College Basketball Transfer Portal: Top Commitments and Players Available
The transfer portal continues to move fast, and there has been a lot that has happened since last week's update. A lot of players are thinking the grass is greener on the other side, and while it's debatable whether or not that is true, there's certainly something else that is green and that is what's talking in 2024 college basketball.
With almost a week left to go until the transfer portal closes, let's take a peek at the recent commitments that will have the biggest impact at their new school next season, as well as the top players still looking for new homes.
Most Impactful Commitments
Jeremy Roach, G, Baylor
Year: Graduate Student
2023-24 Stats: 14.0 PPG, 3.2 APG, 2.5 RPG, 1.5 3PM, 1.1 SPG
Most people expected Roach to exercise his final year of eligibility, but when he entered the transfer portal, I'm not sure many saw that coming. Roach was prepped to lead another talented group of freshman coming in, but it appears that the veteran was tired of having to coach up a bunch of young players in the same system again. Roach instead chose to make the move to Baylor and coach Scott Drew, who have run a very guard-friendly system for years now. He will basically slide right in as the primary ball-handler in the offense in place of RayJ Dennis (13.6 PPG, 6.7 APG). He will be helped in the backcourt by returning guards Langston Love (11.0 PPG) and Jayden Nunn (10.5 PPG). There's also a chance Jalen Bridges (12.2 PPG) decides to return and use his extra year of eligibility in that stretch four slot. Baylor is also bringing in a strong recruiting class led by a great scorer in VJ Edgecombe, cut from much the same cloth as one-and-done Bears Keyonte George and Ja'Kobe Walter were. Bottom line -- Baylor needed a true point guard with experience next season, and the program they landed just that with Roach.
Malik Mack, G, Georgetown
Year: Sophomore
2023-24 Stats: 17.2 PPG, 4.8 APG, 4.0 RPG, 1.9 3PM, 1.3 SPG
It's not often we see a freshman come right into the Ivy League and make an impact like this. Mack ended up being the third-leading scorer in the conference at 17.2 PPG and led the conference at 4.8 APG. This was a big pickup for coach Ed Cooley, who is trying to turn this Georgetown program around after winning single-digit games the last three seasons. Mack is a player who clearly has shown a lot of upside and who should hopefully be with the program for multiple years. Jayden Epps (18.5 PPG) was a huge get in the transfer portal last offseason, and now to be able to pair him with Mack gives the Hoyas one of the most high-octane backcourts in the Big East. Add in a do-it-all player like Micah Peavy (10.9 PPG) from TCU and a pair of four-star recruits, and I would expect to see a much more competitive Georgetown team next season.
Amari Williams, F, Kentucky
Year: Graduate Student
2023-24 Stats: 12.2 PPG, 7.8 RPG, 1.9 APG, 1.8 BPG
After losing six players to the transfer portal, another four to the NBA Draft and five top-50 recruits, new coach Mark Pope had to stop the bleeding and make a splash in the transfer portal. He was able to do just that with the addition of Williams, who became a nightly double-double threat at Drexel and was a three-time CAA Defensive Player of the Year. The only other player that we know for sure will be joining Williams on the Wildcat roster next season is four-star recruit Travis Perry. It's certainly a less than ideal position to be in at this point, but Williams is as good of a starting piece as you can ask for to control the middle of the paint. There's still plenty of solid names out there that would probably love to take some of Kentucky's NIL money and fill out this roster for next season.
JP Pegues, G, Auburn
Year: Senior
2023-24 Stats: 18.5 PPG, 4.8 APG, 4.3 RPG, 2.8 3PM, 1.1 SPG
Auburn was one of the deepest teams in the country last year, especially in the backcourt, but ultimately would be upset in the first round of the NCAA Tournament by Yale. Potentially frustrated by playing time around 20 MPG, Aden Holloway (7.3 PPG), K.D. Johnson (7.1 PPG) and Tre Donaldson (6.7 PPG) all elected to transfer. That put Auburn needing to bring a guard in that coach Bruce Pearl could count on. Enter Pegues, who was third in the Southern Conference in scoring and fourth in assists. He was hot down the stretch of last season averaging 25.7 PPG and 3.9 3PM on 43 percent shooting over the final seven games to bring Furman just shy of an NCAA Tournament appearance. Pegues should slot in nicely alongside Denver Jones (9.1 PPG) and Chad Baker-Mazara (10.0 PPG) in the backcourt with Johni Broome (16.5 PPG) returning to patrol the paint.
AJ Storr, G, Kansas
Year: Junior
2023-24 Stats: 16.8 PPG, 3.9 RPG, 1.3 3PM
Kansas needed another player that could get his own shot off the dribble last season, especially while Kevin McCullar was injured. The Jayhawks were able to land just that in Storr, who is an athletic wing capable of getting to the rim at a high clip, while also providing some floor-spacing upside. Storr saw his usage rate skyrocket with Wisconsin last season, but as a role player with St. John's as a freshman he was a 40-percent three-point shooter. Storr will have to improve both defensively and as a passer to succeed under coach Bill Self, but the traits are there to give the Jayhawks another reliable scoring option outside of Hunter Dickinson (17.9 PPG).
