Tech

The Scout: A power wing from hoops powerhouse Bishop Gorman in Las Vegas, Williams was the Mountain West Rookie of the Year this season. He’s a classic college four-man, with a thick build physically and perimeter skills across the board. The big key is that he’s a clean shooter from distance, having hit 36 percent of his attempts from range. But he’s more well-rounded than that. Williams passes well, processing what’s happening around him well and hitting quick reads. Defensively, he’s sharp for a freshman and knows where he needs to go. And to top that off, he’ll crash the glass and end possessions on the defensive end. The counting stats don’t jump off the page at seven points, seven rebounds and three assists, but Nevada was drastically better with Williams on the court than when he was off of it. The team won the minutes where he played by 11.4 points per 100 possessions, and lost the minutes where he was off the court by 12 points per 100, per Pivot Analysis. Good, well-rounded wings are super valuable, and they’re hard to find. Williams is one.

The Fit: Grant McCasland’s offense generates a lot of spot-ups and encourages making extra passes, and Williams fits that type of approach. It’s important to have shooting in the Big 12 and versatile defenders who play with physicality. Williams hits all those boxes. This is a good start for McCasland in the transfer portal, especially with the graduation of Kevin Obanor and potential loss of Jaylon Tyson, who is in the portal. Tyson and Williams could play together, so it’s not like this takes Tyson’s spot. If anything, Tyson should be encouraged that if he does return there’s going to be some talent surrounding him. McCasland and his staff did a nice job in the development department at North Texas, and Williams is a guy who has a high ceiling based off what he showed as a freshman.

33. Josh Oduro | 6-10 big | One year of eligibility | Transferred from George Mason to Providence

The Scout: Oduro has been an All-Atlantic 10 big man for the last two seasons, essentially acting as a central hub for Kim English’s Patriots. The 6-foot-10 big man with all sorts of touch and skill exploded once English got there, averaging 16.6 points, 7.7 rebounds and 2.2 assists over the last two seasons, shooting 54 percent from the field. He has terrific length and great feet, which he uses well both on the block and out of dribble-handoffs. This results in a lot of drawn fouls. The cooler thing about his game, though, is that you can play him as a genuine five-out big man on offense. His handle is absolutely terrific for a player his size, allowing him to attack centers on an island, get by them, and use that footwork to pivot, reverse pivot, spin, and finish at the rim. Don’t sleep on his passing, either. Oduro does a great job of reading double-teams and finding open cutters toward the rim. His footspeed and lack of lift could be a bit more concerning at the high-major level on the defensive end, but he improved on that end of the court this season in terms of his positioning and timing. He’s a high-major starting center.

The Fit: From the moment he hit the portal, the assumption was that Oduro would follow his former coach English to Providence. That ended up being the result, as Oduro committed to Providence quickly. English will utilize Oduro similarly as a five-out center. With Bryce Hopkins returning to the Friars, Oduro will be a good fit next to him offensively as a big due to his ability to play in that five-out style. If not, Oduro should be fine in the Big East as an offensive hub. It would really help him take his game to the next level if he can add the jumper to his repertoire consistently as opposed to just occasionally. But he’ll help English reload the Providence roster that graduates a few players and has an enormous decision forthcoming with Hopkins.

34. Andrew Rohde | 6-6 wing | Three years of eligibility | Transferred from St. Thomas to Virginia

The Scout: Rohde is maybe the most underappreciated freshman in the portal this year given what his accomplishments were at newly Division I St. Thomas this season. The first-year wing averaged 17 points and almost four rebounds and four assists on his way to being named first-team All-Summit League and the conference’s Rookie of the Year. But he’s also not quite what you expect when you first put on the tape, either. He’s a good shooter, not a great one. His release takes a little too long to load into at times, although he does show some upside for not needing to dip the ball to get into rhythm and also for hitting them off of movement actions. Really, it’s the fact that he can attack off of these actions at a very high level for a teenager. He is comfortable getting into the paint if you close out on him too hard, and can really actually operate out of ball-screens as a playmaker. He’ll drive and get to the rim, particularly attacking with his left hand to get to his inside right hand for a finish. Coaches that want to run a dribble hand-off-heavy attack would also do well to look at Rohde, as he excels in these actions because he can flatten out behind them and pull-up quickly, or he can stay downhill out of these situations and get to the basket. And all of this is before we get to his passing ability, which is quite creative off of a live dribble. Rohde is a high-major starter with all-conference upside by the time he’s an upperclassman. It might take a year to get him adjusted from playing Summit-level defenses.

The Fit: Rohde and Isaac McKneely could be the next Ty Jerome-Kyle Guy tag team. They both sure look the part. There’s even some Jerome in Rohde’s game. The jump in levels is a huge one, but he comes from a system where he’s been taught to make high-level reads. (St. Thomas runs the John Beilein two-guard offense.) Rohde needs to improve as a shooter, but he has the feel and size to really produce at the high-major level. He’s also going to a place where there’s not a need for him to produce right away. Tony Bennett will develop him until he’s ready. I’d bet on it not taking too long, but whenever it happens, this is a place where Rohde’s skill set really fits how Virginia plays.

35. AJ Storr | 6-6 wing | Three years of eligibility | Transferred from St. John’s to Wisconsin

The Scout: Storr was one of the players Rick Pitino would have loved to keep on the roster, but he hit the portal and will be very sought-after now. He’s a powerful 6-foot-6 athlete that, honestly, has the look of an NBA player. A four-star recruit in the 2022 class, he’s explosive as a leaper and had some very powerful finishes as a cutter and transition player this year. He also knocked down 40 percent of his 3s on his way to nine points per game and an All-Freshman team berth in the Big East. But he got even better in Big East play, averaging almost 11 points and shooting more efficiently. Athletic and can shoot is a great place to start, but Storr definitely has some things to work on. The flashes are real, but he needs to work on his handle and finishing package when he’s not skying above the rim for a catch-and-dunk opportunity. Right now, he’s basically just a guy that you spot up from the perimeter, run him off of some off-ball actions, and who runs the floor aggressively in transition. Still, it’s hard to find guys who can do all of that at 6-foot-6. He’s absolutely worth an upside swing from a high-major. There is real potential here if he finds a developmentally inclined landing spot.

The Fit: I found out Storr committed to Wisconsin while on the line with another Big Ten coach, and his reaction was a mix of surprise that the Badgers were able to get in with Storr as well as disappointment that he’ll have to play Storr for a couple of years. This is an awesome fit for what Storr’s skill set is. Wisconsin runs an offense more predicated on ball movement, where Storr’s capability as a terrific 3-point shooter and smart above-the-rim cutter will be perfectly utilized in halfcourt settings. The Badgers desperately needed to get more athletic this offseason, and Storr will be that. Look for him to play an Alando Tucker-like role in Madison. The vision for Storr is clear, and he should slot in perfectly next to Tyler Wahl in the frontcourt due to that shooting and athleticism. I think Storr is an eventual All-Big Ten player with the Badgers.

36. Jayden Nunn | 6-4 guard | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from VCU to Baylor

The Scout: Nunn was someone that scouts thought had a real chance to break out this season and potentially pop up onto NBA Draft radars after a strong all-freshman season in the Atlantic-10 in 2022. Alas, it didn’t quite happen. It was more of the same as a solid starter for the Rams. He averaged nine points and shot 40 percent from 3 this season, and that’s always been a part of his game. Having said that, Nunn also covers ground quickly both out in transition and as a driver, as he uses long strides to get all the way to the basket. If he gets an angle on you, it’s tough to recover. It also helps that Nunn was a part of a terrific defense at VCU, and he uses his long arms to shoot passing lanes and aggressively cover his man. It’s very possible that Nunn just looks at this as an opportunity to reconnect with his former coach, Mike Rhoades, who was named the new coach at Penn State earlier this offseason. Having said that, I think Nunn has a bit more talent than what he always showed at VCU. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see him break out in a different environment if he can get just a little bit stronger and be able to deal with more physicality as a driver.

The Fit: Nunn is still only 19 and going to a program that has been a factory for developing guards. Consider Davion Mitchell averaged only 3.7 points per game before transferring to the Bears, where he turned into a lottery pick. Similar to Mitchell, Nunn is someone who can really guard, and Baylor needs an identity shift after Scott Drew had his worst defensive team in more than a decade. The Bears were too small on the perimeter to play the no-middle defense, and Drew has addressed that by adding long defenders like Nunn, and freshmen Ja’Kobe Walker and Miro Little. The Bears also put their guards in a lot of ball screens and encourage them to be aggressive, so Nunn is going to get opportunities to show he can do more offensively.

37. Allen Flanigan | 6-6 wing | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Auburn to Ole Miss

The Scout: Flanigan is the son of Wes Flanigan, who left his job as an assistant coach at Auburn to join Chris Beard’s staff at Ole Miss. It’d be surprising if the younger Flanigan goes anywhere besides Ole Miss. Flanigan is a guy who looks the part of a pro from a size and athleticism standpoint. He put up pretty good numbers as a sophom*ore — 14.3 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.9 assists — but he wasn’t the same player as a junior when he dealt with an Achilles injury. He started to look more like his old self this past season, averaging 10.1 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists. It’s possible if Ole Miss is the destination that he returns to more of a playmaking role and has the ball in his hands more — like he did as a sophom*ore. But even if he puts up similar numbers as his senior season, he’s a solid starter in the SEC who has produced on winning teams. He’s at his best playing in space and slashing to the basket or setting up teammates when he draws help. He needs to continue to improve his jump shot. He shot just 33.3 percent from 3 and is a 29.8 percent 3-point shooter for his career, but he’s had stretches where he’s looked like more of a mid-30s shooter.

The Fit: This is the least surprising news of the portal season, but it’s still good news for Ole Miss and it comes on the same day that leading returning scorer Matthew Morrell decides to return. With both Morrell and Flanigan, that makes it so Ole Miss can afford if Brandon Murray is not able to be eligible right away. If they have all three, Flanigan is big enough to slide down to the four and allow Chris Beard to play some small-ball lineups with more skill. His positional versatility is a nice luxury to have. His size on the perimeter is also a good fit in the no-middle defense. Flanigan is just a solid player who checks a lot of boxes.

38. Kel’el Ware | 7-0 center | Three years of eligibility | Transferred from Oregon to Indiana

The Scout: Seen as a potential one-and-done entering his freshman year at Oregon, the world was at Ware’s fingertips. He’s a 7-footer who moves like a wing, has legitimate length, and has potential to shoot it. The tools are tantalizing. But Ware has long been seen as a relatively polarizing prospect – even as a five-star recruit – due to production that has never necessarily matched the incredible potential. The downside of that unfortunately played out this year at Oregon, as Ware was beaten out for frontcourt roles by N’Faly Dante and Nate Bittle. Ware shot just 46 percent from the field and 27 percent from 3, averaging seven points, four rebounds and 1.3 blocks in 15 minutes per game. Ware will not enter the draft this year, and will be seen as a high-upside swing in the portal. More than anything, he should be looking for a role and situation that provides him offensive freedom. Too often, it didn’t seem like Ware was being utilized to his best strengths this season. Was that his fault, or was that more of the coaching staff trying to fit a square peg in a round hole? We’ll find out. Originally from Arkansas, it might make a lot of sense for Ware to head back toward Fayetteville and the transfer haven that Eric Musselman has created. Musselman is more than willing to play a five-out style of offense, which is what Ware should be playing. This is one of those transfers who will either work out perfectly, or will be tremendously disappointing if Ware can’t reach the ceiling that his abilities allow. I don’t see much of an in-between. And even if it works out well, you still probably only get him for one year.

The Fit: Ware commits to Indiana, where he’ll get to play for Mike Woodson and we’ll finally get the answer to a question Hoosiers fans have been asking: Was Trayce Jackson-Davis just not willing to shoot 3s for former NBA coach Woodson? Or was it Woodson who held him back? Ware fits the paradigm of an NBA big man with his ability to step away and shoot, which could create and even more well-spaced, dynamic attack for the Hoosiers next season. Nobody around the country denies Ware’s talent. It’s all on him to be willing to put in the work to reach that tremendous ceiling after he couldn’t beat out Nate Bittle and N’Faly Dante for playing time last year. In terms of the fit, it’s perfect for what Woodson has publicly said he wants to run, and Ware gives the Hoosiers a tremendous, high-upside replacement for Jackson-Davis. If Ware steps out and shoots 3s, he should be a perfect fit in the frontcourt as a starting combination with Malik Reneau. Ware blocks shots and steps away to shoot; Reneau is a terrific mid-post technician on offense that needs a bit more space to operate. But all of this depends on Ware actualizing the talent he has.

39. Moussa Cisse | 6-10 center | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Oklahoma State to Ole Miss

The Scout: Cisse hits the transfer portal for the second time in his career, which means his immediate eligibility will be in question. He may have to sit a year. Maybe that’s not the worst thing for his development on the offensive end. He’s unquestionably a huge value on the defensive end, but there is promise to his offensive game if cleans up some weak spots. You don’t see a lot of rim-rolling, defensive-oriented bigs who can actually shoot, and Cisse can. He knocked down 50 percent of his jumpers this season, per Synergy. Where he needs to improve is in the old-school type finishes for bigs. He made only 37.5 percent of his layups and 25 percent of his hook shots, per Synergy. He does try to dunk everything around the rim, which is a plus, but he’s loose with the ball when he gets stopped with a defender between him and the bucket. If he can become more of an automatic finisher from about 8 feet in, he has potential to be a double-digit scorer — he averaged 7.0 points per game in two seasons at Oklahoma State. Cisse has all the defensive tools. He is one of the best shot blockers and rebounders in the country, averaging 13.6 boards and 3.6 blocks per 40 minutes for his career. Oklahoma State allowed just 0.88 points per possession and 42.7 percent shooting inside the arc with him on the floor this season, per hooplens.com. He is an elite rim protector. He should try to find a program that uses its bigs as rim rollers and in pick and pop situations. Then defensively, he should fit in any scheme.

The Fit:This depends on whether Cisse is given a waiver to play right away and what Chris Beard’s plans are for Cisse and Jamarion Sharp. It’s hard to see those two playing together. While Cisse has shown the ability to shoot, he’s not proven enough to make the spacing work in a modern offense. That just seems like a really bad idea. If Beard knows it’s not likely Cisse will get a waiver, then it makes some sense to have these two players on the roster. Ole Miss gets one season of Sharp and then has his replacement already on the roster. It’s smart to have a rim protecting center in the no-middle defense, which is what Beard has employed in the past. His team that made the national championship game had Tariq Owens, a player whose statistical profile and strengths were similar to Cisse’s.

