2014-15 College Basketball Transfers, Rumors, Grads, and Packed Bag Updates

[Dwight_K_Shrute]

Melvin Watkins has long ago ties to Charlotte.  He played there and was an assistant there for 18 years, then a HC for 2 years before being hired at Texas A&M.  Now his last year as an HC there was 1998.

[-Blu]

There has been rumblings out of Memphis that Nick King 6'7 combo forward may be transferring to Arkansas.  He'd have to sit out a year and would have two years to play.  I'm not sure how this would work out.

Now that there season is over.  Has there been any news on King as of late?  Only thing I seen on him was about a week ago, guys on a Memphis message board discussing he could possibly transfer. 

[Hawg Red]

Now that there season is over.  Has there been any news on King as of late?  Only thing I seen on him was about a week ago, guys on a Memphis message board discussing he could possibly transfer.

A poster here posted that he was hearing Ole Miss for King.

[TheRazorbackGuy]

A poster here posted that he was hiring Ole Miss for King.

So Mr HawgRed, Why not get a graduate transfer this time? You know one that can play right away

[Hawg Red]

So Mr HawgRed, Why not get a graduate transfer this time? You know one that can play right away

Isn't that what I've been saying??

[Paul]

Is there any relationship between our staff and him? There just seem to be a lot of other options for a 6'11" 270lb big man than us and our system.

better call Pitt!

[Danny J]

Isn't that what I've been saying??

That would be nice IF Portis ends up leaving.

[TheRazorbackGuy]

Isn't that what I've been saying??

Yeah I got it 6'11 270 red shirt senior

[Hawg Red]

We could really use Thorne even if Bobby stays. Replacing Harris will be tough. Kapita and Thompson aren't ready. Wouldn't mind seeing one redshirt senior go and this one come in.

[TheRazorbackGuy]

We could really use Thorne even if Bobby stays. Replacing Harris will be tough. Kapita and Thompson aren't ready. Wouldn't mind seeing one redshirt senior go and this one come in.

Agreed Mr HawgRed! +1

[lefty08]

We could really use Thorne even if Bobby stays. Replacing Harris will be tough. Kapita and Thompson aren't ready. Wouldn't mind seeing one redshirt senior go and this one come in.

Won't happen

[870hogfan]

We could really use Thorne even if Bobby stays. Replacing Harris will be tough. Kapita and Thompson aren't ready. Wouldn't mind seeing one redshirt senior go and this one come in.

Do they have an open scholarship for him?

[Hawg Red]

A scholarship would have to come open for him. He isn't likely in a hurry to make a decision before the the tournament is over.

Just someone to keep an eye on. There will be more.

[-Blu]

We could really use Thorne even if Bobby stays. Replacing Harris will be tough. Kapita and Thompson aren't ready. Wouldn't mind seeing one redshirt senior go and this one come in.

I agree.  I'm not sold on our 4 spot position even if Portis returns.  Williams, I think he's a good role/energy guy off the bench, Kapita will probably need a year, and Thompson from what I seen this year looks like he's still a couple year's away from contriubuting.  A guy like Throne you can start at the 5, and Portis has shown this year he's quicker and if needed can play the 4 and be at the head of the press.

And I know this is a tad bit off topic, but I'm going to go ahead and make my official prediction that Portis stays. I've just seen too much evidence the past couple of weeks to make me think he's planning on leaving.  Now, this is just my opinion, you guys can take it for what it's worth.


1. Lack of recruiting news.  Now, it's not a secret our staff isn't the most vocal recruiting staff, but I can't ever remember it being this quiet.  Before Kapita committed, we had a few JUCO names leaking, then soon as that commit, all of that ended, there hasn't even been news of a visit to anyone. If were losing a player of Portis caliber, I find it very hard to believe staff wouldn't at least get spotted at some of these JUCO tournaments.

2.  The press conference after Portis won SEC player of the year... Said his goal was to be 2 time SEC player of the year like Corliss.  Then when asked about his impact he's had on Arkansas, said he think he's done well, but still has a long way to go as a hog.

