Another week goes by where the transfer portal article is massively updated here at The Providence Crier. I can’t imagine being a college coach and having to re-recruit your entire roster every year. I’m certain this, along with NIL, is why we have seen the legends of the game like Coach K, Jay Wright, and Roy Williams retire abruptly. But I digress…
Version 3.0 highlights the efforts made by Kim English in his first two weeks on the job. English targeted two George Mason transfers with his first two moves in the transfer portal, landing freshman wing Justyn Fernandez and All-Conference forward Josh Oduro. Since the last update to the Transfer Portal Primer, English has also secured a visit on April 14th with Wyoming big man Graham Ike, which would be an absolutely massive win for the Friars for this upcoming year and future years.
Jayden Pierre also is back in the fold as the point guard of the future for the Friars, which fills a massive hole. Unfortunately, the back-up guard spot is still up in the air with Alyn Breed’s status unknown. Developmental big man Rafael Castro is also returning, and he should be a factor in the frontcourt next year at a minimum. Last but not least is the commitment of wing player Richard Barron, who was previously committed to George Mason. I’d anticipate a redshirt year for him, but he may pleasantly surprise.
In terms of needs right now, I’d rank them as follows:
1a. More frontcourt help (relying just on Oduro and Castro is not a recipe for success)
1b. Veteran PG willing to come off bench. He would serve as a mentor to Pierre and run the second unit for the Friars.
2. Shooter (I rank this below the two above because I think we see continued development from Pierre, Hopkins, Carter, and Floyd Jr.). I see this as a luxury add rather than mandatory need
Below we break down what the Friars need in the transfer portal for the 2023-2024 basketball season and beyond. After that, we’ll keep a running list of players in the transfer portal that Providence has expressed interest in. We’ll also list players that we think would be good fits for the Friars. This will be regularly updated.
Enjoy!
Continue reading “Tracking the Transfers – PC Targets in the 2023 Portal: Providence Crier Transfer Portal Primer, Version 3.0”