my top 5 remaining transfers
With over 2,000 players in the NCAA transfer portal so far in this wild offseason, plenty of big names have found new homes for themselves. Former Arizona big Oumar Ballo is headed to play for Mike Woodson at Indiana. Wisconsin transfer AJ Storr is headed to Kansas. There are still some big names available though, so let’s take a look at my top five remaining transfers as of now and where I think they’ll end up.
1. Johnell Davis
Johnell Davis just finished up his fourth season playing for Dusty May at Florida Atlantic, and is coming off his best yet as one of the premier guards in college hoops. Davis finished 2024 averaging 18.2 points per game on 40-40-86 shooting splits. Needless to say, his services are in high demand. He decided to leave Boca Raton after May took the job at Michigan. He is currently the #2 player and #1 shooting guard in the portal, so it makes sense to put him at the one spot as he is still uncommitted. Per reports, Michigan is not in the mix for Davis. After all the buzz relating Arkansas and Davis, this is ultimately where I see him ending up. John Calipari is stil trying to fill out an entire roster after leaving Lexington for Fayetteville in the offseason, and Davis will be the primary scorer on this team. With all the great guards Cal has developed, it seems to be most likely he will land Davis sooner rather than later.
2. Great Osobor
The Utah State big man just finished a stellar junior season after transferring in from Montana State. The 6’ 8” 250lb monster averaged just under 18 points a game and 9 rebounds on 57% shooting from the field. Osobor absolutely dominated the Mountain West all year long and won the conference’s player of the year award. As the 5th ranked player in the portal, he currently has visits scheduled to Texas Tech, Washington, Kentucky, and Louisville. I think it’s going to come down to Kentucky or Texas Tech. Tech is losing both its bigs in Warren Washington and Devan Cambridge, and Osobor could be a centerpiece in the hard-nosed defense Grant McCasland expects in Lubbock. But, with Mark Pope in Lexington now, he showed a knack for using his bigs late in the year last season. His teams take a lot of threes, and I’m not sure Pope’s system fits that of Great’s all that well. I think Texas Tech is a perfect fit here.
3. Aidan Mahaney
After a phenomenal freshman campaign for Mahaney at Saint Mary’s where he averaged 14 points on 40% shooting from 3 point range and made All-WCC First Team, he was expected to take a major leap in 2024 and become a serious NBA Draft prospect. But, he regressed and is now looking for a new home to put his draft stock back on track. He’s a 6’ 3” sharpshooter with a quick release who can pass as well, a luxury in today’s college game. So far, he’s visited Creighton and Virginia and is scheduled to take visits to Kentucky and UConn this weekend. I think Mahaney is a perfect fit for Greg McDermott’s team over at Creighton. With Baylor Scheierman gone, he could fill a major hole and replace Scheierman’s lights-out shooting ability. I think the high-powered offense that Creighton is that takes a lot of outside shots will be the perfect spot for Mahaney to be under the brightest lights for a season.
4. Cliff Omoruyi
The former Rutgers big is currently the 8th ranked player in the portal per 247sports as he’s been one of the best shot-blocking bigs in the entire country over his four years in college basketball. The 6’ 10” center averaged 3 blocks game during his senior season to go along with 10 points and 8 rebounds. His defensive ability has been highly sought after so far. Omoruyi recently released his final 12 options: North Carolina, UCLA, Kansas State, Georgia Tech, Georgetown, Baylor, Alabama, Oregon, Washington, Georgia, Mississippi State, and St. John’s. Early on, there was plenty of buzz that Omoruyi would end up suiting up for Rick Pitino, but he has yet to schedule a visit there yet, so it’s fading. I like Cliff to end up at Georgetown and end up playing for Ed Cooley in the Big East. He had a multi-day visit there earlier this week, and he currently has other visits scheduled for Alabama and North Carolina. Cooley has done a phenomenal job in the portal so far, landing four-star transfers Micah Peavy (TCU), Malik Mack (Harvard), and Curtis Williams Jr. (Louisville).
5. DJ Wagner
Wagner had a bit of an up-and-down season at Kentucky during his freshman campaign. In a crowded backcourt with likely top-10 picks in this upcoming NBA Draft Rob Dillingham and Reed Sheppard, Wagner struggled to make a name for himself despite the flashes he showed. He is a great downhill driver with a smooth handle with the ball. He averaged 10 points a game and 3 assists on 40% shooting in 2024, but I think he has all the makeup to be an elite guard in college and in the NBA eventually. His ranking is fairly low, as 247 has him as the 26th ranked player in the portal, but his age and skills already make me hopeful he’ll make a name for himself in 2025. There hasn’t been much news on him so far, but a few places I could see Wagner making a big impact are Michigan, Arkansas, and Ole Miss. Dusty May could use another big-time scorer, Calipari was Wagner’s coach last year, and Chris Beard turned two of his guards last season into very solid scorers in Matthew Murrell and Jaylen Murray. Ultimately, I think he’ll end up at Arkansas and play for Cal who already knows his game as he tries to build a new roster in Fayetteville.