3. Right after Portis did his press conference, They asked CMA what does he think about Portis wanting to be 2 time SEC player of the year like Corliss, and with a big smile on his face, said dreams can come true, and if you want them to happen you have to go ahead and say it, and make it happen.

4. Senior night.  I thought about it, and as much as Portis has done for this program, I find it very hard that CMA wouldn't do something special for him on his final home game as a Hog.  For example Rick Pitino, let Montrez Harrell walk with the seniors because he knows even though he's a junior he's likely gone.

5. Finally, in the most recent interview, one of the reporters was joking with him, and said since it feels so good to get back in the tournament are you going to announce your coming back next year, and he just laughs and says no doubt.  And while that may not be much, it made think.  That's the first time anybody actually asked him on camera is he coming back, and he said he was, but don't know if he was joking or not.  And I thought, if he wasn't coming back why wouldn't he just say so?  There's kids all over the country at other programs that let it be known they are leaving after this year, and coaches plan for it.  As much as Portis loves Arkansas, I couldn't see him leaving without letting the staff know well in advance to prepare for it.  And the recruiting guys that's close to the program have been saying all year that he's told them he's returning.

Anyways that was my long winded Portis is staying theory.  Going to see how long before Eriehog joins and tells us all the reasons why he isn't coming back.

[TomBigBeeHog]

I tend to agree -Blu, feels like Portis is coming back. But, regarding the potential transfer, I can't see how a 270 pounder can play the fastest 40 even though Big O and Fat Flight did pretty well under Nolan.

[Hawg Red]

I'm also to the point now where I operate under the assumption that Portis is coming back. It just FEELS like he is.

And with Thorne, we could start him at the 5 or bring him off the bench and play Portis and Kingsley together. There's options there, but I think it's best that Williams stay in his current role off the bench. We just need him to play smarter and work on his FT shooting. But he pretty much is what he is, though he does add value to what we're doing.

I haven't heard or read anything to indicate that someone may transfer, but we usually lose at least one per year (like many schools do). Hopefully Babb doesn't. The two most logical would be Miles and Durham. Durham mainly because there is going to be such intense competition for minutes among the guards. I guess you could put Babb in this category as well. But Durham is a good student, so it wouldn't be a stretch to think he could be graduating in May. I am assuming Miles is graduating being in his 4th year of college.

[-Blu]

Yea, I've been thinking Miles or Durham as well, probably leaning towards Miles.  Miles should be on schedule to graduate (not sure), but if Portis does come back, If he can transfer and play at another school immediately, unless he's content in his role, I wouldn't see why a 5th year senior would want to stay.  He'd be behind Portis, Kingsley, Kapita, and Williams in the rotation.

Durham, while it's not looking good right now, I think he's just a few confidence points from being in the rotation.  I think if you look at next year's guards he still should be considered the best ball handler, and probably the purest PG we have.  If he can get his confidence up he can make the rotation and play over guys like Watkins and Hannahs.

[Hawg Red]

Tom Big Bee Hog, not all 270 pounders are created equal. Also, not all players are what their listed heights and weights are. I wouldn't have thought Trey Thompson was a good fit for Anderson but here we are. Thorne looks much more athletic than Thompson. And if he can't hang for too many minutes, we can ease Thompson and/or Kapita in there for some minutes.

But, like I said, there will be more names I mention. Thorne is just the first of the immediately eligible I've come across. And it's still early in the grad transfer game.

[TomBigBeeHog]

I'm also to the point now where I operate under the assumption that Portis is coming back. It just FEELS like he is.

And with Thorne, we could start him at the 5 or bring him off the bench and play Portis and Kingsley together. There's options there, but I think it's best that Williams stay in his current role off the bench. We just need him to play smarter and work on his FT shooting. But he pretty much is what he is, though he does add value to what we're doing.

I haven't heard or read anything to indicate that someone may transfer, but we usually lose at least one per year (like many schools do). Hopefully Babb doesn't. The two most logical would be Miles and Durham. Durham mainly because there is going to be such intense competition for minutes among the guards. I guess you could put Babb in this category as well. But Durham is a good student, so it wouldn't be a stretch to think he could be graduating in May. I am assuming Miles is graduating being in his 4th year of college.