40. Micah Handlogten | 7-1 center | Three years of eligibility | Transferred from Marshall to Florida

The Scout: Handlogten is going to be one of the most underrated transfers in the portal this year. Already as a freshman, the Michigan native developed into a fairly dominant defensive player in the Sun Belt. He was the league’s rookie of the year this season, not only consistently shutting down the paint but also displaying some impressive movement skills out on the perimeter that will allow his new landing spot to use him in versatile ways in ball-screen coverages. He swatted 2.3 shots per game, swallowed up the glass as a rebounder, and got a ton of deflections with his terrific hand-eye coordination. Offensively, Handlogten is definitely a bit limited, but he averaged an efficient eight points per game while shooting 66 percent from the field. He also showed some interesting signs as a passer and playmaker. Handlogten will be extremely popular, and should be, because he doesn’t have many holes in his game. He’ll be a multi-year starter at a high-major, and might win one of those league’s defensive player of the year awards before he’s done. I would expect him to end up at a bigger school that is one of the more analytically inclined because while his counting stats don’t look wildly impressive, his below-the-surface numbers pop off the page in a real way.

The Fit: My read on analytically inclined teams being interested prior to Handlogten’s commitment was right. Handlogten was one of the best young rim protectors in the country this season, and at Florida he’ll be replacing one of the best older rim protectors in the country in Colin Castleton. In the defensive scheme that Todd Golden and his staff want to run, having a mobile rim protector is essential. Handlogten does just that. He should fit right into the starting lineup seamlessly as a low-usage big next to a terrific group of perimeter players led by Riley Kugel and Will Richard. The Gators still have some questions to answer in the backcourt as of the time of this commitment, but they’re in the mix for a variety of potential options there. Depending on who they can convince to commit there, the team could well-positioned for a climb up the leaderboard in the SEC after a disappointing debut campaign for this staff.

41. RaeQuan Battle | 6-5 wing | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Montana State to West Virginia

The Scout: Battle is a former top-100 recruit who started his career at Washington. It took until his senior season to put up big numbers, but he was a star this past season. He averaged 17.7 points, made the All-Big Sky team and hung 27 points on Kansas State in the NCAA Tournament. He might have the most burst of any player in the portal. He shoots it really well off the bounce. He always catches it square to the basket and has a great shot fake and a quick first step. He’s also the type of guy who can get his shot off in a phone booth. Montana State also had him flying off screens and dribble hand offs. His shot looks a little herky-jerky, but it’s good at the release point, which is high. He made 35.1 percent of his 3s in two seasons at Montana State. He finishes well around the basket and is a good cutter as well. He should get a lot of high-major attention, because you don’t see many players come out of the mid-major level with this combination of size, athleticism and scoring ability. Most the best prospects at that level have two of the three. Since he transferred once already, he’ll need to graduate to play right away.

The Fit: West Virginia ended up one of the big winners in last year’s cycle, and Bob Huggins has arguably outdone himself this go around. The one missing piece was a bucket getter on the wing to replace Erik Stevenson, and he lands a legit scorer in Battle. The one hesitation we had in ranking him too high was it took until his fourth year to really pop and his numbers at Washington were just meh — averaged 4.8 points in two seasons. But Battle’s film pops. Huggins will also unleash a scorer like this, as he did with Stevenson, who averaged a career-best 15.4 points for the Mountaineers in his one season there. Now with Battle, Kerr Kriisa and Jesse Edwards, West Virginia is a team that I’d bet on spending most of the year in the Top 25.

42. Walter Clayton Jr. | 6-2 guard | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Iona to Florida

The Scout: The name of the game with Clayton is touch. Clayton is one of the best shooters in the portal, with a feathery soft release and terrific efficiency. The MAAC Player of the Year, Clayton averaged over 16 points per game while shooting 46 percent from the field, 43 percent from 3, and 95 percent from the foul line last year. But more impressively, he did it out of a variety of different situations. He’s always on balance, playing consistently off of two feet and making himself available to be in position to shoot the ball. He’s not the most explosive player, but his footwork is terrific and he has great instincts once he gets into the paint. He makes the right decision consistently, sets the table for his teammates, rarely takes terrible shots. And genuinely, he will space the floor for his teammates at an elite level as more of a complementary starter at the high-major level. I love him for teams that have high-level creators at the wing position next year, where he can be more of a secondary ballhandler that knocks down shots off the catch and takes side ball-screens. A reunion with Rick Pitino at St. John’s would make worlds of sense, but Clayton is also considering heading closer to home and attending Florida, where he’d also immediately step into the starting lineup in Todd Golden’s second season there. No bad options for Clayton, who should be a two-year starter wherever he ends up with the upside of making an all-conference team.

The Fit: Another day, another addition for Florida from the portal. The MAAC Player of the Year last season in Clayton will provide some much-needed shooting to a Gator attack that desperately lacked it a season ago. As a team, Florida shot just 31.3 percent from 3, 11th in an SEC that wasn’t exactly known for its shooting last year. With a core perimeter trio now of Clayton, Riley Kugel and Will Richard, the Gators now have three plus shooters to put around defensive anchor at center Micah Handlogten. Clayton is a solid creator with the ball in his hands, but in the SEC he might be a bit more of a technician as a driver that ends up settling in as a really good starter that knocks down shots and consistently closes games. He’s not a wild athlete, and he’s entering a league that could limit him in that regard even more. The Gators could use another perimeter player, this time one that is a bit more attack-oriented in the vein of Jamaree Bouyea, the guard Todd Golden had at San Francisco prior to getting there. Just someone who can consistently pressure the basket. Having said that, this team should already be drastically improved from last season, and profile well now as an NCAA Tournament team.

🚨BREAKING: Walter Clayton Jr. Will transfer to Florida

He averaged 16.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game this season. Clayton Jr. Was the MAAC Player of the Year @TheAthletic pic.twitter.com/q7pMkVjS0U

— Tobias Bass (@tobias_bass) April 11, 2023

43. Steele Venters | 6-7 wing | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Eastern Washington to Gonzaga

The Scout: Expect that Venters will be one of the most popular players in the portal. The Big Sky Player of the Year this past season, Venters is an absolute sharpshooter from distance. He’s one of the best shooters in all of college basketball, with a beautiful high-arcing shot that scrapes the rafters and rarely hits the rim. Venters has made 41.4 percent of his catch-and-shoot 3s over his three years in college to this point, many of which have been tough, contested movement jumpers. You can run him off of a variety of actions, and he’ll be successful, including off of curls and pindowns in the midrange. He’s also improved a lot as a cutter and driver, and was capable of being the primary option for the Eagles. Venters has even started taking some ball-screen opportunities and hit pull-up shots from the midrange and gotten to the rim more. The whole goal for Venters is to take advantage of the immense floor-spacing and shooting. There are a few NBA teams tracking Venters purely because it’s so hard to find legitimately elite shooters with size like this. He’s a no-brainer take for quite literally every school in the country.

The Fit: Venters may not even have to move in order to play at Gonzaga, as Eastern Washington University is only 20 miles from Spokane. Venters is a perfect fit within the Zags’ offense. He’s an elite shooter who runs off of screens at an exceptionally high level, and can quickly fire from distance. He’s a readymade replacement for Julian Strawther if/when he decides to turn pro. Venters should start with the Zags from the jump next year and be a double-figure scorer. This is a huge start for the Zags. Now they just need to find a lead guard and a post big in the portal.

44. Dalton Knecht | 6-6 wing | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Northern Colorado to Tennessee

The Scout: Knecht was a sneaky NBA prospect in hiding at Northern Colorado. A second-team All-Big Sky selection this season after starting his career with two junior college seasons, the 6-foot-6, 200-pound wing is a legitimate shooter from distance who also pairs it with genuine above-the-rim athleticism. At the Big Sky level, he could finish from all three levels on his way to over 20 points and seven rebounds per game while shooting 48 percent from the field, 38 percent from 3 and 77 percent from the line. That scoring number actually increased in conference play and resulted in him leading the league in points per game. Because of that shooting and well-rounded scoring package, his game looks tailor-made for success at higher levels of college basketball. He’s one of those guys who just gets better every time you catch up with his tape. I’d bet on him as a high-major difference-maker next season. Every team should be looking for real size and versatile scoring ability in the portal. A fit just down the road at Colorado would actually make a lot of sense, and could send the Buffs into the preseason top 25 if K.J. Simpson and Tristan Da Silva return along with the addition of five-star wing Cody Williams. But Knecht will be one of the more popular players available due to his multifaceted skill set.

The Fit:On the surface, this might be the strangest fit I’ve seen in the portal thus far. Knecht is a remarkably talented offensive player who can play out of ball-screens, knock down shots from distance, and make some intriguing passing reads. He’s really skilled with the ball in his hands and as a spot-up weapon who can dribble, pass and shoot. The good news is that Tennessee takes more 3s than people tend to think under Rick Barnes. They’ve hovered around the top one-third of the country in 3-point attempt rate over the last two years. The problem is that outside of Santiago Vescovi last year, they just didn’t have anyone who could actually make them. Knecht changes that. The big question here is how Barnes will react to coaching Knecht on defense. I have some real skepticism about Knecht on that end. He’s going to have to really be willing to buy in and accept the hard coaching that will come from Barnes and his staff. It’ll be a real sink-or-swim choice for Knecht. If he is willing to put in the work, he’ll be an impact player. If he doesn’t improve on defense, he might not play as much as people think. Still, Knecht has NBA upside in terms of talent, and to reach that goal he has to get better on defense. If that was his thinking with this choice, there may have been no better place than Tennessee. Still, the range of outcomes is wide here if he doesn’t take that defensive step forward.

45. Kalib Boone | 6-9 big | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Oklahoma State to UNLV

The Scout: Boone is one of the most athletic bigs in the portal and coming off his best season yet, averaging 10.6 points, 4.9 rebounds and a 1.2 blocks in 21.3 minutes per game. He can play either big man spot and is a presence as a shot blocker. He’s an elasticy athlete. He gets off the ground quickly and can get from point A to point B quickly. He had a dunk in the Big 12 tournament off the roll where he caught the ball just inside the 3-point line, took two big steps and stretched to the rim. Not many players in college basketball can do that. He showed more skill than ever before this season. He can score over either shoulder with both hands. He can also step out and make a jump shot. He hasn’t done that a ton, but the shot looks solid and he shot 75.7 percent at the free-throw line. He will miss some bunnies sometimes that he shouldn’t, and he can get pushed off the blocks because of his skinny frame. But for anyone looking for an athletic rim-roller who can also protect the rim, he’d be a good get. OSU opponents scored just 0.9 points per possession and made only 44.2 percent of their 2s with him on the floor, per hooplens.com. Moussa Cisse was one of the best rim protectors in the country, but OSU’s defensive numbers were good with just Boone on the floor and no Cisse. His twin brother, Keylan, is also in the portal. He averaged 13.9 points for Pacific this past season.

The Fit: This reunites Kalib with his brother Keylan, who committed to UNLV a day earlier. Kalib might be the most talented big man in the Mountain West now, and if the Rebels can find some startable guards in the transfer portal, they might just have a Mountain West contender. Kevin Kruger, like his father, likes to play fast and that should fit the Boone brothers well. Kalib started to show off his ability to score this season and he could be a high-usage producer at the Mountain West level. Kalib would start at a lot of high-majors, so this is pretty huge for UNLV to be able to land him.

46. Keyon Menifield | 6-1 guard | Three years of eligibility | Transferred from Washington to Arkansas

The Scout: Menifield is one of those guys that has just been on a purely upward trajectory over the last two years, after leading Nike’s EYBL circuit in scoring, then following that up by being the Division 3 Michigan Player of the Year in high school. Then this season, he earned his status as an All-Freshman team performer in thre Pac-12, averaging 10 points and three assists versus 1.8 turnovers. He is one of the better ballhandlers you’ll find in college basketball, stringing together moves like crazy and finding open creases out of ball-screens. His partnership with Braxton Meah out of ball-screens was really fun, as the duo combined for some high-flying alley oops. Still, there is even more room for growth with Menifield. He is very comfortable pulling up from the midrange right now, but needs to work on his jumper from distance after having only hit 33 percent last year. His vision is pretty solid, and generally he makes good decision with the ball even if it does involve some contested midrange pull-ups. Menifield left the door open for a return to Washington, but there are a number of schools across the country interested in his game, so it’ll be tough for Mike Hopkins and company to retain him.

The Fit: Arkansas desperately needed more depth in the backcourt. They’re going to lose future first-round picks in Anthony Black and Nick Smith Jr. in the 2023 NBA Draft, and there is a real chance they also lose Ricky Council IV to that process as well. Devo Davis is testing the draft process while maintaining his eligibility, but will likely be back. He’s also not quite a creative guard that make things happen; he’s more of a shooter. Additionally, Layden Blocker is coming off of a terrific season at Sunrise Christian Academy, but again, he’s more of a downhill guard that gets everyone involved, doesn’t turn the ball over, and makes high-level passing reads. The team needs a bucket-getter. Menifield is a bucket. He is the creative presence this backcourt desperately needed, and he should find success playing for Eric Musselman.

😤 #Committed @TiptonEdits pic.twitter.com/kBja9jtSTg

— Keyon Menifield Jr1️⃣ (@TheCh0sen0ne_) April 4, 2023

47. Harrison Ingram | 6-8 point wing | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Stanford to UNC

The Scout: Ingram was seen as a potential one-and-done draft pick prior to his freshman season, and he had some success. He was actually the Pac-12’s Rookie of the Year in 2022. But he closed the year incredibly poorly and decided to return to Stanford for his sophom*ore campaign. Unfortunately, he did not showcase much in the way of growth. Ingram still shot under 32 percent from 3 and under 60 percent from the line. A limited athlete at 6-foot-8, Ingram has tremendous feel for the game as a passer and playmaker. You can even run him as a point guard at times and find some success due to how effective he is at making decisions. But he can’t really separate from his man in the halfcourt, and is more comfortable in those settings in transition. As a halfcourt player, you kind of want him to spot up at times, but he also needs to work through some issues with the shot. Still, Ingram is an 11-point, six-rebound, four-assist player that is very well-rounded and could find very real success outside of a Stanford situation that, frankly, has been less than ideal over the last few years. Originally from Dallas, there are a number of programs that would make sense for Ingram and present a fit that allows him to grab and go on the break, create some impressive kickout opportunities and finish at the rim. Having said that, it’s also incumbent upon Ingram to reach whatever ceiling he can as a shooter over the next two years if he wants a shot at playing professionally, something that seems reasonable.

The Fit: Ingram is close to the kind of wing that I mentioned North Carolina needing following the commitment of Cormac Ryan, but there are some differences that could lead to team-based issues. Ingram is a 6-foot-8 point forward who can handle the ball, grab and go on the break, and really drive positive play on offense. Athletically, he’s best suited to playing the four on defense in the ACC, and I worry that his presence will not necessarily help the Tar Heels consistently get stops. The team this year might end up being a bit slow, especially if they try to play all of Armando Bacot, Jae’Lyn Withers and Ingram together. But Ingram is helpful insofar as he’ll take some of the offensive load off of R.J. Davis. The key swing skill has always been the jumper for Ingram, and that’ll remain true here as the team still likely does not have enough floor-spacing to run their offense all that successfully through Bacot if teams can just crash down on him in help without anyone beyond Ryan really hurting them from distance.

