By Aidan Joly
We have reached part three of my transfer portal notebook for the 2025 off-season, evaluating 20 more players and how they fit at their new schools.
Kansas State and NC State have made the biggest impact adds for this part, as well as Oklahoma. Let’s get into it.
PJ Haggerty: Old school: Memphis | New school: Kansas State
Haggerty was a late add to the Kansas State roster, but he is a major impact add for a program that needs some juice after a down season in 2024-25. Haggerty earned the AAC player of the year honors with Memphis after averaging 21.6 points and 5.8 rebounds for the Tigers. He also was a second team All-American. It will be interesting to see how his mid-range game fits into the Kansas State offense, since coach Jerome Tang usually shoots just threes and shots under the basket. We shall see.
Darrion Williams: Old school: Texas Tech | New school: NC State
Williams was one of the best playmaking guards in all of college basketball this past season and perhaps the best in the portal. He averaged 15.5 points per game and shot 34% from three, although that was a dip from the 2023-24 season. Still, he is a very solid three-point shooter. He averaged 23.7 points per game during Texas Tech’s last three games in the round of 32, Sweet 16 and Elite 8. He will be a major cog to the offense for first year coach Will Wade in Raleigh.
LeJuan Watts: Old school: Washington State | New school: Texas Tech
Watts saw himself thrust into big-time minutes with Washington State after Cedric Coward got hurt and finished the season averaging 13.7 points and 6.7 rebounds per game after following coach David Riley from Eastern Washington. He successfully made the transition from the Big Sky to the WCC and will be challenged to make another transition from the WCC to the Big 12.
KeShawn Murphy: Old school: Mississippi State | New school: Auburn
Murphy is a 6-foot-10 big man who has good footwork and is good off the ball from all areas of the floor. He used that to the tune of 11.7 points and 7.4 rebounds per game for a Bulldogs team that reached the NCAA tournament. He shot over 56% from the field for the season and even better from inside 10 feet while being known to step out for a three from time to time. He is also a solid defender.
Desmond Claude: Old school: USC | New school: Washington
Claude is an experienced wing type player who has spent a lot of time at point guard. At USC this past season he averaged 15.8 points per game. He did get a little better from behind the three-point line, but his shooting from beyond the arc still leaves much to be desired. If he could get a little more consistent from deep, he would quickly become one of the better guards in the country. Let’s see if he can do that at Washington.
Andrej Stojakovic: Old school: Cal | New school: Illinois
Stojakovic was a big breakout candidate for me a year ago after a solid freshman season and he did just that. He averaged 17.9 points per game for Cal and shot 37% from behind the three-point line. The consistent shot isn’t there quite yet since he doesn’t shoot them a ton but he is certainly getting there. He also proved himself as a good off the ball player. Now, he will head to Illinois, a program that has significantly more recent success than Cal.
Pharrel Payne: Old school: Texas A&M | New school: Maryland
Payne is following coach Buzz Williams from College Station to College Park. He saw inconsistent minutes toward the end of the season but was Texas A&M’s most productive big, averaging 10.4 points and 5.1 rebounds per game over 20 minutes per game for the Aggies. His best game is on the boards, which we should be able to see more if he can get some more consistent minutes with the Terps.
Derrion Reid: Old school: Alabama | New school: Oklahoma
Reid was a five-star recruit one year ago and got lost in the shuffle of an extremely deep Alabama team while he battled injuries. When he was on the court he played well for a freshman and finished the campaign with 6.0 points per game across 14 minutes per contest in 24 appearances. He was good defensively but struggled shooting the ball consistently. He will continue his development on a team that has less depth. Upside, he could be a pro.
Michael Rataj: Old school: Oregon State | New school: Baylor
Rataj is one of the more dynamic players you’ll see. He created tons of mismatches during his time in the WCC and Oregon State to the tune of 16.9 points and 7.2 rebounds per game, becoming one of the most improved players in the country. He has a 6-foot-9 frame and can step out and hit his threes, can also score from inside and makes his free throws at a good clip. If he has the space on the floor to do what he needs to do, he can end up being one of Baylor’s best players.
