By Aidan Joly
Last weekend, I put together a part one for college basketball players coming to new teams through the transfer portal. To read that, click here.
Now, here’s a part two to that with some more players headed to new teams next season.
Matthew Cleveland; Old school: Florida State | New school: Miami
Cleveland is a former five-star prospect who led the Seminoles with 13.8 points per game, but Florida State struggled with a 7-13 season in the ACC and 9-23 overall. He’s a 6-foot-7 wing who can play several positions and certainly has the tools to become an NBA prospect with two years of eligibility with the Canes. He should have a large role immediately as Miami is looking to replace some key pieces from its Final Four run.
Joe Girard; Old school: Syracuse | New school: Clemson
One of the better volume three-point shooters in the country, Girard averaged 16.4 points per game for the Orange this past season and hit 40% of his threes, averaging more than seven attempts per game last year. He’s undersized and limited defensively though, so he struggled on the defensive end. Clemson has NCAA tournament aspirations next year and Girard is sure to be a part of those plans.
Caleb Mills; Old school: Florida State | New school: Memphis
Memphis will be Mills’ third school. It feels an eon ago that Mills earned All-AAC honors as a freshman at Houston 2019-20 and now he heads back to that league after two years with Florida State. He averaged in the double digits in both seasons in Tallahassee and will be important in replacing Kendric Davis in Memphis.
Damian Dunn; Old school: Temple | New school: Houston
Dunn was the second-leading scorer for the Owls this season at 15.3 points per game to go along with 3.7 rebounds and 3.0 assists per contest. The Cougars are certainly familiar with him after he scored 16 points off the bench in Temple’s upset win against Houston on January 22, when Houston was No. 1 in the country. He now heads to the team he helped beat as the program heads to the Big 12.
Rienk Mast; Old school: Bradley | New school: Nebraska
A four who stands at 6-foot-9, Mast averaged 13.8 points and 8.1 rebounds for a Bradley team that won the Missouri Valley regular season title and was within one win of making the NCAA tournament. He also has the ability to hit threes. He has two years of eligibility and can certainly challenge for a starting role with the Huskers.
Steven Ashworth; Old school: Utah State | New school: Creighton
One of the better three-point shooters in the country, Ashworth made 43.1% of his attempts for the Aggies last season on his way to averaging just over 16 points per contest. He did this on a team that got an at-large tournament bid too. At the least, he will be a valuable role player. At best, he will be even better than Ryan Nembhard in running Creighton’s offense.
Noah Fernandes; Old school: Massachusetts | New school: Rutgers
Fernandes only played 11 games for the Minutemen this year due to injuries, but in that limited time he averaged 13.4 points per game. In the games he did play in, UMass went 7-4, while going 8-12 without him. A true facilitator at just 5-foot-11, he can carve out a real role for the Scarlet Knights this year.
Hakim Hart; Old school: Maryland | New school: Villanova
Hart is one of the most veteran players in the country, with 116 games with the Terps under his belt. He averaged 11.3 points per game for Kevin Willard’s squad this past season. His shooting percentages are nothing spectacular, but he’s a versatile player and a nice addition as Villanova looks to get something going in Kyle Neptune’s second season.
Jayden Epps; Old school: Illinois | New school: Georgetown
Epps showed some serious flashes of talent as a freshman with the Illini, averaging 9.5 points per game and showed the ability to play both guard positions despite standing at just 6-foot-2. He is sure to be a major part of Ed Cooley’s rebuild at Georgetown and will be a breakout candidate nationally in 2023-24.
Andrew Rohde; Old school: St. Thomas | New school: Virginia
Rodhe won the Summit League Freshman of the Year at St. Thomas after averaging 17.1 points, 3.7 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.7 steals while starting every game for the Tommies. He was also named to the all-league first team for those efforts. A 6-foot-6 guard, he will have a chance to play a big role for the Cavaliers. However, similar to a lot of guys who jump from mid-major to high major, you have to see how he makes that adjustment to the competition.