48. Damian Dunn | 6-5 guard | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Temple to Houston

The Scout: Old wins in college basketball, and Dunn is one of those experienced guys who just plays old. He knows how to get to his spots and score. He averaged 15.3 points this past season and has averaged 14.6 for his career. He can operate in the mid-post/mid-range, and then he’s also a capable spot-up shooter. He also has a smooth handle and can work out of ball screen. He’s shot it only 31.2 percent from 3 for his career, but I think he’s a better shooter than that. He made 37.3 percent of his 3s in conference play this past season, and that’s probably more representative of what kind of shooter he is. He had to take some hard shots in Temple’s offense, but he’d fit really well in a high-major offense with talented players around him where he doesn’t have to take such hard shots. He’s not a very explosive athlete and struggles to finish around length at the basket. But in the right system where he’s getting good shots from his spots, he could be a useful, efficient scorer.
The Fit: Ingram is close to the kind of wing that I mentioned North Carolina needing following the commitment of Cormac Ryan, but there are some differences that could lead to team-based issues. Ingram is a 6-foot-8 point forward who can handle the ball, grab and go on the break, and really drive positive play on offense. Athletically, he’s best suited to playing the 4 on defense in the ACC, and I worry that his presence will not necessarily help the Tar Heels consistently get stops. The team this year might end up being a bit slow, especially if they try to play all of Armando Bacot, Jae’Lyn Withers and Ingram together. But Ingram is helpful insofar as he’ll take some of the offensive load off of R.J. Davis. The key swing skill has always been the jumper for Ingram, and that’ll remain true here as the team still likely does not have enough floor-spacing to run their offense all that successfully through Bacot if teams can just crash down on him in help without anyone beyond Ryan really hurting them from distance.

The Fit: Houston knew how good Dunn was after playing against him for four seasons and witnessing him score 16 points in an upset win over the Coogs this season. Dunn slides right into the vacancy left by Tramon Mark, and in some ways he’s an upgrade. Both are really good in the mid-range but Dunn is more of a natural scorer. Dunn is also the better shooter of the two. This was a smart target by Houston’s staff, and Dunn should be able to up his efficiency playing on a more talented roster.

49. Chris Ledlum | 6-6 wing/forward | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Harvard to Tennessee

The Scout: An All-Ivy League player this season, Ledlum is a powerful 6-foot-6 wrecking ball at that level who averaged 18.8 points and 8.5 rebounds per game. That’s basically what Ledlum does; he’s your typical undersized four-man in college basketball. He rebounds well and powers through defenders using his strength. In the Ivy, he was a walking mismatch, especially in the minutes he played as a small-ball center. He’s an aggressive straight-line driver who attacks off the bounce and tries to get all the way to the rim to finish. He averaged over eight shots at the rim per game, with most of those coming on slashes. If he can’t get all the way there, he does have a nice little jump stop/push shot counter that he’ll throw up at the basket. Having said that, I do have some questions about how this translates at the highest levels of college hoops. Ledlum really struggled with his efficiency in the games he played against good defenses like Kansas, Fordham, UC Irvine, and Yale this season. To become a legitimate high-major starter, I think Ledlum is going to have to really improve as a shooter this offseason after making 29.4 percent from 3 up to this point. Without the shot, I don’t know that his power driving game will be as effective against athletes at the high-major level that are more likely to be both physically strong and his size.

The Fit: Tennessee picks up the kind of bruising physical forward that it’s had a ton of success with in the Rick Barnes era. Ledlum had to be intrigued by watching tape of someone like Grant Williams and how this staff utilized him as a face-up four man who can physically bully his way to the rim and draw fouls out of the mid post. There will absolutely be an athleticism adjustment to playing in the SEC for Ledlum. He’s not the biggest, strongest dude in the league any more who can get wherever he wants. Improving a bit more as a shooter would help alleviate some concerns there. But I do think this is a much better for him than most places in the SEC would have been, just given that Tennessee has worked with guys like this well before.

50. Fardaws Aimaq | 6-11 big | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Texas Tech to Cal

The Scout: Aimaq was considered a huge transfer commitment last year for the Red Raiders, but things didn’t go according to plan. He dealt with injuries for the first two-thirds of the year, then dealt with “issues off the court with the staff,” as per his announcement that he’d be departing Lubbock. In the 11 games he did play, he proved himself to be solid at the high-major level, averaging 11 points and eight rebounds, and he did so while likely not fully at 100 percent. The former WAC Player of the Year and two-time WAC Defensive Player of the Year, Aimaq averaged 19 points and 14 rebounds at Utah Valley in 2021-22. He’s never been the most efficient with his touch, shooting under 50 percent in his last three seasons. But he does a good job of establishing position, controlling the glass, and using his size out on the defensive end at a real level. On the perimeter, he’s good with his hands and can run a variety of dribble-hand-off actions as well as roll to the rim with his mobility. He’s even clearly working through his jumper having taken about 1 1/2 per game over the last two years. I would venture he’ll look to find another high-major landing spot, as he proved this year that he can hang even when he wasn’t at his best. There’s a real chance he could be an all-conference player next season at a top-tier program with how well he dominates the glass.

The Fit: Aimaq rejoins his former coach at Utah Valley on a team in desperate need of talent. Mark Madsen has already shown he can get the best out of Aimaq, who needs some stability in his life after spending a drama-filled year at Texas Tech. The Bears also lost second-leading scorer Lars Thiemann to the transfer portal, so center was an obvious need. There’s still a lot of work to be done for Mark Madsen, but he at least has the potential of one of the better point guard-big man combos in the Pac-12 with Aimaq and former Kentucky/Texas point guard Devin Askew, who averaged 15.5 points in 13 games before a sports hernia ended his season.

51. Marcus Domask | 6-6 wing | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Southern Illinois to Illinois

The Scout: A three-time All-Missouri Valley member, Domask is a veteran four-year college player that you can slot into your lineup and not worry at all about him being productive. He’s one of those dudes that just knows how to play. He doesn’t need to dribble the ball to death to score. He moves exceedingly well without the ball, has deep range on his jumper, and consistently just finds little creases and openings to score. On top of that, Domask is a terrific passer who averaged 17 points and four assists per game on his way to a first-team all-league berth this year. Southern Illinois used him an awful lot on post-ups in a way that I don’t think a high-major offense will. Domask has also entered the draft, but he’ll likely be able to make more by staying in school. He was Mr. Basketball in the state of Wisconsin in 2019, and everything about his game is tailor-made to be a fit with Greg Gard and the Badgers. You have to wonder if they’d want to get involved as he’d give them a bit more size on the wings this year.

The Fit: Brad Underwood’s teams have usually had high assist rates, but this last one had the lowest of any team he’s ever coached. A guy like Matthew Mayer could get buckets but wasn’t setting up anyone else. Domask will be a major upgrade. He’s a connector. Simply putting him on the floor is going to make Illinois run better offense. He’s one of the best passing wings in the country and also will help replace some of the scoring punch that the Illini loses in Mayer and Terrence Shannon Jr. He’s not as splashy a name as those two, but Underwood needs to eliminate the volatility he just dealt with this past season, and Domask was a smart addition to help in that area.

52. Jackson Paveletzke | 6-3 guard | Three years of eligibility | Transferred from Wofford to Iowa State

The Scout: Paveletzke is your typical floor general guard, but there is more here than meets the eye. He looks like a skinny little shooter type, but he’s got way more to him. The freshman of the year in the SoCon, he’s quicker and shiftier than you expect when you first put on the tape, and he’s tough. His little inside-out hesitation move really gets separation from his man, and he plays with longer strides than you think from a 6-3 guard. His bag of tricks, crossovers, and footwork is very real. Everything he does seems to come with a level of decisiveness. He plays at speed, but doesn’t seem out of control. He’s a pull-up threat from all over the court. He made 35 percent of his pull-up 3s this year, and had a 50.1 effective field goal percentage on his pull-up jumpers as a whole, per Synergy. He can finish at the rim and doesn’t shy away from contact. His center of gravity and body control are strong even when he’s bumped. Paveletzke can definitely pass and isn’t selfish, but he’s a bit more developed as a scorer right now. One coach I talked to compared him to former Marquette star Travis Diener in the mid-2000s, and that’s about right to me. There are a lot of holes to fix defensively with him, and Wofford’s defense was kind of a mess this season in part because he wasn’t disruptive at the point of attack. But if he cleans that part of his game up, Paveletzke has every chance to be an all-league player at the high-major level as an upperclassman.

The Fit: T.J. Otzelberger is assembling his deepest and most talented roster yet, but he definitely needed to add shooting on the perimeter and that’s what he gets in Paveletzke. Both he and fellow Wisconsin native Milan Momcilovic are great building blocks for Iowa State’s offense in the coming years. Otzelberger needs a shooter next to point guard Tamin Lipsey, and Paveletzke is one of the best available in the portal. He should be able to slide right into the shooting/scoring role of the departed Gabe Kalscheur. The Cyclones did an excellent job screening to get Kalscheur his shots, and Paveletzke played in similar type actions off the ball.

53. Ben Krikke | 6-9 big | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Valparaiso to Iowa

The Scout: It’ll be interesting to see how the portal evaluates Krikke’s unique game. Offensively, there isn’t much that the Valparaiso big man can’t do. He’s a tremendous post finisher, ending this season as a top-70 scorer in terms of volume as well as one of the five most efficient post scorers in the country, averaging 1.13 points per possession each time he took a shot down there. His footwork, balance, and touch in those areas are ridiculous. He has a bevy of weird hook shots, flip shots and post moves that give him just that little bit of separation he needs. If he gets in close to the basket, the ball is going in. But he’s not just a post threat. I loved his work in ball-screens this season as a pick-and-pop player. He’d get the ball from the perimeter and attack his man, throwing up some wild moves including the occasional spin move into a 16-foot jumper. He only made 28 percent from 3, but someone with this kind of touch would only need a summer to really improve that part of his game and make it a real weapon. This is how Krikke made three straight All-Missouri Valley Conference teams, including a first-team berth this season. He does present some inherent limitations at the highest level defensively because he doesn’t move all that well laterally, and doesn’t protect the rim at a super high level. But in the right spot, Krikke could be a real difference-maker at the high-major level.

The Fit: About as perfect as you can find on offense. Iowa loves these low-post bigs that can create on the block in mismatches with terrific footwork. All of Keegan Murray, Kris Murray, Luka Garza, Tyler Cook and even Filip Rebraca have thrived down low for the Hawkeyes, as the team’s uptempo, inside-out attack allows them plenty of room to operate. I’m sure that when Fran McCaffery recruited Krikke out of the portal, he showed him clips of how Garza thrived as a limited-athleticism big man, and Krikke had to salivate at the possibility of entering a pristine offensive fit for the skillset described above. Again, for Iowa to take the next step moving forward, they’re going to have to find answers on defense. Even in the Big Ten, Krikke will have some concerns on that end. But I’d expect that Krikke averages over 15 points per game as one of Iowa’s top options next season. He’ll move up our original rankings simply because of how ideal the situation is for him.

54. Kerr Kriisa | 6-3 guard | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Arizona to West Virginia

The Scout: A surprising entrant into the portal, Kriisa has been the lead guard carrying some of the best offenses in the country over the last two seasons for Tommy Lloyd at Arizona. Known entering college from his native Estonia as a lights-out 3-point shooter, Kerr has been extremely confident throughout his career at firing when he has even a bit of daylight. But where he has really shown growth is in his ball-screen playmaking within the team’s continuity offense. He got extremely comfortable with all of the reads, and was a solid two-to-one assist-to-turnover ratio guy. Being the maestro of back-to-back top-10 offenses, Kerr will certainly have his pick of a number of different opportunities. He averaged about 10 points, five assists, and shot 36.6 percent from 3 while playing unselfishly and getting his teammates involved. There are some moments of poor decision-making, and he very rarely pressures the rim to score. Defensively, he can be a bit of an issue at the point of attack. But this is an older, experienced guard who will jump start your offense by being on the court. You can trust that he’ll be a positive contributor, especially if you are playing an uptempo scheme where you surround him with shooters and a rim roller.

The Fit: West Virginia often gets pigeonholed as a defensively inclined school, but it’s actually finished top-20 in adjusted offensive efficiency according to KenPom in two of the last three years. Last year, the Mountaineers were led in the backcourt by Kedrian Johnson and Erik Stevenson. But both of those two are gone now. As is the fourth-leading scorer, wing Emmitt Matthews. The team needed an injection of offensive firepower. Kriisa will certainly bring just that. He’s a good shooter who will consistently knock down timely shots and make the right passing read. Now, they just need to find someone who can get consistently into the teeth of the defense and penetrate, as Kriisa doesn’t always succeed in that respect. Still, he has experience playing in the kind of uptempo offense that Bob Huggins will want to run. This fits across the board for everyone.

55. Andrew Taylor | 6-3 guard | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Marshall to Mississippi State

The Scout: Taylor was an All-Sun Belt first-team member after averaging 20.2 points and 4.7 assists this season. Marshall played at one of the fastest paces in the country and had the shortest offensive possessions in the country, per KenPom.com. Coach Dan D’Antoni has been heavily influenced by the NBA, so space and pace is the priority. He put Taylor in a ton of ball screens and gave him the greenest of lights. If he transfers to the high-major level, which has to be the expectation of a player from a winning team going in the portal this late, then he’ll likely see his usage go down. Where he could be most effective at a higher level is as a floor spacer. He’s got a quick release that almost resembles Klay Thompson’s, and he’s made 218 3-pointers in his four-year career at a 35.5 percent clip. He can also make shots inside the arc on the run and from a variety of different angles. He’s crafty at finding ways to get off shots, but he tried to a lot of tough shots at Marshall. In late-clock situations, you know he’ll at least find a way to get off a shot. Taylor could play either guard position, and he has shown he can be pretty efficient in a low-usage situation. He had an effective field-goal percentage of 59.6 in his sophom*ore season when he averaged 12.0 points per game. With one year left to play, expect him to land at a program that is scrambling to find another startable guard.

The Fit: Mississippi State was the worst 3-point shooting team in college basketball, so it was important that Chris Jans land a shooter. Taylor could benefit from better talent around him and other guards who are able to get him shots, as he’s at his best in catch-and-shoot situations. He can play either guard spot for the Bulldogs, who could end up in the preseason Top 25 if Tolu Smith returns to school. Taylor will certainly make Smith’s job easier, giving the Bulldogs better spacing and a good pick-and-roll partner to pair with one of the SEC’s best bigs.

56. Avery Anderson III | 6-3 guard | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Oklahoma State to TCU

The Scout: Anderson is one of the fastest guards in the portal. His speed puts pressure on defenses and has allowed him to be a double-digit scorer for three straight seasons despite poor shooting numbers. This last year was the worst of his past three, his scoring dipping slightly — from two seasons above 12 points per game to 11.1 — and his 3-point shooting going from 32.4 to 18 percent. It’s puzzling why he’s such a bad shooter because he’s a career 80.4 percent free throw shooter. He does a good job of getting to the line, and he’s most dangerous when he’s slashing to the basket. He averaged a career-best 3.4 assists this past season and is improving at making plays for others. He would benefit from going to a team with more shooting and scoring, where he can fit into a role as a lockdown defender and not have to score as much. His defense is a real plus. He’s put up good steal rates every season and he’s capable of guarding multiple positions. In the right system, he can be a winning player. If he’s relied on to be a high-usage player, he will score but his efficiency numbers will not be good.