Oscar Cluff: Old school: South Dakota State | New school: Purdue
South Dakota State is a mid-major program that spits out successful high-major players and Cluff certainly has a chance to be next in that line. He started at a JUCO school, was a starter on a Washington State team that went to the NCAA tournament two season ago, then starred at South Dakota State and now he heads to Purdue. He averaged 17.6 points and 12.3 rebounds per game for the Jackrabbits this past season. He shouldn’t be expected to have those numbers again, but he can has a great shot at being a very productive big man.
Nijel Pack: Old school: Miami | New school: Oklahoma
The NCAA has granted a medical waiver for Pack to have one more year of eligibility. He was limited to just nine games for a dreadful Miami team due to an ankle injury, but was one of the most experienced players in the portal. He has 122 games of college basketball experience under his belt and started on the 2023 Miami team that made the Final Four. He can surely be the lead guard at Oklahoma.
Obi Agbim: Old school: Wyoming | New school: Baylor
Another player who began his college career in JUCO, spending three seasons at that level before heading up to Division I. He was great at Wyoming, averaging 17.6 points per game, albeit for a team that lost 20 games and went just 5-15 in Mountain West play. He made more than 43% of his attempts from behind the three-point line and is a good mid-range shooter. We will see how he does with this step up.
Zvonimir Ivisic: Old school: Arkansas | New school: Illinois
“Big Z” burst onto the college basketball scene midseason for Kentucky two years ago with an electric debut and it seemed like the sky was the limit. Now, he’s come a bit back down to earth. He followed John Calipari to Arkansas and averaged 8.5 points per game for the Razorbacks. He did have 27 points in a game against Alabama and 25 against LSU, but he’s still finding his way in becoming a consistent player. Illinois will try to get that in him.
Pop Isaacs: Old school: Creighton | New school: Texas A&M
Isaacs had a great start to the season for Creighton, but that ended when he suffered a season-ending hip injury eight games into the season. During that time though, he averaged 16.3 points per game, including two 25+ point performances. He began his career at Texas Tech and figures to be the featured guard for new Aggies coach Bucky McMillan.
Lamar Wilkerson: Old school: Sam Houston State | New school: Indiana
A first-team all-conference pick in Conference USA, Wilkerson was one of the best pure shooters available in this cycle. He averaged 20.5 points per game for Sam Houston State and shot over 44% from behind the three-point line, over 47% from the field overall. He has a chance to be a star for the Hoosiers, at least a lights-out situational shooter.
Nick Davidson: Old school: Nevada | New school: Clemson
Davidson is a big man who plays more like a guard. He stands at 6-foot-10 but is a good shooter, having made more than 37% of his 124 attempts from behind the three point line for a Nevada team that was not great, but solid. Overall, he averaged 15.8 points per game. He has skills as a passer too. He is a solid flyer for coach Brad Brownell to take for Davidson’s final season of college basketball.
Malik Reneau: Old school: Indiana | New school: Miami
Reneau is a former top recruit and prized freshman for Indiana and he carved out a nice three seasons at Indiana. He saw his minutes decrease a little bit this year after a very good sophomore season in 2023-24, but he is still a good player. His physicality is the predominant part of his game. He should be a key piece of the rotation for first year Miami coach Jai Lucas.
Alvaro Folgueiras: Old school: Robert Morris | New school: Iowa
Folgueiras was the Horizon League player of the year while leading Robert Morris to the NCAA tournament and putting a scare into Alabama. He is a do-it-all type of player, averaging 14.1 points and 9.1 rebounds per game, being a good shooter, a good passer, and plays well off the ball. He has the ability to play multiple positions, which will certainly help him with Iowa. He has a chance to be a high-level player and thrive in Ben McCollum’s system.
Naithan George: Old school: Georgia Tech | New school: Syracuse
George is a terrific passer, leading the ACC with 6.5 assists per game, which is the best part of his game as a facilitator. He can shoot the ball well too, having averaged 12.3 points per game on just under 40% from the field but made just under 34% of 177 attempts. He is a bit of a high-volume shooter and needs to limit the turnovers, but he will have a chance to make some improvements for Adrian Autry.
Nate Johnson: Old school: Akron | New school: Kansas State
Johnson had the rare double-whammy of winning both the league player of the year and the defensive player of the year in the MAC. On offense he averaged 14 points per game for an Akron team that went to the NCAA tournament and averaged nearly two steals per game. It will be interesting to see how he adjusts to the high-major competition. It’s worth noting that he struggled in the NCAA tournament game against Arizona, going 1-9 from the field.
AJ Hoops 