If I had to speculate on which is more likely to transfer between Durham and Babb, I would lean strongly toward Durham as the transfer because in the last few games Babb has gotten more looks after spending most of the year on the bench. Conversely, Durham has seen his minutes decrease or remain stagnant as the season closes. I would be very disappointed to see Babb leave our program. I would bet that he is going to  end up being a solid performer for us or someone else.

[Hog_Swanson]

Who is fat flight?

[TomBigBeeHog]

Tom Big Bee Hog, not all 270 pounders are created equal. Also, not all players are what their listed heights and weights are. I wouldn't have thought Trey Thompson was a good fit for Anderson but here we are. Thorne looks much more athletic than Thompson. And if he can't hang for too many minutes, we can ease Thompson and/or Kapita in there for some minutes.

But, like I said, there will be more names I mention. Thorne is just the first of the immediately eligible I've come across. And it's still early in the grad transfer game.

I have not seen the guy play so I can't say how he would fit. Just going off of first impressions with the listed weight. I am aware of the exceptions to the rule, which is why I did mention 2 of our best big men in program history who played uptempo ball with a bit of a spare tire in the middle. If this guy can help us, I am all for it.

[intelligence]

Eeenteresting

[jbcarol]

Is Marcus Lee happy at UK?

"I don't think you could ever say that a kid that's not playing as much as he feels that he should is completely happy," Lee's older brother Bryan told The Courier-Journal. "And I don't think Marcus could say that he's a competitor if he's saying he's happy not playing. As selfless as he is, the kid wants to play."

"He's excited to be there. I don't know where people keep getting the idea he's not," Bryan Lee said. "Marcus is very excited for the team success, and that's his focus. He's on a great team – they're undefeated – and he just needs to keep competing. But if people want to say, 'Yes, he's happy not playing,' I think that's stupid, too. Because why would you be happy playing 10 minutes, you know?

"He still has a fighter inside him that is like, 'I do want to play with these guys. I want to play 25 minutes.' So I don't think he's settling and he's not happy with the minutes he's getting, but he's very happy with the opportunity and happy with life."

"That's what he's looking forward to," his brother said. "I think that he understood exactly what he was getting into going in. Of course he wanted to play more, but I'm sure Dakari (Johnson) wants to play more, too. They know what they signed up for. Marcus was never a one-and-done. That was never in the conversation. People that know basketball know that he wasn't a finished product. He came in at 6-9, 180 pounds.

"We've always figured he would be in college three years or graduate, so this is kind of still in the plan. He gets to be a part of this – he's enjoying the position he's in – but he just wants to make a little bit more of an impact, and I think he's on pace to do that next year."

Well that doesn't sound like a guy planning to leave Kentucky after the season. But mama knows best. What does Sherri Lee have to say?

"(The Cats) have all been great team players and they seem to understand that everything is for the best of the whole team," she told The Courier-Journal. "Marcus has always understood that, always been a role player for his team, even in high school. He could be a leader when they needed him to be, but he also understood his role."

[jjdlc]

Tom Big Bee Hog, not all 270 pounders are created equal. Also, not all players are what their listed heights and weights are. I wouldn't have thought Trey Thompson was a good fit for Anderson but here we are. Thorne looks much more athletic than Thompson. And if he can't hang for too many minutes, we can ease Thompson and/or Kapita in there for some minutes.

But, like I said, there will be more names I mention. Thorne is just the first of the immediately eligible I've come across. And it's still early in the grad transfer game.

Thompson will hopefully fill a role that we haven't had under Anderson, but used to see under Nolan all the time.  Nolan's teams always had one or two big guys that didn't necessarily fit the up and down style.  They were there to bang down low, and give us a different style of play when we had to slow down and grind. 