The Fit: Anderson lands in a spot where his defense and speed will be well utilized. No one in college basketball was better in transition than TCU this past season, and Anderson fits that style of play. That’s the plus here. The one weakness for the Horned Frogs was 3-point shooting, and Anderson and TCU’s other top transfer addition, Jameer Nelson Jr., will not likely help in that department. TCU is, however, bringing in at least one shooter in former Texas A&M-Corpus Christi guard Trey Tennyson.
If the Horned Frogs also get back Damion Baugh, currently going through the draft process, then they should have a stacked backcourt and a defensive identity. Anderson, Nelson and Baugh would be one of the most disruptive backcourts in the country on the defensive end.

57. Zyon Pullin | 6-4 point guard | grad transfer | Transferred from UC Riverside to Florida

The Scout: Pullin is a ball-dominant point guard and one of the best mid-range shooters in the country. He doesn’t have blow-by speed, but he gets to his spots and uses his size to shoot over defenders. He led the Big West in scoring (18.3 points per game) and also averaged 4.2 assists and 4.4 rebounds per game. He did most of his damage playing out of ball screens, leading the country in points generated out of pick-and-roll situations (9.8 per game, per Synergy) and knows how to gain an advantage in those situations. He’s a capable 3-point shooter but does most of his scoring inside the arc. He’s made only 75 3-pointers in his career and shot a solid 35.2 percent from deep. He’s not an explosive leaper but again uses his size to finish at the rim. He’s got good touch and can contort his body to get off shots at the basket, where he shot 65.6 percent this season, per Synergy. Defensively, he struggles to keep the ball in front of him and has a tendency to get hung up on screens. He’d be a good fit with a quicker shooting guard. He has the size to guard bigger players and would be better suited not guarding the primary handler.

The Fit: Pullin allows Walter Clayton Jr. to move over into a secondary creator role. Todd Golden has targeted high-efficiency players from the mid-major level and we’ll see how the experiment goes. The analytically-driven staff at Florida is landing a player who was exceptional in ball screens and thrives in the mid-range. Those are the types of shots that Golden discourages, but he may allow Pullin an exception as good as he is in that area of the floor. With Pullin and Clayton joining returners Will Richard and Riley Kugel, a team that struggled shooting the ball suddenly looks like one of the better shooting teams in the SEC.

58. Latrell Wrightsell Jr. | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Cal State Fullerton to Alabama

The Scout: All-Big West selection is one of the best shooters off the bounce in the portal. He can get to a variety of shots with a live dribble, whether it’s pull-ups or step backs, he figures out a way to create space and get to his shot. Where he struggles is getting to the basket. He shot only 46.6 percent at the rim this season, per Synergy. He just doesn’t have the burst or size to thrive in the paint, but he still puts up good numbers (16.3 points per game) because he’s a sniper with his jumper. Wrightsell is originally from Omaha, Neb. He exploded this past season after averaging only 7.3 points per game his first two seasons. He’d fit next to a guard who is able to get into the paint and allow him to just focus on hunting perimeter shots.

The Fit: Nate Oats can never have enough shooting in his program, and he also likes guards who can go get their own shot. Wrightsell checks both those boxes. It could be an adjustment dealing with the athleticism and size in the SEC, but Wrightsell doesn’t have to be the star at Alabama. Space the floor, be able to attack a closeout and make a shot, and he should fit in just fine. The Crimson Tide needed some guard depth and Oats found two good ones in the portal with Wrightsell joining former Hofstra guard Aaron Estrada. It’s easy to see why Oats targeted both. Similar to former Ohio guard Mark Sears a year ago, they fit how Alabama plays.

59. Chance Westry | 6-6 wing | Four years of eligibility | Transferred from Auburn to Syracuse

The Scout: Westry was a four-star recruit in the 2022 recruiting class, but aggravated an old knee injury in the offseason. He had surgery in October and missed most preseason workouts, plus the first two games of the season. He came back and played parts of 11 games, but ultimately Auburn decided to shut him down, and he’ll receive a redshirt for this season. In the games he played, Westry flashed a lot of the talent that made him a highly sought-after prospect. At 6-foot-6, Westry is a really sharp passer that has some lead ballhandler skills. He went 0-14 from 3 this season, but again, he never really looked like he had his legs totally under him. The mechanics look good enough to where he should be fine there. Westry has never necessarily been a wildly explosive athlete, but he finished well at the rim and had the kind of shifty creative hips and footwork that scouts look for from drivers navigating the paint. Defensively, he showcased very quick hands. Westry is absolutely the kind of upside swing that coaches should be taking a chance on given his size and ball skills. As long as he gets all the way back from his knee injury, Westry has real NBA upside. There should be a long line waiting for him.

The Fit:This is a great upside play for Syracuse and new coach Adrian Autry. Westry didn’t play a ton this year, but the talent is real in terms of his ability to make plays as a passer and playmaker, as well as his potential as a shot-maker. With his size and length, he should be a perfect complement to combo guard J.J. Starling, who the school picked up out of the portal earlier this offseason. The Orange are currently slated to be a young team next year, but it has the building blocks of a high-ceiling group if they can keep the core together for multiple years.

60. Yohan Traore | 6-10 big | Three years of eligibility | Transferred from Auburn to UCSB

The Scout: Traore’s commitment to Auburn late last spring took me by surprise because it just didn’t quite look like a scheme fit. At the prep level, Traore was the kind of big you typically see at a place like Kansas. He was a post player with a strong face-up game. He had good footwork and solid touch out to about 12 to 15 feet. He had good hands and an ability to get his man deep on the block in order to create easier chances. His hands allowed him to play out of ball screens and be successful, but it’s not the best part of his game, either. Then he’d carve out space on the offensive glass and get put-backs. This year, he operated a lot out of the dunker spot, and even showcased the occasional ability to step out and hit a 3. But this was generally just not the right place for him to thrive. Auburn generally wants to spread it out with the guards, play four-out basketball, and use the five as a mobile rim protector and rim runner. That’s not really Traore. He needs to find somewhere that will accentuate his footwork and gifts on the block. The upside here is real for a team willing to center him a bit more offensively.

The Fit:Joe Pasternack strikes again. Every year, Santa Barbara tends to find a player in the portal that is a former high-level recruit. This time, it’s Traore, who should enter the Big West and become one of the three best players in the league along with his new teammate, Ajay Mitchell. Traore can post on the block, but moreover, he’ll be a terrific ball-screen partner for the Belgian star Mitchell to pair with and dominate games in that league. Between Mitchell and Traore, this profiles again as a likely NCAA Tournament team. Anything under 26 wins would be a disappointment now. If Traore capitalizes on the talent we saw from him in high school, the team could even have a chance to be a real bracket-buster in March next year. A huge get, and a fun win for the mid-major circuit in the portal.

61. Tramon Mark | 6-5 wing | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Houston to Arkansas

The Scout: On some scale, Mark’s portal entry is surprising. He probably would have had a really strong 2023-24, and could have even led the Cougars in scoring next season in their committee-based approach, where five guys averaged double-figures last season, including Mark. On the other hand, Houston’s young guys are coming. Terrance Arceneaux is a potential star that has garnered NBA looks. Emanuel Sharp started to garner more minutes late in the year. So Kelvin Sampson and Co. won’t have any issue replacing Mark. But he should be able to help others, particularly teams that need scoring punch. A terrific lefty midrange gunner, Mark can create shots with his shifty handle. He also showcases some real potential as a passer and playmaker. Teams that take Mark, though, will need to be willing to accept the good with the bad. Mark was a horrid finisher at the rim this year, making just 44 percent of his attempts. And even on catch-and-shoot 3s, he makes just 32 percent. To be the primary scorer that he likely wants to be given this transfer decision, Mark needs to get better in both of those aspects. He’s a certain high-major starter with some scoring upside, though.

The Fit: Arkansas needed a big guard after losing Ricky Council IV to the NBA, and the program finds another with similar strengths in Mark. Considering Arkansas is likely losing Council, Anthony Black, Nick Smith and possibly Davonte Davis, it was important Arkansas rebuild its perimeter depth and Mark joins Keyon Menifield as the second transfer guard to join the Razorbacks. There are some similarities to what helped him at Houston. Arkansas, like Houston, picks on mismatches. But the question must be posed: Will Mark get the number of shots and role he desired? He left Houston to be the focal point of an offensive, and it’ll be interesting to see what other additions Arkansas makes, as the Razorbacks are always aggressive players in the transfer portal.

62. Jameer Nelson Jr. | 6-1 point guard | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Delaware to TCU

The Scout: Nelson should get some high-major interest considering the bloodlines and his numbers. He averaged 20.6 points, 3.6 assists and 2.4 steals per game and was All-Defense in the CAA. He anticipates well on the defensive end and is built similarly to his dad, albeit slightly taller and not quite as thick. Like his dad, he knows how to use his body and get to the basket. Crafty handle and finishes well at the rim (61 percent, per Synergy). He also gets to the line frequently. He put up a 47.4 free throw rate. He shoots a lot but isn’t a great shooter. He can make a tough shot and maybe his percentage creeps up if he’s not taking such hard shots. Obviously his role would change at a bigger school. There should be hope he can score at a higher level, considering he averaged 10.4 points per game at George Washington in the A-10 as a freshman.

The Fit: With Mike Miles headed to the NBA, TCU desperately needed an option at the lead guard that can create shots and run the show. Nelson will likely be given the freedom to do his thing much like he did at Delaware. It’s hard to predict what this roster will look like next season beyond Nelson. Miles is gone, Emanuel Miller turns 23 before the draft and has a real decision to make about his professional future, and Damion Baugh very strongly considered turning pro last offseason before changing course at the last second. Plus, the team has already lost starting center Eddie Lampkin to the transfer portal. Jamie Dixon and company aren’t done yet hitting the portal, so there isn’t really a fit to speak of. But this is an excellent start to the team’s offseason.

63. Joseph Girard III | 6-1 guard | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Syracuse to Clemson

The Scout: Anyone need a floor-spacer? At 6-foot-1, Girard doesn’t necessarily have the size that you typically want out of a shooter, but he can certainly fill it up when he gets going. Playing for some pretty rough Syracuse teams the last two years, Girard made 39 percent of his seven 3-point attempts per game. He also improved a bit over that time as a driver and scorer. But he’s also not really a point guard despite the team’s best efforts to settle him in as one, and he operated much better this past season playing off of Judah Mintz. On some level, Girard has shown in the past two years that he’s capable of getting buckets in the ACC, and that’s valuable. But he also has played in that 2-3 zone the last two years, and I don’t think he did a particularly good job at the point of attack in it, either. So he might not fit all coaches that have a bit more of a defensive mindset. Still, fifth-year guards that can shoot and score are valuable. Girard should find another landing spot at the high-major level. The Big East seems like the kind of league that would work best for him.

The Fit: Clemson needed a guard to replace Brevin Galloway and Girard is a good fit here alongside Chase Hunter in the backcourt. Clemson was already a good shooting team and got even better with the additions of Girard and former Air Force guard Jake Heidbreder. Clemson was only a game back from the ACC title and on the NCAA Tournament bubble this past season. Simply with the return of Hunter and PJ Hall, you had to like Clemson’s chances of getting to the tournament, and the roster is in even better shape now with Girard as well as former NC State forward Jack Clark. If Brad Brownell is able to hide Girard defensively and he’s not a complete disaster on that end, I really like this core and its offensive potential.

64. Denver Jones | 6-4 guard | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from FIU to Auburn

The Scout: Conference USA has taken over college basketball this postseason with a team in the Final Four, both NIT finalists, and Charlotte having won the CBI. So what if I could interest you in a player that made first-team all-league this year? Jones is a scoring guard, through and through. He averaged 20.2 points while shooting over 37 percent from distance as one of the higher usage players in college basketball. He plays with tremendous pace off two feet and is always ready to fire from distance from all three levels. He excels out of ball-screen action, where teams have to be cognizant of his pull-up. His release is quick, but so is his first step if you overcommit to trying to contest his jumper. The team that gets Jones, though, would be better off playing him off of the ball and using him as a second-side creator. Jones is a superb floor-spacer off the catch, having hit over 40 percent of his catch-and-shoot 3s this year, per Synergy. Jones should be able to step in and be a starter from the jump for whatever high-major team ends up with him.

The Fit: Auburn has not shot the ball well from the perimeter since its Final Four team and so Jones was a smart target. He has made 108 3s in two seasons at FIU, and he can play just the sort of role described above, spacing the floor as a second-side creator. He picks a program where it looks like he should be able to start right away. Zep Jasper is out of eligibility and Wendell Green Jr. declared for the NBA Draft. Bruce Pearl has also had some success with up-transfers from the mid-major level in recent years. Former Morehead State big man Johni Broome and Green, the former Eastern Kentucky guard, were the team’s two leading scorers this past season.

65. Jalen Hill | 6-6 forward | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Oklahoma to UNLV

The Scout: Hill has put his name in the NBA Draft and also entered the transfer portal. It’s doubtful he’ll get the kind of NBA feedback that convinces him that’s the route he needs to go. He is a solid college player, however. He averaged 9.7 points and 5.8 rebounds as a senior and put up similar numbers the year before. He’s been a highly-efficient, low-usage player over the last three seasons for the Sooners. He has the size and strength to play a small-ball four spot, which is how he was used at Oklahoma. He played two seasons for Lon Kruger and if he’s looking for a high-usage role, going to the Mountain West and playing for another Kruger (Lon’s son Kevin) would make some sense. That’s what EJ Harkless did a year ago and saw his usage go way up. Hill is best working around the basket, capable of posting up smaller players and an effective cutter. If he ever wants to have a chance at the NBA, he needs to massively improve as a shooter. He’s shot just 26.7 percent from 3 for his career and made just 16 3-pointer this past season. The mechanics don’t look bad. He just doesn’t make them. He is a good foul shooter (81.4 percent as a senior) and effective at drawing fouls. He’s good at using his broad shoulder to carve out space when he gets in the paint. If he could ever get become a threat as a shooter, he’s comfortable enough putting the ball on the floor that he’d be good attacking closeouts, especially when guarded by fours.

The Fit: Jalen Hill is following the EJ Harkless plan. Harkless, originally a Lon Kruger recruit to Oklahoma, transferred to UNLV a year ago and saw his production increase and made the All-Mountain West second team. Harkless is out of eligibility, and in comes Hill to help the younger Kruger. The Mountain West is a good fit for Hill, who should be able to play both forward positions. Hill should be a mismatch at that level, able to post up smaller players and take bigger guys off the bounce. He also transfers in with the Boone twins. That’s three former Big 12 players who are high-major talents, and we’ve seen players going down a level has really paid off. The All-Mountain West teams were full of such players like Matt Bradley, Jamal Mashburn Jr., Jarod Lucas, Harkless and Will Baker. Hill could make a similar jump.