Best Players Still Available
Vladislav Goldin, C, Florida Atlantic
Year: Graduate Student
2023-24 Stats: 15.7 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 1.6 BPG
Goldin is testing the NBA Draft process, but the expectation is that he will return to college. He is coming off his best season yet at FAU and he ended the year on a very strong note averaging 19.5 PPG, 7.2 RPG and 1.9 BPG over the final 11 contests. There's really no shortages of teams that would love to have a 7-1 big man that moves as well as Goldin does. He has really refined his back-to-the-basket game and become an even better interior defender. Michigan is the team a lot of people thought initially with FAU coach Dustin May going to the Wolverines, but he has since added five transfers, including Danny Wolf, a 7-footer from Yale, so it's unclear if Goldin fits in there or not. UConn is the team to watch here with Donovan Clingan heading to the NBA.
Brandon Garrison, C, Oklahoma State
Year: Sophomore
2023-24 Stats: 7.5 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 1.5 APG, 1.5 BPG
Garrison is a former top-50 recruit who was one of the long bright spots last season for Oklahoma State. He proved to be a very strong defender, averaging 2.3 steals+blocks per game. Garrison's offense still has room to grow, but he did score 20 points on three different occasions last season. The 6-11 center certainly has some NBA upside, but the hope is that whatever team that signs him will be getting multiple seasons out of him. Garrison looks like he will be taking his talents to the SEC next season having taken visits to both Texas and Oklahoma, with Kentucky and Arkansas trying to get in on the action as well. I believe Texas is probably the best fit of those teams, as Garrison would replace Dylan Disu (15.5 PPG) and allow Kadin Shedrick (7.7 PPG) to come off the bench. The Longhorns and coach Rodney Terry were also able to bring in a pure point guard in Julian Larry (11.0 PPG, 4.8 APG) and a scorer in Tramon Mark (16.2 PPG) to give Garrison a lot of room to work on offense.
Cade Tyson, F, Belmont
Year: Junior
2023-24 Stats: 16.2 PPG, 5.9 RPG, 2.6 3PM, 1.6 APG
Cade Tyson is the younger brother of Hunter Tyson, who was a standout at Clemson and now plays for the Denver Nuggets. Cade is not quite the rebounder his brother was, but he is arguably the better shooter and scorer. The 6-7 wing is coming off a great sophomore season at Belmont that saw him shoot 46.5 percent from three-point range. That is certainly the type of shooting that all teams covet these days, and if he can prove he can defend power conference wings, he could certainly join his brother in the NBA. I wouldn't rule out Clemson to make a run at Tyson, but the two teams that seem to be leading the way are North Carolina and Tennessee. There is so much Dalton Knecht in Tyson's game.
Aidan Mahaney, G, Saint Mary's
Year: Junior
2023-24 Stats: 13.9 PPG, 2.6 RPG, 2.6 APG, 2.4 3PM
Mahaney had pretty identical seasons as a freshman and sophomore with Saint Mary's. This past year, he helped the Gaels to both a WCC regular season and tournament title. Mahaney is another elite shooter in the transfer portal, but he also competes on the defensive end and is capable of handling the ball for stretches of the game. The thing to remember is that Mahaney played in one of the slowest systems in college basketball that primarily focused on defense and still was able to put up strong offensive numbers. We could truly see the 6-3 shooting guard unlocked next season playing on a team that values pace and space more. Mahaney has already visited Creighton and will also take visits to Virginia and UConn. Kentucky is the other team to watch with Mark Pope looking to fill out a roster, and he has plenty of experience at BYU with guards to a similar skillset as Mahaney.
Ugonna Onyenso, C, Kentucky
Year: Junior
2023-24 Stats: 3.6 PPG, 4.8 RPG, 2.8 BPG
Onyenso said a week ago that he was 100 percent focused on the NBA. Well, whatever feedback he got back obviously wasn't what he wanted to hear, because he will be coming back to college for his junior season. Onyenso never was able to reach his full potential with Kentucky, but given the proper amount of playing time, there is huge upside here. Onyenso averaged 2.8 BPG in just 18.7 MPG last season, making him, in my eyes, the best interior defender available in the transfer portal. The 7-footer is never going to be someone you dump it down to and let him play with his back to the basket -- he is much more of a screen roller and lob catcher. Onyenso is a great offensive rebounder that will take the paint presence of whatever team signs him up to another level. Alabama, Oklahoma, Georgetown, Louisville and Florida were the first teams to reach out. Of those teams listed, Alabama makes a ton of sense due to Nick Pringle entering the transfer portal, and the scheme fit is certainly there as a rim-to-rim runner.
Stay up to date on both the NCAAB transfer portal and NBA Draft declarations with the latest college basketball player news on RotoWire. Our college basketball depth charts are also updated with the latest in roster movement.