[Hawg Red]

Thompson will hopefully fill a role that we haven't had under Anderson, but used to see under Nolan all the time.  Nolan's teams always had one or two big guys that didn't necessarily fit the up and down style.  They were there to bang down low, and give us a different style of play when we had to slow down and grind.

I agree. And I like that. But I still don't like Thompson as a player. But I do like that look.

[ricepig]

I agree. And I like that. But I still don't like Thompson as a player. But I do like that look.

Yeah, it's a nice change. I've yet to see that part of his game from Thompson, I don't know if he has it or not.

[Youngsta71701]

Is there any relationship between our staff and him? There just seem to be a lot of other options for a 6'11" 270lb big man than us and our system.

If I recall correctly Oliver Miller and Dwight Stewart were pretty big men.

[The_Iceman]

I agree. And I like that. But I still don't like Thompson as a player. But I do like that look.

I preferred Tory Miller over Trey Thompson. We pretty much could have picked which one we wanted, and we went with Trey. Tory hasn't done much either at Colorado, but he at least has shown some flashes for them. I wouldn't be surprised if he ends up having a better career.

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/player/gamelog/_/id/3134895/tory-miller

http://www.denverpost.com/colleges/ci_27510351/colorado-6-9-freshman-tory-miller-waiting-his

[Hawg Red]

I preferred Tory Miller over Trey Thompson. We pretty much could have picked which one we wanted, and we went with Trey. Tory hasn't done much either at Colorado, but he at least has shown some flashes for them. I wouldn't be surprised if he ends up having a better career.

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/player/gamelog/_/id/3134895/tory-miller

http://www.denverpost.com/colleges/ci_27510351/colorado-6-9-freshman-tory-miller-waiting-his

Miller had what I would consider a typical freshman year for a 3-star player. Thompson had a season that makes you wonder why he wasn't redshirted. He was the 14th man. I would be surprised if Miller didn't have a better career, honestly.

[jjdlc]

Yeah, it's a nice change. I've yet to see that part of his game from Thompson, I don't know if he has it or not.

Agreed, I never saw him play in HS, so I'm reserving judgement until we see him more here.  Also agree with Iceman, I wish he would have red shirted this year, but I think maybe Anderson thought there would be more opportunity to play him this year and it just didn't work out till the red shirt opportunity had already passed.

[jbcarol]

Brandon Marcello @bmarcello  ·  Mar 18
Khari Harding left Auburn for Tulsa to be close to ailing father. NCAA eliminates hardship waivers 2 months later. http://www.al.com/auburnfootball/index.ssf/2015/03/ncaas_elimination_of_hardship.html ...

[jbcarol]

Jeff Goodman @GoodmanESPN  ·  2h 2 hours ago

Clemson's Patrick Rooks is transferring.

[jbcarol]

 Jeff Borzello @jeffborzello  ·  18h 18 hours ago

Syracuse transfer B.J. Johnson is headed to La Salle, source told ESPN.

[jbcarol]

http://collegebasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2015/03/23/south-florida-losing-two-to-transfer-anthony-collins-dre-clayton

South Florida is losing two players to transfer on Monday, including an interesting graduate transfer candidate. Redshirt junior point guard Anthony Collins and freshman forward Dre Clayton are leaving the Bulls. The duo leaving was first reported by ESPN.com's Jeff Goodman.

The 6-foot-1 Collins was a starting point guard for the Bulls and played a hand in their 2012 NCAA Tournament appearance. Collins played only eight games due to swelling in his left knee in 2013-14 and was granted a medical hardship waiver from the NCAA. This past season, Collins averaged 7.1 points and a team-leading 5.2 assists per game while shooting 44 percent from the field and 27 percent from 3-point range.

Since he has already graduated from South Florida, Collins can become immediately eligible at the next school he chooses and likely becomes an attractive option for a team searching for an experienced floor general.

[jbcarol]

 Jeff Goodman @GoodmanESPN  ·  1-2 hours ago

Providence forward Tyler Harris is transferring, school announces.

Clayton Custer transferring from Iowa State, sources told ESPN. No relation to the Colonel.

UMass guard Derrick Gordon told ESPN he is transferring. Gordon eligible immediately next season.