66. Quincy Olivari | 6-3 guard | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Rice to Xavier

The Scout: Olivari proved he could score against some of Rice’s best opponents this year. He put up 28 points in a near-upset of Texas, had 27 in loss to Florida Atlantic and 22 in a loss to North Texas. The second-team All-Conference USA guard shoots a high-arcing jumper and is a proven shooter. He’s made 37.6 percent of his 3s for his career. He averaged a career-best 18.7 points per game this past season. He knows how to play out of a ball screen and create space for himself. He’s savvy when he gets into the paint and can make some hard shots over length or Euro-step his way into an easier finish. It did help him playing with Max Fiedler, who is a really good screener and terrific passer. Not many better pick-and-roll partners better than Fiedler. Olivari is originally from Atlanta and has received lots of high-major interest. Considering what he did against some of Rice’s best opponents, that bodes well for his scoring ability to transfer to a higher level.

The Fit: Sean Miller has landed two of the better guards in the Conference USA to remake his backcourt and stay old. Olavari will work well in an offense that features a lot of ball screens and has skilled bigs. He and Dayvion McKnight can both play either guard spot and should be able to play off one another. With the return of Jerome Hunter and potential return of Zach Freemantle up front, Xavier should be a preseason Top 25 team.

67. Will Baker | 7-0 center | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Nevada to LSU

The Scout: Baker is a skilled big man who can score with his back to the basket and also facing up. He’s a lefty who will fight on the blocks and does a good job using his strength to get himself space. Among players who finished at least 100 post-ups this season, he ranked sixth nationally in efficiency. He’s capable of knocking down a mid-range jumper or a 3 and shot 35.5 percent from distance this season. He also had a high free-throw rate and made 84.2 percent of his free throws. Defensively, he communicates and plays his role but doesn’t offer much rim protection. He plays more of a contain type role, especially in ball screens, and he’s more focused on getting a rebound than blocking a shot. He is good on the boards and always boxes out. Baker was a top-50 recruit coming out of high school and started his career at Texas, transferring after his first season in Austin. He sat out one year at Nevada and then played the last two for the Wolfpack. Because he transferred before the one-time exemption, he should be able to play right away.

The Fit: LSU had a massive, KJ Williams-sized hole in the middle that they needed to replace this offseason, and Matt McMahon does so with Baker. Baker was an All-Mountain West selection this past season who has the kind of versatile, inside-out game that McMahon needs from the big position to run his scheme. Baker is a consistent shooter as well as a real post threat as you can read in the scout above. The key will be what Baker can provide on defense. The Tigers really struggled on that end this season, giving up one of the worst marks in the country at the high-major level from inside the 3-point line. Baker will need to be able to use his size and length to protect the rim at a high level, otherwise it could be more of the same defensively for LSU this season. Still, the Tigers have now brought in an enormous transfer class, including top-rated transfer Jalen Cook as well as Vanderbilt wing Jordan Wright. McMahon also still has a couple of slots open, so don’t be surprised to see more action beyond Baker.

68. Rienk Mast | 6-9 big | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Bradley to Nebraska

The Scout: Another first-team All-Missouri Valley player hitting the portal. Mast is a versatile Dutch big man who can operate on the block and create a shot with high-arcing hooks. That tends to be his home base, as he is ambidextrous with his finishing hand. But the more interesting skill he flashed this season was as a pick-and-pop threat. Mast hit 35 percent of his three 3-point attempts per game, with a pure looking shot that he can take quickly off the hop. He looks like a very legitimate option for a team that wants to play a floor-spacing five-man that can stretch the floor. And then weirdly he’ll be able to flash to the mid-post and drive an opposing player with an attack. The big thing that separates him from other offensive big men, though, is that he’s already been a part of pretty good defenses at Bradley. The Braves had the best defense in the Missouri Valley this year, and he was a big part of it. In total, Bradley won their minutes with Mast on the court by about 18 points per 100 possessions, and won them only by one point per 100 when he was off the court. He’s a real difference-maker that I’d buy playing at the high-major level next year.

The Fit: Mast committed to Fred Hoiberg and Nebraska, where he’ll fill the Derrick Walker-sized hole in the middle. Walker had an incredibly underrated season nationally that didn’t go unnoticed by the Big Ten coaches who selected him second-team All-League. He averaged 14 points and seven rebounds, but moreover he actually averaged four assists acting as a real hub of the offense for the Huskers this past season in the middle. Mast is a terrific shooter with tremendous feel who can similarly play both inside and out. You might see a few more pick-and-pops as opposed to high-low passes with Mast, but the Huskers shouldn’t experience an enormous drop-off with the flying Dutchman in the middle. This is a good piece of business by Hoiberg to fill a huge production gap.

69. Moses Wood | 6-8 wing forward | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Portland to Washington

The Scout: A sixth-year senior who started his career at Tulane before moving over to Portland, Wood has been a terrific scorer in the WCC for two years now. Particularly, he’s an elite shooter at his size. At 6-foot-8, Wood has made 42.1 percent of his nearly six 3-point attempts per game over the last two seasons. He has a beautiful, high-arcing shot with pristine mechanics that he can get off over tight contests due to its high release point. He can relocate off of heavy closeouts with a dribble, and has legit NBA 3-point range. Portland loves to run him off of staggered screens going toward his left, where he’s quick with setting his feet and firing. Wood is also a sharp cutter, he can make sharp passing reads, and his feel for finding open spaces is quite strong. There are some questions about how the defense will translate athletically at the highest levels of college, but Wood at least is competitive at his size and willing to fight. Wood’s father, David, played in the NBA for seven seasons and Moses plays with the kind of basketball IQ that comes from the kids of professional players that invest time in the game.

The Fit: Wood will stay in the Pacific Northwest and head to Washington. He grew up in the state and said after committing that he actually went to University of Washington basketball camps when he was a kid. It’s hard to overemphasize how many holes Wood fills for the Huskies. Washington was horrible on offense last season in large part due to spacing. The team had no shooting last season outside of stretch-big Cole Bajema, and Wood is a real upgrade on him. As a whole, the Huskies shot just 31 percent from 3 last season. Wood will create more space for the team’s guards, and should allow them to hit rim-runner Braxton Meah more often out of rolls to the basket. This is a home run addition.

70. Jalen DeLoach | 6-9 forward | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from VCU to Georgia

The Scout: Part of the mass exodus of VCU players following Mike Rhoades’ decision to go to Penn State, DeLoach will be a very popular portal entry if he doesn’t just decide to head up north to State College. A third-team All-Atlantic-10 player this year, DeLoach blossomed, particularly over the second half of the season, into the kind of versatile big man that schools around the country crave. It starts on defense for DeLoach, where he was a lengthy, versatile defender that dealt with both bigs on the interior as we all as bigger wings and forwards. He’s mobile and extremely active, showcasing a real competitiveness every time he’s on the floor. He gets into passing lanes to try to get steals, then will swat shots on the interior. Then on offense, he’s going to try to dunk everything he gets on the interior and finish through contact. He crashes the glass hard, creates second-chance opportunities, and just continually forces his man to keep track of where he is. A late bloomer that shot up from 6-foot tall when he was a freshman in high school, DeLoach is still growing into his frame a bit. As he gets stronger and fills out, it’s very easy to imagine him continuing to grow into being a defensive monster at even higher levels. Penn State could obviously use someone like this, as the team played very small last year.

The Fit: Much like Jayden Nunn, DeLoach decided not to follow Mike Rhoades to Penn State and instead will head south to his home state of Georgia and play for the Bulldogs. An athletic, bouncy, mobile forward, DeLoach’s athleticism will extremely well in the SEC, Beyond that, Mike White and the rest of the staff pretty desperately needed frontcourt depth. Braelen Bridges has graduated, and Frank Anselem is really the only frontcourt returnee. DeLoach will allow the Bulldogs to be more athletic and versatile in the frontcourt, and they should be a bit better defensively after finishing outside of the top-100 nationally and outside of the top-10 in the SEC.

71. Cormac Ryan | 6-5 wing | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Notre Dame to UNC

The Scout: Ryan is just a sharp, well-rounded offensive wing. If you leave him open off the catch, he’s going to hit a 3. He made 39 percent of his catch-and-shoot 3s this season. He has deep range and a quick release that does not require him to dip the ball all the time to get into rhythm. If you close out on him hard, he can attack and get to the rim. He’s best off of the ball playing off of his shooting, but he can also run ball-screens on occasion and actually is a pretty smart passer out of those situations, too. He’s just a reliable, older player that will space the floor for you, make good decisions, and keep your offense in rhythm. He’s also a bit bigger, and while he’s not the best defender, he will at least rotate and be in the right spots. A graduate transfer with one year remaining, I’d expect Ryan to end up at the high-major level.

The Fit:Some of North Carolina’s overall transfer portal strategy this year has confused me, but in a vacuum Ryan is a good fit for them. He’s the kind of sharp decision-maker, good shooter, and ball-mover that the Tar Heels really lacked last year on the perimeter. He is steady and keeps things moving, plus has real size at 6-foot-5. Whereas someone like Caleb Love made things harder for his teammates sometimes, Ryan is going to make life a lot easier for guys like R.J. Davis and Seth Trimble in the backcourt. The good news here is that he’s a wing for a team that really needs to find more answers at the two and the three. They bring in Simeon Wilcher, but Ryan and Paxson Wojcik are the only other guys with enough size to play those spots. The team also doesn’t really have an option as a small-ball four right now that is certain to find success in the ACC unless Jae’lyn Withers takes a massive leap. Ryan is the best of the bunch of these transfers, and he’ll genuinely help. What I’m about to say isn’t about him. But I’m skeptical Wojcik is good enough to be anything more than a 15-minute-per-game backup, and I really don’t love the fit of Withers with Armando Bacot in what Hubert Davis has been clear about wanting to be a modern offense. The good news is that Jalen Washington and Trimble will be a year older, and Washington is a prime breakout candidate. NBA scouts were very impressed with his long-term upside when they saw him. But this is just a very funky-looking roster right now. Davis and the staff need to find more glue players like Ryan, particularly on the defensive end on the wing to make it make sense.

72. Jace Carter | 6-5 guard | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Illinois Chicago to Texas A&M

The Scout: Carter looks the part of a high-major guard. Good size, frame and athleticism. He made the All-Missouri Valley second team and averaged 16.6 points and 7.0 rebounds per game. His biggest strength is his ability to slash. He can drive either direction and has a really strong left hand for a right-handed player. He doesn’t shy away from contact and gets to the free-throw line. He’s a good finisher around the rim and has nice footwork and the ability to finish with either hand. The outside shooting numbers aren’t awesome — 32.4 percent from 3 — but the shot looks decent. His ball has a lot of arc, and it’s possible his efficiency would go up on lower attempts. He shot 38.2 percent from 3 as a freshman, but that number dropped to 30.1 percent this season when his usage went way up.

The Fit: Buzz Williams ended up relying a lot on his guards to score the ball this past season, and it was clear in the NCAA Tournament loss to Penn State that the Aggies just needed a little more juice offensively. Carter should give them that, and with his size, he’s a good fit next to Wade Taylor IV and Tyrece Radford (if he returns). Carter will likely take the spot of Dexter Dennis in the starting lineup. He’s not as Dennis’ level as a defender — few are — but he does give the Aggies some more scoring pop.

73. Kamari Lands | 6-8 wing/forward | Three years of eligibility | Transferred from Louisville to Arizona State

The Scout: Lands is a high-upside wing with boatloads of talent that NBA evaluators were pretty interested in getting eyes on prior to Louisville’s disastrous campaign. He’ll be something of a post-hype sleeper this year, a creative wing who can grab the ball off of the defensive glass and lead the break. In the halfcourt, he’s a rangy slasher in a straight line who uses a bevy of spin moves and crossovers to cover ground with his long strides. Once he gets an edge on a defender, it’s hard to catch up. He also has pretty real touch from the midrange and is more than comfortable dribbling into a jumper. In ACC play, he hit 37 percent from 3 this year once he got adjusted more to the speed of the college game. Lands was basically Louisville’s sixth man by the end of the year and playing 25 minutes or so per game. He’d also cleaned up some of the efficiency questions that plagued him then. A former four-star recruit, Lands will be a popular bet for coaching staffs that are willing to bet on their developmental acumen. As a big wing who has real touch and ballhandling ability, Lands should morph into a high-level college player. Don’t let the stench of this Louisville season overshadow the real physical gifts Lands possesses.

The Fit: Lands is headed to Arizona State. The fit roster-wise is sound for Bobby Hurley and his staff. The team wasn’t shaping up to have a lot of depth at the wing spots with size. Devan Cambridge might return. Rotation player Alonzo Gaffney can be back. Expected starter Marcus Bagley decided to try to set the whole building on fire with a few tweets back in November, so color me skeptical that he’ll return. So Lands does at least fill a need. My issue here is more from the player perspective. Lands has some real growing to do as a player. There’s a lot of development necessary for him to reach his ceiling. That ceiling is quite immense, but he has a long way to go to hit it. I’m not totally sure Arizona State’s track record of development is quite strong enough for me to buy into this as a good landing spot. When was the last time a guy at Arizona State truly took a leap from one year to the next? I can’t really remember one who made a big step forward. And particularly, the Sun Devils have tried a lot of these big wing types with high-pedigree recruitments previously — Bagley, Gaffney, Kimani Lawrence and Taeshon Cherry are examples — and none have really worked out. Maybe you can toss Zylan Cheatham in there, but he only worked because he was an insatiable worker who just constantly crashed and threw his body around. I love Lands’ upside long-term, I just think it’s reasonable to worry that this might not be the best place for him to reach his potential.

74. Kevin “Boopie” Miller | 6-0 point guard | Three years of eligibility | Transferred from Central Michigan to Wake Forest

The Scout: Miller can fly with the ball in his hands, and that’s important going up a level. Speed usually translates. See Souley Boum. Miller played just four games as a sophom*ore because of a foot injury, but he was off to a good start, averaging 18.5 points and 5.3 assists. He can really score off the bounce and works well out of ball screens. He’s shot a solid 36.1 percent from 3 and is comfortable shooting off the catch or bounce. His assist rate was super high, especially for a young player. Considering Wake Forest coach Steve Forbes track record with transfers, it’s probably smart to bet on Miller.

The Fit: Miller will slide right into the Tyree Appleby role at Wake Forest. His advanced numbers actually look a lot like Appleby’s from his first two years at Cleveland State. Forbes featured Appleby in a ton of ball screen action and Miller is equipped to be used the same way. He’s got a competitive streak in him too, which should play well on a Forbes-coached team.

75. Jordan Gainey | 6-4 guard | Two years of eligibility remaining | Transferred from South Carolina Upstate to Tennessee

The Scout: Gainey is a legit shooter with good size. USC Upstate had him flying off staggers and zooms, getting him shots similar to how UConn used Jordan Hawkins. There aren’t a lot of players who can hit shots flying off screens like that, but he’s capable. He shot an eye-popping 49.3 percent from 3 on 4.7 attempts per game as a freshman and his percentage dropped to 34.5 percent this season when his attempts (6.3 per game) went up. He averaged 15.2 points per game and was a first-team All-Big South selection. He’s a smooth scorer who can hit dribble pull-ups and floaters but doesn’t have the burst to be an elite finisher at the rim. That’s where he struggles. Defensively, he has a good nose for getting steals and averaged 1.9 per game. Gainey is the son of Tennessee associate head coach Justin Gainey. Tennessee shot just 32 percent from 3 last year and has some uncertainty about the future of Santiago Vescovi, the team’s lone shooter that made at least 34 percent from 3.