Kadin Shedrick; Old school: Virginia | New school: Texas
Shedrick was one of the best interior defenders in the country, but fell out of the rotation during conference play and saw his role severely diminish as the season went on. Still, in 17 minutes per game he averaged 4.1 rebounds and 1.5 blocks. He is getting a nice change of scenery at Texas, which is short on big men.
Micah Handlogten; Old school: Marshall | New school: Florida
Handlogten is a monster, standing 7-foot-1. One of the best young rebounders in the country, he averaged 9.8 of them this past season at Marshall on his way to Sun Belt Rookie of the Year honors. He doesn’t have the best offensive game, but is fantastic in other ways.
Yohan Traore; Old school: Auburn | New school: UC Santa Barbara
Traore was once committed to LSU, but changed his plans after Will Wade was fired towards the end of the 2021-22 season and ended up with Auburn. He appeared in 26 games for Auburn this year, but barely played down the stretch. He has a chance to rebuild his career in the Big West.
Keyon Menifield; Old school: Washington | New school: Arkansas
It’s like a broken record: Eric Musselman gets a good young player through the portal. Here, it’s Menifield. He was one of the best freshman guards in the Pac-12 last season, averaging 10 points and 3.1 assists per game for the Huskies. Arkansas usually has good guard play and Menifield is sure to be a part of that as the Razorbacks have to replace some guys in the backcourt.
Daniel Batcho; Old school: Texas Tech | New school: Louisiana Tech
The 6-foot-11 center battled some injuries in the second half of the season that limited his playing time, but he was very solid in non-conference play, including 21 points against Ohio State, 17 against Creighton and 15 points and 13 rebounds against Georgetown. He missed nine games due to injuries and was limited in some more. Look for him to have a big role at Louisiana Tech.
Will Baker; Old school: Nevada | New school: LSU
A former top 100 prospect who started his career at Texas in 2019-20, he never really got it going there and left after one year. He averaged in the double digits in both seasons he spent in Nevada and had 13.6 points per game this past season for the Wolf Pack. Now, after a few years of fixing some things up, he heads to a similar challenge to where he began his college career.
AJ Storr; Old school: St. John’s | New school: Wisconsin
Another former top 100 prospect that was an exciting get for St. John’s a year ago, he didn’t have a big role at first but saw his role increase as the year went on. He finished at 8.8 points per game and got a starting nod 17 times, averaging 11.8 points per game in those 17. He is also a solid three point shooter, hitting them at a 40.4% clip. He will likely compete for a starting role with the Badgers.
Nicolas Timberlake; Old school: Towson | New school: Kansas
A two-time all-league pick in the Colonial Athletic, Timberlake was one of the best distance shooters in the portal this spring. He was Towson’s leading scorer in 2022-23 at 17.7 points per game while also chipping in a tick less than four rebounds per contest. He shot 41.6% from behind the arc this past season, too.
Darrion Williams; Old school; Nevada | New school: Texas Tech
Williams was recruited a fair amount coming out of high school, but chose Nevada a year ago after some interest from plenty high level programs. The numbers aren’t super noteworthy at 7.6 points and 7.3 rebounds per game as a freshman, but it was enough to get the nod for Mountain West Freshman of the Year. Standing at 6-foot-6, he will have a chance to play a decently sizable role for the Red Raiders.
Jackson Paveletzke; Old school: Wofford | New school: Iowa State
Paveletzke was a real freshman standout for the Terriers, starting all 33 games en route to 15.1 points and 3.7 assists per game, making third team all-conference in the SoCon and was named the league’s Freshman of the Year. He also shot just under 40% from three. He will be a very nice piece in Iowa State’s backcourt.