Jevon Thomas and Tre Harris both transferring from Kansas State.

George Washington also losing freshman wing Darian Bryant via transfer - along with Nick Griffin.

Lakeem Alston is leaving St. Bonaventure. @WojYahooNBA will be devastated.

Dayton's Detwon Rogers is transferring, source told ESPN.

[jbcarol]

Jeff Goodman @GoodmanESPN  ·  5h 5 hours ago

Pookie Powell and Nick King are transferring from Memphis, multiple sources told ESPN.

[jbcarol]

 Jeff Goodman @GoodmanESPN  ·  19h 19 hours ago

Southern Miss' Shadell Millinghaus and Davon Hayes are both transferring.

[jbcarol]

on Rothstein @JonRothstein  ·  11h 11 hours ago
Indiana's Stanford Robinson will transfer, sources told @CBSSports. Two years of eligibility remaining. Story: http://cbsprt.co/1LY0ilA 

[jbcarol]

Jeff Goodman @GoodmanESPN  ·  5h 5 hours ago
Virginia Tech's Adam smith is transferring. Should be an in-demand guy. Eligible immediately.

[jbcarol]

 Jeff Goodman @GoodmanESPN  ·  3h 3 hours ago

Worst-kept secret at Xavier: Brandon Randolph is transferring.

[jbcarol]

 Jeff Borzello @jeffborzello  ·  3h 3 hours ago

Drexel's Damion Lee tells ESPN he plans to graduate in June and play elsewhere immediately next season. Averaged 21.4 points.

[jbcarol]

 Gabe DeArmond @GabeDeArmond  ·  9h 9 hours ago

Source familiar w/situation confirms report Johnathan Williams III will transfer from #Mizzou. 1st reports by @RobDauster & @GaryParrishCBS

[jbcarol]

 Jeff Goodman @GoodmanESPN  ·  1h 1 hour ago

Transfer list already in excess of 200 names (in addition to nearly 100 mid-year transfers). Here's the link: http://es.pn/1GIw2qi

Also, here are the Top 10 Available Transfers (this list will change): http://es.pn/1GIw2qi

[jbcarol]

 Steve Walentik @Steve_Walentik  ·  2h 2 hours ago

Just spoke with Johnathan Williams III's father, Johnny Williams, and he said he's definitely transferring and has asked #Mizzou for release

[jbcarol]

Steve Walentik @Steve_Walentik  ·  2h 2 hours ago

Just spoke with Johnathan Williams III's father, Johnny Williams, and he said he's definitely transferring and has asked #Mizzou for release

Steve Walentik @Steve_Walentik  ·  21h 21 hours ago

Williams' father said he didn't think his son had good relationships or chemistry w/ his #Mizzou teammates.

Updated: Williams declares intention to transfer from Missouri - Columbia Daily Tribune http://www.columbiatribune.com/sports/mu_basketball/reports-williams-considering-transferring-from-missouri/article_0658757d-4189-5b70-bbd4-abacabd5b6df.html ...

[jbcarol]

 Adam Zagoria @AdamZagoria  ·  1m 1 minute ago

Providence transfer Tyler Harris is considering these 10 per his dad: Arizona UConn Ga Tech Ok State Auburn Nebraska Tenn BC UMass La Salle

[jbcarol]

 Brent Zwerneman @BrentZwerneman  ·  12m 12 minutes ago

Antwan Space, who transferred to Texas A&M from Florida State, intends to transfer from A&M (Aggies Blog): http://blog.chron.com/sportsupdate/2015/04/transfer-antwan-space-transferring-from-texas-am-for-senior-season/ ...

A&M coach Billy Kennedy confirms Antwan Space intends to transfer for SR season (on track to graduate in May). 1st reported by @espn.

[Swinesong1]

Remember when he was a must have recruit?  Went to FL St.  Didn't like it there and transferred to A&M.  Now, he's on the move again.

[outlawhogeywells]

with the class they have coming in not hard to understand

[Wild Bill Hog]

Guess the dude needs a little more space.