The Fit: Tennessee’s offense is designed for a player like Gainey who can fly off a screen and make a shot. The Vols attempted 9.1 shots per game coming off a screen, which was by far the most of any college team, per Synergy. Gainey gets the chance to play for his dad and also goes to a system where his best skill is heavily utilized. The Vols also had only one shooter make more than 35 percent of their 3s. They need shooting. Whether it’s in a starting role or off the bench, Gainey should at least provide that.

76. Jared Bynum | 5-10 guard | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Providence to Stanford

The Scout: Bynum decided to hit the portal as opposed to sticking it out for new Providence coach Kim English. A former Saint Joseph’s transfer, Bynum is a graduate and will have no issues finding eligibility. Having sat out for a year, this will actually be Bynum’s sixth year of college hoops forthcoming, and at 24 years old he’ll present a steady hand at the lead guard spot for a team that could use one. Bynum made the All-Big East second team in 2022 after an incredibly clutch season off the bench for the Friars that also saw him win sixth man of the year honors in the league. He’s a smart decision-maker who rarely turns the ball over, and he also has a flair for the moment, having hit a ton of big shots for the Friars over his career. His size just poses some real issues as a finisher and scorer inside the 3-point line, and if the shot from distance isn’t falling like it wasn’t this past season, there are some efficiency concerns. Still, he dished out 4.3 assists per game this year and was nearly a 3-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio player as the team’s starting lead guard.

The Fit: Jerod Haase has built an offense with smart passers and shooting, but he could definitely use a guard like Bynum who can go make something happen when a possession goes off script. Bynum gives the Cardinal a guy who can break the defense down as well and penetrate and kick to shooters like Spencer Jones, who just decided to return for a fifth season. Bynum also brings some toughness to a team that really struggled on the defensive end. He has his own limitations on that end because of his size, but he’s used to playing on old, tough teams who win and guard. It’s not easy to land transfers at Stanford, so this is a definite win for the Cardinal.

77. Teafale Lenard | 6-7 wing | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Middle Tennessee State to Memphis

The Scout: Why does a wing who averaged only 8.3 points on a below-average 53.7 true-shooting percentage feature on this list? Well, it’s because Lenard might be the most impactful defensive transfer available on the wing. Lenard is a 6-foot-7 skywalker with truly elite length and all sorts of bounce. He flies off the court and finishes drastically above the rim as a cutter. But also similarly uses that length and athleticism to make an impact on defense. He slides around and is a menace in help situations, blocking nearly two shots per game. He gets home more often than not in passing lanes because it’s almost impossible to properly judge his length. On the ball, he’s extremely difficult to get by. He’ll be an impact player on that end wherever he ends up. But don’t sleep on the offensive upside, either. He shows real moments as a passer and playmaker that make you believe he could be something of an equivalent to how Connecticut utilized Andre Jackson Jr. on its way to a title run this season. More than anything, he’s just still growing into his frame. It’s clear he’s a late bloomer. High-majors should take a shot on Lenard. If they trust their development staff, he could end up being an enormous upside swing that connects.

The Fit: One of the premier defenders in the portal is going to one of the premier defensive teams in the portal over the last four years. Per Bart Torvik, the Tigers actually have the fifth-best adjusted defensive efficiency in the country over the last four years behind known defensive powerhouses Tennessee, San Diego State, Houston and Kansas. This staff will know what to do with him and how to best utilize his tools on that end on the court. The key for Lenard now will be improving his offensive game if he wants to reach his NBA potential, something that genuinely does exist for him tools-wise. The Tigers figured out how to have a top-30 offense in the country this season with both non-shooters Elijah McCadden and Chandler Lawson on the floor at once this season, so even if Lenard doesn’t take that next step, the Tigers’ uptempo, high-paced attack should allow Lenard’s explosiveness and athleticism to flourish.

78. Skyy Clark | 6-3 guard | Three years of eligibility | Transferred from Illinois to Louisville

The Scout: Clark has the game to be a really good scorer at the college level. The jump shot looks good, and he can knock it down off the dribble or catch. He shot a solid 41.9 percent off the dribble in 13 games, per Synergy. The sample size is small, but the stroke looks legit. He’s got some wiggle and speed with the ball in his hands. He’s built well too, equipped to get into the paint and finish around big bodies. He’s more of a combo guard than a true point. He’s built to score. He wasn’t quite ready to run a team as a freshman and had just as many turnovers (27) as assists. He took a leave of absence for personal reasons in early January and then left the Illini program shortly thereafter. He needs some seasoning, but the package is there to be a big scorer at some point. He’d fit best in a system that can utilize his abilities off the bounce.

The Fit: Louisville just needs guards. So for Kenny Payne to go into the portal early and pick up a former five-star guard in Clark is a terrific outcome, and one that will hopefully lead to more efficient offense in 2023-24. Even if Clark ends up settling in more as a combo guard and the team needs to find more of a true point, just having another shot creator and ballhandler out there would be immensely beneficial because the Cardinals just simply did not have enough of that this past season.

79. Javian McCollum | 6-1 guard | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Siena to Oklahoma

The Scout: McCollum is an upside swing for an enterprising team that doesn’t just look at the box score. A lightning-quick ballhandler with moves in his bag for days, McCollum has real upside to be a starting lead guard at the high-major level. The numbers are a bit all over the map. He averaged 16 points and four assists, but only made third-team All-MAAC because he dealt with ankle and back injuries. He missed five games and looked a bit hindered athletically in other contests that he played through. But prior to those injuries in his first 12 games, McCollum averaged 18 points and four rebounds while living at the foul line and making a ton of pull-up 3s. That run included games against four high-majors in Ole Miss, Florida State, Seton Hall and Georgetown, as well as a couple against Harvard and St. Bonaventure. If you think you’re getting that version of McCollum, he’s an undeniable high-major talent, even though he weighs in at just 155 pounds and desperately needs to add some strength in order to get more out of his talents. But McCollum is absolutely instant offense for a team willing to run a ball-screen-oriented approach, and he’s a worthwhile investment due to the tremendous touch he’s displayed throughout his career at Siena.

The Fit: Porter Moser is a believer in speed translating to the high-major level, and you can see him slowly trying to build his roster in that way, now with a backcourt that could feature McCollum along with Milos Uzan and Otega Oweh. McCollum replaces the departed Grant Sheffield. He’ll get the opportunity to be a big part of OU’s offense. Next up for Moser is finding a big man to replace Tanner Groves. The point guard and center positions are both very important in his system, and he now has one of the two.

80. Brandon Murray | 6-5 wing | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Georgetown to Ole Miss

The Scout: One of the top transfer options a season ago after an All-Freshman campaign in the SEC, Murray chose to join Patrick Ewing at Georgetown. Seen as a potentially interesting 3-and-D style draft prospect after a solid year at LSU the season before, the Hoyas tried to make Murray more of a primary option and it didn’t really work. He was wildly inefficient in that role, shooting under 40 percent from the field, 32 percent from 3, and 70 percent from the line. Simply put, Murray just didn’t really have the juice off the bounce to be able to consistently create advantages for himself. Now, Murray is more of a reclamation project for a team that can slot him into the role that worked best for him at LSU: an off-ball wing who can shoot from distance, attack when advantages present themselves, and defend. One other hitch is that Murray will certainly be stress-testing the idea of the waiver process for transfers this year after sitting out a season ago. If he can’t get eligible immediately, he might be better off staying at Georgetown, where Ed Cooley figures to create a roster that will benefit Murray’s game much more.

The Fit: Murray heads back to the SEC to commit to Chris Beard at Ole Miss after transferring from LSU to the Hoyas a season ago. He’ll slide perfectly in at the three between scoring guard Matthew Murrell and stretch-forward Jaemyn Brakefield after Brakefield removed his name from the portal. Murray was at his best at LSU as more of a 3-and-D type who could attack closeouts and use his energy on the defensive end. With the Rebels, Beard will love that role for him and it should allow him to thrive a bit more than what happened this past year at Georgetown, where Murray was tasked with creating a bit too much and trying to drive his own and his team’s offense. Murray’s presence should also help Murrell have more space to attack. Now, it’s all about whether or not Murray will be allowed to play this season, as the NCAA has publicly been gearing up to be stringent with waivers. We’ll see! He might end up being one of the primary test cases of just how tough the NCAA will be on multi-time, non-graduate transfers.

81. Jayden Epps | 6-1 guard | Three years of eligibility | Transferred from Illinois to Georgetown

The Scout: Epps is a former four-star recruit that started part-time at Illinois this season as a freshman. He was hit or miss. Among the three young guards – Epps, Sencire Harris, and Skyy Clark – the team was worse offensively with him out there than the other two on a per-100 possession basis. But Epps did showcase real ability as a downhill driver and consistently put pressure on the pain in a way that this team lacked at times. Epps averaged nine points per game, and derived a large portion of his offense at the bucket and on runners after he got two feet in the paint. He also tried to push the pace in transition and generally attacked with aggressiveness. Ultimately, Epps needs to keep improving as a distributor, as he only dished out a 12 percent assist rate this season as a smaller guard. Long known as a combo guard as opposed to a true point, Epps does probably slide a bit more toward the scoring side right now. But it’s reasonable to expect that he could continue to grow into his game and end up as a starting guard at a strong destination. His speed and fearlessness attacking the paint are real skills to build upon.

The Fit: Georgetown just continues to rebuild its roster under Ed Cooley, this time getting a commitment from Epps. He gives the team a real potential option in the backcourt to start games next season as long as he improves his efficiency. Assuming Cooley continues to utilize his preferred flex offense, Epps will be tasked with getting the team in and out of its sets and dialing up passes to cutters while also being able to pressure the rim himself to open up angles for his teammates. He’ll need to improve a bit in that respect, but Epps will give Georgetown a real option for transition buckets so that not everything is predicated upon executing sets in his first year. It’s not the most ideal fit unless Epps improves his passing and shooting from distance, but Epps is talented enough to where I buy that upside existing.

82. MJ Rice | 6-5 wing | Three years of eligibility | Transferred from Kansas to NC State

The Scout: Rice could end up the next Bryce Hopkins if he ends up in the right spot with the same kind of opportunity. Both were top-40 recruits who went to blue bloods and were buried on the bench. Rice actually had an opportunity to earn playing time because KU’s bench was not very good, but he never could earn Bill Self’s trust. His biggest issue was on the defensive end, lacking awareness and ability to keep the ball in front of him. But anyone who saw him at the grassroots level knows he’s equipped to score. He looked like an explosive athlete at that level. Some of it was bully ball, which doesn’t always translate to the high-major level, but odds are eventually this guy is going to be able to score. He flashed it one time at Kansas, putting up 19 points in a November win against Texas Southern. He scored just 32 points in all other games. At his best, he stole a few hustle buckets and showed off his strength and leaping ability at the rim. He never shot it with confidence at KU, but he was a three-level scorer in high school. He has the body and strength to play a small-ball four, and that could maybe hide some of his defensive limitations. That might take some convincing for any coach that would want to use him that way.

The Fit: After a year fighting to even get in the rotation, what Rice was likely after was an opportunity for playing time and a big role. He also probably needs a confidence boost, as sitting on the bench can be deflating to a guy who came to college as a hyped recruit. Kevin Keatts can offer all of that. The Wolfpack are replacing Terquavion Smith and Jarkel Joiner, and that means a lot of minutes and shots are available. Rice profiles more as a high-usage scorer, and maybe he can step right in and basically be NC State’s new Smith. The hope for the Wolfpack is that, like Hopkins a year ago, the talent was always there and he just needed the opportunity.

83. Hunter Sallis | 6-5 guard | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Gonzaga to Wake Forest

The Scout: A former five-star recruit, Sallis was one of the three highest-rated recruits in Gonzaga history when he committed. But he was also seen as a bit of a project, a player with incredible athletic tools who might take some time adjusting from a bit of a lower high school level. That bore itself out, as Sallis averaged just four points per game over his two years in Spokane. Having said that, it’s worth noting that Sallis did carve out a very strong role on this team on the defensive end, pairing with Malachi Smith to re-shape the team’s play at the point of attack. Sallis’ minutes jumped from 15 per game in the middle of the season to nearly 20 per game in the team’s last 13 games, of which Gonzaga won 12. Offensively, he can be an aggressive downhill driver, but is still working through his jumper and decision-making. The guess here is that Sallis wants to go somewhere that he can be a bit more featured offensively. Given what Gonzaga loses, I’m not so sure that Spokane isn’t the best place for him, especially given the Zags’ developmental track record. But originally from Nebraska, there are plenty of teams in that area that would likely be willing to give him a bigger role and take a bet on the offensive upside that saw him ranked as a top-20 recruit in the 2021 class.

The Fit: This is a smart choice for Sallis. Steve Forbes has been the transfer whisperer at Wake Forest. Alondes Williams went from averaging 6.7 points at Oklahoma to 18.5 points at Wake Forest and winning ACC Player of the Year. Tyree Appleby went from averaging 10.9 points at Florida to 18.8 at Wake Forest and making All-ACC first team. The Demon Deacons have solid core returning and needing a guy like Sallis on the wing with some athleticism. Maybe he doesn’t have the scoring potential of Williams or Appleby, but maybe he does and we just haven’t seen it yet. No one would have saw the jump Williams made coming.

84. Kadin Shedrick | 6-11 center | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Virginia to Texas

The Scout: Shedrick was one of the enigmas of this college basketball season. Long and athletic, he profiles as the kind of shot-blocker and defensive player that would excel in Virginia’s pack-line scheme. But Virginia was actually slightly worse per 100 possessions on that end of the court when he was on the court. They excelled when he was on the court offensively though, scoring 7.5 points per 100 possessions more with him out there. How much of that was him versus the players he played with? It’s a fair question, but Shedrick does crash the offensive glass hard, roll aggressively to the rim, and present as a strong option in the dunker spot. In total, he only averaged six points and four rebounds per game. But I bet that a team sees more in him and gives him another shot as a starting center for a high-major team. His tools and length are intriguing enough, and as only a one-year commitment, there is no long-term obligation.

The Fit: A tremendous fit for Texas. The one issue for the Longhorns last year in the midst of their terrific season under Rodney Terry was that they had very little size, and even less depth in terms of big frontcourt bodies. Shedrick is a 6-foot-11 shot-swatter and rebounder who should be able to help provide that this year, and I actually really like the idea of pairing him with Dylan Disu at the four in order to play extremely big next season. Shedrick should provide in the ballpark of 20-25 minutes, he’ll play tough interior defense, and hopefully finish efficiently in the minutes he’s given. This is good work from Terry to fill a hole that held them back a bit last year just in terms of roster and lineup flexibility.