Arterio Morris; Old school: Texas | New school: Kansas
Morris was a highly recruited player out of high school and a McDonald’s All-American one year ago as a dynamic and explosive offensive player at point guard. However, he was charged with a misdemeanor domestic violence offense before the season started and then sat behind several guards with the Longhorns this season. He only played 11 minutes per game this season. We will have to see what happens here.
MJ Rice; Old school: Kansas | New school: NC State
Another former McDonald’s All-American one year ago and a highly touted prospect, Rice never really got it going with the Jayhawks. He only played 7.5 minutes per game and did not appear in 13 games. The talent is still there and now he will get a chance to develop at NC State, where there is seemingly less pressure and less talent to have to play behind.
Cormac Ryan; Old school: Notre Dame | New school: North Carolina
North Carolina will be Ryan’s third school. He spent a season at Stanford all the way back in 2018-19 before spending playing three seasons with Mike Brey and the Fighting Irish, topping out at 12.3 points per game this past season. He is a high-level shooter, who hit 40% of his attempts in the 2021-22 season. A 6-foot-5 guard, he will be a talented wing to add to Hubert Davis’ rotation in Chapel Hill.
Simas Lukosius; Old school: Butler | New school: Cincinnati
Lukosius had a solid season for a Bulldogs team that never really got any momentum going all season, averaging 11.6 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.9 assists while shooting 37.8% from three. As mentioned though, Butler never got it going, finishing 14-18 overall and 6-14 in Big East play. He did show a flash in the Bulldogs’ final game of the season, going for 23 in the Big East tournament against St. John’s.
Ben Krikke; Old school: Valparaiso | New school: Iowa
Krikke has been gotten an all-league nod in the Missouri Valley three times and is coming off a 2022-23 where he averaged 19.4 points and 5.9 rebounds per game. Iowa usually is known for having good outside shooters and Krikke will be the opposite of that, providing a good presence and option down low.
Chris Ledlum; Old school: Harvard | New school: Tennessee
Ledlum has been one of the most productive players in mid-major basketball the past two seasons. In 2022-23, he averaged 18.8 points and 8.5 rebounds per game, following up a 2021-22 where he averaged 16.7 points and 9.3 rebounds per game. As a senior, he was named first team All-Ivy for his efforts. He will bring a grit and high volume scoring that the Vols missed this past season with the ability to play multiple positions.
Adam Miller; Old school: LSU | New school: Arizona State
A highly touted guard coming out of high school in 2020, he had a solid freshman season at Illinois, averaging 8.3 points per game and showing flashes of brilliance. Since then, he missed the entire 2021-22 season to injury and went to LSU for this past season, where he averaged 11.3 points per game but showed some serious shooting inconsistencies and some head-scratching plays. Now at a third school, he will look to turn things around again.
Jordan Minor; Old school: Merrimack | New school: Virginia
Minor was a consistent double-double threat every night for Merrimack, averaging 17.4 points and 9.4 rebounds per game for a team that won both the regular season title and conference tournament, but remained ineligible to compete in the NCAA tournament due to Division I transition rules (which let Fairleigh Dickinson get in). Anyway, Minor was also the NEC Player of the Year and is a three-time all-league selection. Standing 6-foot-8, he does almost all of his work on the inside.
Steele Venters; Old school: Eastern Washington | New school: Gonzaga
Venters has had a great past two seasons at Eastern Washington, averaging 15.3 points per game and shooting 37.1% from three in 2022-23. That was a step down from 2021-22, where he averaged 16.7 points per game and shot 43.4% from distance. He was also named the Big Sky Defensive Player of the Year. He will be a great depth piece for the Zags this coming season.
Javon Small; Old school: East Carolina | New school: Oklahoma State
Small went very under the radar this season, in particularly because he plays at a school that’s towards the bottom of the American Athletic. However, he averaged 15.8 points, 4.8 rebounds and 5.6 assists per game for the Pirates, but was limited to 18 games and did not play after January 11. There’s talent here, and he’ll have a chance to blossom with the Cowboys.
AJ Hoops 