85. Keshad Johnson | 6-7 wing | One year of eligibility | San Diego State

The Scout: This one was a surprise, considering Johnson was a starter on a Final Four team. He has also put his name in the NBA Draft. As is the case with almost everyone in the San Diego State program, he’s built to play defense. He has NBA athleticism and size. He’s able to guard any position and was often tasked with guarding the best opposing wing. His signature defensive performance was holding Alabama star Brandon Miller to just nine points in the Sweet 16, and none of those baskets came against Johnson. He did get lit up by Florida Atlantic’s Alijah Martin. He’s fast in a straight line but not as quick moving laterally. Offensively, he’s limited. He averaged 7.7 points, and while he’s built like a big wing, the Aztecs used him more like a traditional power forward. Most of his buckets came on dump-offs or duck-ins. He did finish with one of his best games, scoring 14 points in the national title game against UConn. He made both 3s he tried in the Final Four but was just 9-of-40 from deep the rest of the year. He’s shot 25.2 percent from beyond the arc for his career. He is a good finisher in the paint and has proven he can thrive in his role as a defender and dirty work guy.

The Fit: Johnson gives Tommy Lloyd some lineup versatility. Lloyd has played with two bigs on his frontline in his first two seasons in Tucson, but Johnson allows him to play a more versatile defender at the four spot. It’ll be a battle in the preseason to see who Lloyd starts next to Oumar Ballo. Arizona is also bringing in Lithuanian center Motiejus Krivas, so it’s possible he could go with a twin towers lineup. Johnson is still valuable because he can play either forward spot. Lloyd also has 6-foot-8 forward Paulius Murauskas joining the Wildcats and returns 6-foot-5 Pelle Larsson, who saw some time as a small-ball four. Arizona wasn’t very deep at the forward spots this past season, and that obviously was a priority this spring.

86. Javon Small | 6-2 guard | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from East Carolina to Oklahoma State

The Scout: This will be the second straight season that East Carolina will lose its starting point guard. The last one, Tristen Newton, ended up as a starter for a Final Four team in Connecticut. Small is very different than Newton, though. He’s an athletic, attack-oriented smaller guard who averaged 16 points, five rebounds and six assists in 18 games this year before he hurt his knee in January and ended up missing the rest of the season. This is your typical 6-2 guard that excels out of ball-screens. His handle keeps the ball tight to his body with the ability to string together multiple moves in a row to separate from his man. He’s a fairly real three-level scorer, as he can pull up from 3, has a nice little floater from midrange, and is more than willing to put his body on the line and fly into contact at the basket, drawing fouls at a high level. But he also pairs that with real vision and passing ability. He is a creative distributor, particularly to rollers at the rim. He is a high-major-quality starting guard.

The Fit: Mike Boynton values speed and athleticism, and Small fits the system. He gives Oklahoma State a true point guard that it lacked this season and also a replacement for Avery Anderson. The biggest weakness for the Cowboys has routinely been outside shooting, and that’s the biggest question mark around Small’s game thus far. He’s shot 31.3 percent from 3 for his career and finished at 33.3 percent this season. There is hope, however, that he can improve that number because he is an 85.4 percent shooter at the free-throw line, and sometimes that can translate into eventual better outside shooting numbers. The Cowboys lost a lot in the portal and will have a young roster, but with Small, Bryce Thompson and John-Michael Wright, they’ll at least have a veteran backcourt.

87. Amaree Abram | 6-4 guard | Three years of eligibility | Transferred from Ole Miss to Georgia Tech

The Scout: This is a fun one. Abram is an electric scoring guard that frankly just kind of moves differently than other guys on the court. He’s extremely long and has that kind of wiry bounce you look for in prospects. He’s a crafty lefty finisher in the paint with all sorts of weird runners, push shots and floaters. As a ballhandler, he constantly has control over the ball and seems to have big hands that allow him to gather into quick moves once he gets around the basket. The numbers don’t pop off the page, but he was a freshman playing in the SEC for a bad team. He averaged eight points, two rebounds and two assists, but did so while shooting a solid 36 percent from the field. The next steps will come when he can start making even more plays for his teammates off of a live dribble, and when he can really start to weaponize that driving ability to get all the way to the rim more often. He averaged under one free throw attempt per game, which is pretty surprising given the way he can get defenders into awkward positions on the ball. He’s definitely a high-major type player, and one that I think has real upside to be a very good one by the time he hits his third season.

The Fit: This is the type of swing that makes a lot of sense for new coach Damon Stoudamire. He has time to develop players like Abram and a track record of doing so at Pacific with players like Daniss Jenkins and Jahlil Tripp. Georgia Tech leading scorer Miles Kelly has declared for the NBA Draft but left the door open to returning. If he returns, that’s a nice one-two punch on the wing for the Yellow Jackets.

88. Khalif Battle | 6-5 guard | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Temple to Arkansas

The Scout: Battle is one of the best scoring guards in the portal — he averaged 17.8 points over the last three seasons at Temple — but he comes with some caution flags. He was benched in a Feb. 16 loss against Wichita State and then left the team. Battle will likely need to graduate to be eligible right away unless he’s able to secure a waiver. Battle definitely has a gift scoring the basketball. He has a lot of elevation on his jumper and gets it off quickly. He can shoot with range and has made a solid 35.4 percent of his 3s for his career. He’s also quick off the dribble and is a slithery driver. He can get his shot out of isolation and his first step out of a hard closeout is dangerous. Defensively, his on-the-ball numbers are good, and he’s quick with a contest, his length helping him there, but Temple was better on both ends without him on the floor. It’s not always reliable using on-off numbers, but Temple’s defense was better in two of his three seasons there, per hooplens.com data.

The Fit: Arkansas needs 3-point shooting and hadn’t really addressed that with the addition of transfers Keyon Menifield or Tramon Mark. Battle checks that box. He’s also a player who will fit well in a system that tries to pick on mismatches and allows players to play pick-and-roll and isolation basketball. He’s got some playground to his game, and when he’s hot, he can really go off. His quickness and ability to get into the teeth of the defense gives Arkansas some of what it could end up losing if Davonte Davis ends up staying in the draft. It’s debatable, however, if he’ll be eligible this season. He started his career at Butler, and this is his second time transferring. He was granted immediate eligibility his first time transferring.

89. Posh Alexander | 6-0 guard | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from St. John’s to Butler

A three-year starter in the Big East, Alexander decided to hit the portal after Rick Pitino took over at St. John’s. Alexander is New York, through and through. He’s from Brooklyn and went to Our Savior Lutheran, then decided to stay home and play for the Red Storm. Alexander was a menace in his first year, winning the Big East’s co-Defensive Player of the Year award as a pest on the perimeter on defense. He also won the league’s Freshman of the Year award that season. He just plays with nonstop tenacity and energy, constantly just living in the space of opposing players. Offensively, he took a leap as a sophom*ore then seemed to regress a bit this past season, posting lows in scoring, assist rate, and overall efficiency shooting metrics, all while playing on a team that was the fastest-paced group in the country. Finding the right blend of his aggression while minimizing his inability to shoot will be the key for the coach at Alexander’s next stop. I wonder if a place like Fordham, which is looking to replace standout point guard Darius Quisenberry, makes sense.

The Fit: Alexander stays in the Big East and goes to a program that has completely overhauled its roster. He should be able to start right away and will obviously help a Butler team that is basically starting from scratch — Alexander is the ninth new player to sign on with the Bulldogs. So the opportunity is there. But Alexander is also going to a team that will likely struggle and be near the bottom of the Big East. It’s hard to imagine anything else, but this is a prize for Thad Matta. He could have Alexander for two years and Alexander could at least give this team a defensive identity, as he’s one of the better defensive guards in the country.

90. Sahvir Wheeler | 5-9 point guard | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Kentucky to Washington

Ever since seeing him at the grassroots level, I’ve always been a fan. Back then what stood out was his motor and willingness to guard 94 feet. He needs to get in a program that can really bring that defensive pest out of him. He also needs to play in the right system offensively, where his speed and passing can be utilized. He can get his feet in the paint and get guys shots. He’s never been a good shooter, but he deserves some credit for getting to a point where he can at least make an open 3. He made 15-of-41 (36.6 percent) this season. He probably caught too much flak for his play at Kentucky. He wasn’t the type of talent Kentucky fans are used to seeing at point guard. But it takes a real pro to shine in John Calipari’s offense, which lacks creativity and flow. Put shooters around him and a big who can catch and finish, and he’s going to rack up assists. Obviously there’s some limitations defensively because of his size, but he’s going to battle.

The Fit: This is a good landing spot for Wheeler. The Washington zone will keep him on the perimeter on defense, and his lack of size becomes less of a risk. Wheeler reunites with former teammate Keion Brooks Jr. and goes to a spot where offensively he’s a fit. Wheeler thrived a year ago when Kentucky played faster. He’s best at either pushing the ball up the floor or getting into the teeth of the defense and finding teammates. Washington ranked 288th in assist rate. Expect that number to go way up with Wheeler, who has ranked in the top 24 in assist rate each of the last three seasons. He also gives Washington a replacement for Keyon Menifield in the backcourt. This is an important season for Mike Hopkins, as it’s been four years since his only NCAA Tournament appearance. Not saying Wheeler will get him there, but both he and Brooks at least have been a part of winning and done so together.

91. Jayden Taylor | 6-4 guard | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Butler to NC State

The Scout: Taylor is your classic combo guard. He led Butler in scoring this year at about 13 points per game, consistently finding advantages either by attacking downhill or being willing to stop and fire from 3. With Manny Bates on the interior and a team that didn’t really have a ton of floor-spacing, having shot 32 percent from 3, Taylor didn’t really have a ton of space to attack and get to the rim all that often. Because of that, I could see Taylor finding a new landing spot and having a lot more success if he can go to a well-spaced offense that allows him to utilize some of his tools to their fullest extent. Schools in the midwest, such as Xavier, Cincinnati, and Michigan State have already reached out, and those seem like pretty strong landing spots.

The Fit: A great landing spot for Taylor and a great fit for Kevin Keatts & Co. at NC State. The Wolfpack love guards who are creative off the bounce as well as capable shooters. Taylor is still developing in the latter respect, but he’s confident and willing to take them. And since he’s a slasher and driver, the wide-open, uptempo Wolfpack offense should really fit his game. From Taylor’s perspective, tough to imagine a more perfect place for him to land. NC State loses both Terquavion Smith and Jarkel Joiner out of the backcourt, two guys that bring similar things to the table. Taylor should be able to slide more into the off-guard role and do a great job of creating offense within a scheme that will empower him to be the aggressive, attack-oriented guard that he is.

92. Keshon Gilbert | 6-4 guard | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from UNLV to Iowa State

The Scout: The number that pops off the page for Gilbert is his catch-and-shoot percentage. He made 51.2 percent of those opportunities, per Synergy, but he didn’t take a lot of them, attempting only 41. He shot a solid 37.1 percent from 3, but again, not a ton of attempts (70). Gilbert does most of his work off the dribble, and he has a good sense for how to ball screens and get defenders behind him. He has a good floater — 48.8 percent on runners, per Synergy — but he lacks pop at the rim. He shot only 49.6 percent at the rim, per Synergy, and missed five of the eight dunks he tried. He’s best when he’s probing in the paint and does a good job drawing contact to get to the foul line, where he shot 78 percent. He’s got enough game to play at the high-major level so long as he’s not the first or second option. It’ll be interesting to see if he can continue his catch-and-shoot accuracy on more attempts.

The Fit: T.J. Otzelberger originally recruited Gilbert to UNLV, so he knows his game. Iowa State needed more shooting and experienced guards, and Otzelberger has landed two who can both make shots and create for others in Gilbert and Jackson Paveletzke. The challenge here is whether Gilbert can guard a bigger wing in the Big 12, because lineups that include Tamin Lipsey, Paveletzke and Gilbert, it’s Gilbert who will likely have to guard up. Jaron Holmes had the responsibility last season, and he had the build for it. That could be a challenge for Gilbert, but Otzelberger does like disruptive guards and Gilbert’s steals rate has been high both seasons at UNLV.

93. Eddie Lampkin Jr. | 6-11 center | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from TCU to Colorado

The scout: It was rumored that Lampkin would be joining Ed Cooley at Georgetown — a rumor Lampkin shot down on Twitter — but that would make sense. Lampkin is the prototype of an Ed Cooley center. Lampkin is a giant human (6-11, 263 pounds) and an immovable object. He eats up rebounds and is a weapon on the offensive glass. He’s got some touch around the basket but his footwork can get a little sloppy when he gets the ball in space. He hasn’t been much of a low-post scorer, but there’s potential there. His body improved every year and he’d benefit from continuing to slim down, increasing his foot speed. He doesn’t block shots but he is a deterrent in the paint. He does a good job contesting without fouling, and TCU’s defense was better with him on the floor. He’s played in a lot of big games, and he’s an emotional player, which can be the best thing about him and the worst thing. It didn’t end well with TCU, and he’ll need to go to a place where he can connect with the coach.

The fit: Colorado’s offense needed a boost and Lampkin provides a real weapon on the offensive glass. The Buffs also played faster last year and he’s used to playing in an up-tempo system coming from TCU. There’s also some similarities between Lampkin and former CU center Evan Battey. Lampkin cannot shoot it like Battey but he’s a bigger version who can make an impact without needing lots of touches.

94. Jamison Battle | 6-7 wing | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Minnesota to Ohio State

The scout: Throughout his career, Battle has been a terrific scoring threat as a bigger wing on bad teams. In his four-year college career at both Minnesota and George Washington, he’s never played on a winning team. So in that vein, I can see why Battle would want to experience some success at some point in his career. He’s probably been asked to do a bit too much over those years, as he’s made just 42 percent of his shots from the field. But what Battle can do is shoot it at a high level, and he’ll do it at volume. Battle consistently has gotten up seven 3s per game in his college career, and made them at a 35 percent clip despite being tightly guarded as a top option all the time. I’d love to see him at a school where he can not be as responsible for creating shots, and can instead play off of others. Last year, Battle took 49 percent of his shots off the dribble. It’s a role he’s capable of handling, but I don’t know that it’s his idealized form, either. I think it’s likely Battle is better than a 35 percent shooter if you put him in positions where he’s getting consistent open looks as opposed to being asked to create them himself. I’d like to see him at a good program where he can be asked to do just a little bit less. That’s probably the way to get the most out of him from a winning perspective. But as a consistent high-major double-figure scorer, I think he can help a lot of teams.

The fit: Ohio State has found a replacement for Sean McNeil, another knockdown shooter on a team that was not lacking for offense last season. The issue for the Buckeyes was their defense. They finished 106th in adjusted defensive efficiency and ranked third-to-last in Big Ten defensive efficiency. Who was last? Minnesota, where Battle spent last season. The Buckeyes need to get stronger on that end to compete in the Big Ten again, and Battle is limited there. Ohio State might have been better off targeting more two-way wings. For Battle, he’s been a good player on losing teams. He should be motivated to change that narrative and is headed to a program that usually wins but is coming off its worst season under Chris Holtmann.

95. John Tonje | 6-5 wing | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Colorado State to Missouri

The scout:This one is about as clean a fit for anybody as you’ll find. The idea behind Tonje is that you’re getting a tough, physical, fearless 6-foot-5 wing with a strong 225-pound frame that should have no issues translating to the high-major level as something in the ballpark of a starting caliber wing. He is a consistent catch-and-shoot threat, having made 37 percent of his nearly 400 career 3-point attempts. If you close out short on him, the ball is going up. If you close out too heavily on him, he’s improved drastically at using his handle to attack and get into the midrange area for little stop-and-pop jumpers. He doesn’t overstep his bounds, though, and try to create too much with the ball in his hands. He’s a mature, sharp player who has also made real strides defensively through his career to where he can use his frame to physically use his chest against bigger bodies to cut off drives. There are some concerns against lightning-quick guys, but he crashes the glass well enough to actually play in the frontcourt as an undersized forward. As a hybrid three/undersized four, there’s a lot of potential in Tonje as the kind of role player that helps you win.

The fit: Tonje didn’t last long in the portal, as he committed to Missouri. How well he fits here is actually a bit dependent on some of the team’s pre-draft decisions. Really, I see Tonje as some insurance for a potential Kobe Brown departure. The 6-foot-8 All-SEC forward is considered a likely two-way candidate if he decides to turn his sights toward the NBA. He has one year of eligibility remaining, but is also already 23 years old. It would take a fairly sizable NIL commitment from Missouri collectives to get him back to school, in all likelihood. If Brown does decide to leave, Gates and company will have a replacement, although one that probably doesn’t quite present the mismatch upside that Brown did in terms of shooting over the top of smaller players. Again though, it’s hard to overestimate how easy it is to fit guys like Tonje in because of the shooting and physicality. He’ll help the Tigers just from those two aspects alone.

96. Jordan Minor | 6-8 forward | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Merrimack to Virginia

The Scout: The NEC Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year, it could have easily been Minor and the Merrimack Warriors upsetting Purdue in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament after the team won the NEC Tournament. However, Merrimack was not eligible for the NCAA Tournament, as they’re still transitioning from a lower division in college basketball. Minor dominated athletically at the NEC level as an undersized 5 man who was stronger and more physical than anyone else in the league. He powered through opposing players on the block, crashed the offensive glass hard, beat opposing players down the floor in transition regularly, and was a nightmare for opposing teams to deal with as a roller toward the rim. Essentially, he out-worked everyone, every single night. Then defensively, he was just an absolute menace rotating over as a rim protector. He has real vertical pop. And honestly, I think he’ll be able to do some of that even at the high-major level. It’ll be popular to compare Minor to the success that undersized Miami center Norchad Omier had after transferring up from the mid-major level last year, but Omier’s feet are better, and he’s generally just a more skilled player than what Minor is. Honestly, I think Minor is probably best as a terrific small-ball center at the high mid-major level (think Mountain West or Atlantic-10). But if he wants to go high-major, he’ll have his chances.

The Fit: Virginia needed a center after losing both Kadin Shedrick and Francisco Caffaro to the transfer portal along with redshirt freshman Isaac Traudt. If you go back through Tony Bennett’s history at Virginia, some of his best teams have played a smaller, more mobile player hefty minutes at the center spot — from Mike Scott to Akil Mitchell to Mamadi Diakite. It’ll be a massive role change for Minor, who was a high-usage scorer at Merrimack and could bulldoze his way to buckets. He’s not skilled enough to see that kind of usage at the high-major level, but he could still be useful at Virginia. For one, he looks like a defensive end; Virginia uses its center to set lots of screens, and he’s built for that. He could also help on the offensive glass. That’s not a huge priority for Tony Bennett’s team, but this last one was one of his worst in that area. Minor is also going to have to adjust to the defensive scheme. He played zone at Merrimack. But it’s probably a safe bet that Bennett will get the most out of his abilities on that end.

97. Daniss Jenkins | 6-3 guard | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Iona to St. John’s

The Scout: Jenkins is quite well-traveled at this point, as his next school will be his fourth. He started at Pacific under Damon Stoudamire, where he was a two-year starter before transferring to Odessa College at the junior college level. He transferred back up to the Division I level last year to play at Iona, where he won second-team All-MAAC honors and formed a terrific backcourt for the Gaels with MAAC Player of the Year Walter Clayton. Whereas Clayton is more of a scorer, Jenkins is more of an all-around point. He distributes well, having led the MAAC in assists at nearly five per game. He can also knock down shots from distance, and has fast hands on defense. Jenkins has one year left but is not listed as a graduate transfer in the portal right now. On top of that, he also has success at a higher level than the MAAC, having won all-freshman honors in the WCC in addition to averaging double-digits per game as a sophom*ore. He has two natural landing spots. First would be St. John’s, where he could follow Rick Pitino. He’s good enough to play in the Big East. He also could look to join the coach that recruited him originally to Pacific in Stoudamire, who just got the job at Georgia Tech. Even if he doesn’t follow either, Jenkins is definitely a high-major quality guard.

The Fit: The fit is obvious here. Jenkins has already played and thrived in Rick Pitino’s system. The question mark is whether or not he’ll be eligible to play right away. He’ll need to graduate to guarantee that be the case. The NCAA has made it clear that a coaching change is not grounds for receiving a waiver. But as stated above, Jenkins has proven he has the juice to succeed at a higher level, and Pitino should have as good a feel for that as anyone.

98. Dayvion McKnight | 6-1 guard | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Western Kentucky to Xavier

The Scout: McKnight is one of those lefty slashers who seems to always figure out a way to get to his left hand. He is strong and has shoulders that defenders just bounce off of, helping him create space. He put up good numbers at Western Kentucky — 16.5 points, 3.8 assists, 5.0 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game this past year — and his efficiency numbers would probably go up on a good team. He took a lot of forced shots. Some of that might have been by choice; some of it was by necessity. He’s at his best when he’s looking to get downhill. He’s clever with his footwork when the help comes and also capable of drawing help and dishing. He’s got the body and the game to play at a higher level. He was second-team All-Conference USA in what was a loaded league this season.

The Fit: Xavier replaces Souley Boum with another C-USA transfer who played on a mediocre team and will probably benefit from a better scheme and better players around him. McKnight isn’t going to have to take as difficult of shots at Xavier, but he is a late-clock option for the Musketeers in the same way Boum was. He’s not as jet quick as Boum, but like Boum, he can create space with the ball in his hands. The key here will be how he’s able to handle a lower-usage role. Boum did so beautifully, so Xavier’s coaches will have plenty of examples to show him the way he needs to adjust his game. This seems like a great fit for both player and program.

99. David Jones | 6-6 wing | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from St. John’s to Memphis

The Scout: Jones has been on bad or mediocre Big East teams during his three seasons of college, but his teams have performed better when he was on the floor. DePaul was plus-eight with him on the floor during his sophom*ore season and St. John’s was plus-six this past season, per Hooplens. Both teams were outscored when he went to the bench. What was disappointing about Jones’ junior campaign was he didn’t shoot the ball any better. He made only 29.4 percent of his 3s at St. John’s and is a 28.4 percent 3-point shooter for his career. Ideally, he’d be a 3-and-D type wing, but the shooting has never really come. He still finds a way to score — he averaged 14.5 points as a sophom*ore at DePaul and 13.2 at St. John’s — and he’s also a productive rebounder. He’s also a good passer at his position and did a bit more playmaking at DePaul than St. John’s. He started the first half of the season and then played starter minutes in a sixth man role during the back half of the year, and while his efficiency was all over the map, his counting stats were strong over the final eight games of the season when he averaged 14.6 points and 7.8 rebounds. At 6-6, he can play either forward position and he’s a sturdy defender. You’re not going to move him from his spot. Since this will be his second transfer, he’ll need a waiver to be able to play right away.

The Fit: It’s hard to say how all the pieces at Memphis will fit together because Jones is the 12th player Penny Hardaway has signed between transfers and incoming freshmen. Jones is a second-time transfer so he’ll need a waiver to play right away. But once he is eligible — whether it’s 2023-24 or 2024-25 — he’s capable of being an above average starter in the American. His ability to pass the ball could come in handy, because Memphis has two shot-first guards in Mikey Williams and Caleb Mills. It might be worth exploring if Jones could play some point forward.

100. Daniel Batcho | 6-11 center | Two years of eligibility | Transferred from Texas Tech to Louisiana Tech

The Scout: Injuries and illness forced Batcho to miss nine games, and he wasn’t the same player the final two-thirds of the season he’d been early. The player he was early last season looked like a guy on the cusp of being one of the best centers in the Big 12. Batcho was thriving as a roller and vertical lob presence at the rim. He even flashed the ability to knock down a 3, making his first three attempts. Through the first eight games of the season, he was averaging 13 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.8 blocks per game. Let’s assume an offseason will allow him to get back to that player. If that’s the case, this is a guy who could start for most teams. Batcho may need a waiver to play right away. He started his career at Arizona, redshirting for the Wildcats as a freshman and then transferring to Texas Tech.

The Fit: Batcho rejoins Talvin Hester, who was an assistant at Texas Tech during his first season there. Batcho may have to sit out because this is his second time transferring, but this is a player whom Hester would take either way. We just saw Florida Atlantic get to a Final Four out of the same league with another former Texas Tech big man, and Batcho spent time as a starter at Texas Tech while Vladislav Goldin barely saw the floor. Batcho has a chance to be the best big man in that league, and it’s a little surprising he didn’t stay high-major considering the way he played this season before he got hurt. We had him ranked higher than most on our best available list. We were believers. He could start for a lot of high-majors, but props to Hester for pulling this off and for Batcho being willing to take a chance on a coach he knows well. We have him ranked this low because of the uncertainty of his immediate eligibility, but he’s good enough he could eventually make us look silly for not putting him higher.

101. Connor Vanover | 7-5 center | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Oral Roberts to Missouri

The Scout: Vanover is on pace to graduate and will be a grad transfer. The big man would be wise to follow former ORU coach Paul Mills to Wichita State. Vanover thrived playing for him after falling out of the rotation at Arkansas. He averaged 12.7 points, 7.2 rebounds and 3.2 blocks per game, making the All-Summit League first team and also winning Defensive Player of the Year in the league. He’s best utilized as a pick-and-pop/roller. He’s a capable shooter with a high release. He made 32.4 percent from 3 on 142 attempts this season. The mechanics are good and he’s made 81.1 percent of his free throws for his career. He’s almost automatic when he catches it in close, shooting 80.2 percent at the rim in his one season at ORU, per Synergy. He made 51 dunks in 34 games. He does a good job of blocking and contesting shots at the rim without fouling, committing only 2.3 fouls per 40 minutes. He’s at least proven he can be a useful role player at higher levels. He averaged 7.5 points and 1.3 blocks as a freshman at Cal and then 6.3 points and 1.8 blocks in his redshirt sophom*ore season at Arkansas, when he started 27 games. Guarding in space and dealing with physicality are the two concerns when Vanover has played at higher levels. If not Wichita State, Vanover should find a team that uses its big to set a lot of ball screens and is willing to let him fire from the mid-range and 3.

The Fit: Mizzou lands a replacement for Kobe Brown in a player who looks nothing like Brown. Dennis Gates will have to make some major adjustments to how he runs his offense, because he was able to run a ton of actions through Brown, who in addition to being able to shoot and slash was able to distribute the ball as well in Mizzou’s Princeton actions. Vanover at least has the shooting and has the size to see over the defense and potentially use that to his advantage as a passer. That’s not something he’s done much of in his career, but it’ll be worth exploring if he’s capable. One area Vanover should help is rim protection. Mizzou’s two-point defense wasn’t great last year and the Tigers were undersized, so Vanover could help there as well as help on the defensive glass, another weakness for the Tigers last season.

102. Jamarion Sharp | 7-5 center | One year of eligibility | Transferred from Western Kentucky to Ole Miss

The Scout: Sharp has been a very well-known player in college hoops for a while now largely because of his height. At 7-foot-5, he’s the tallest player in the country. That will always lead to interest, especially when also mixed with the accolades he’s received. Sharp has won back-to-back Defensive Player of the Year awards in Conference USA while averaging about seven points and seven rebounds per game. Personally, I think these were pretty egregiously given awards. In 2021-22, Western Kentucky was actually about 13 points per 100 possessions better when Sharp was off the court in conference play per Pivot Analysis. In 2022-23, the team finished eighth in adjusted defensive efficiency within Conference USA. Sharp blocks shots, having swatted over four per game in each of the last two seasons. But there’s more to defense than blocked shots, and you need to have an extremely strong, mobile defensive infrastructure around Sharp to get the most out of him. Additionally, on offense, Sharp does tend to just take up a lot of space, but if you can get him the ball around the basket, he will finish it. Personally, I don’t think I’d recruit Sharp at the high-major level, but there are a number of high-major schools that have reached out to where he probably does need to be included here.

The Fit: We had Sharp at the bottom of our best-available rankings and wondered if he could make the transition to the high-major level. This spot at least makes sense for him. Chris Beard plays the no-middle defense, and it’s always a nice luxury in that defense to have a shot blocker roaming around the rim behind defenders trying to take charges. That was what Beard had on his national runner-up team at Texas Tech with Tariq Owens. So we get what Beard is going for. The worry is how Sharp will handle himself away from the basket defending ball screens, and can Ole Miss score efficiently with him on the floor? But for a program that was one of the worst in the SEC, this is probably a gamble worth trying.

103. Mike Sharavjamts | 6-8 guard | Three years of eligibility | Transferred from Dayton to San Francisco

The Scout: Believed to be the first Mongolian citizen to ever earn a Division I basketball scholarship, Sharavjamts — who goes by the nickname “Mongolian Mike” — is an extremely skilled guard with plus positional size at 6-foot-8 to pair with legitimate passing and shooting skills. This season at Dayton was a bit up-and-down. Despite personnel that included a terrific rim-runner in DaRon Holmes and athletic, skilled guards and wings, the Flyers this season played at a snail’s pace that probably did not get the most out of its talent — a bizarre departure from the fun style that Anthony Grant brought to the Flyers during the Obi Toppin era. Sharavjamts is a player that really likes to play in a wide-open, high ball-screen attack that allows him to make plays both as a primary and secondary ballhandler. This on-ball skill at his size is why, despite averaging just 5.6 points, 1.9 rebounds and 2.6 assists, Mongolian Mike was invited to the G League Elite Camp during NBA Draft Combine week in Chicago, essentially seeing him ranked as a consensus top-120 prospect in the 2023 NBA Draft by NBA teams. He’s a boom-or-bust player that has real defensive deficiencies right now, and I’d recommend that he only goes to uptempo, well-spaced offensive situations that allow him to get the most out of his skill level. Still, he’s worth ranking because the upside if he gets into the right environment is very real.

The Fit: Sharavjamts picked a system that is right for him. San Francisco’s offense features a lot of ball screens and great spacing. The Dons ranked second nationally in 3-point rate this past season. The WCC is also a league where his skillset fits and some of his deficiencies will not be as magnified as they would if he’d tried to go high-major.

(Top photo of Hunter Dickinson: Michael Reaves / Getty Images)