Big 12 men’s basketball teams have seen plenty of talent cycle in and out of the conference ever since the transfer portal window opened the day after the national championship game.
The window closes in a week. By then, players that want to transfer must be in the portal or else they must spend their next season with their current team.
With a week left to go, some clear winners and losers after one week of the portal cycle have already emerged. As we enter the second week of the portal, here are the programs that have done well and the ones that still need plenty of work.
Winner: Iowa State
There may be no team in the Big 12 that does a better job of having a plan and executing it when it comes to the transfer portal then head coach T.J. Otzelberger and the Cyclones. The program is losing some generational talent, including Tamin Lipsey, Joshua Jefferson and now Milan Momcilovic, who has declared for the NBA Draft but has also put his name in the transfer portal. All Otzelberger has done in the first week is land five players that can help right away.
Bradley’s Jaquan Johnson gives the Cyclones a guard that averaged 17 points and four assists last season. Robert Morris guard Ryan Prather Jr. averaged 15.7 points for the Colonials. Northern Iowa forward Leon Bond III averaged 12 points last season. Northwestern forward Tre Singleton could take a big leap after averaging 7.6 points last season. Kansas State’s Taj Manning knows what it takes to play in the Big 12.
Otz and his staff did that in a week. When one comes prepared for the test, one usually aces it.
Winner: Houston
Cougars coach Kelvin Sampson has admitted that he doesn’t like to work in the transfer portal. But it doesn’t mean he and his staff won’t do it.
Houston has landed two transfers, a forward and a guard that should fit team needs next season. LSU guard Dedan Thomas Jr. He’s set up to be next season’s point guard after he averaged 15.3 points and 6.5 assists for the Tigers last season. Kent State forward Delrecco Gillespie was a high scoring forward for the Golden Flashes averaged 17.7 points and 11.3 rebounds per game.
Houston needs a scorer and facilitator to replace Kingston Flemings, who is about to head to the NBA, and Gillespie fits in for Chris Cenac, who has already declared. Houston made two targeted moves that should fit their program perfectly.
Loser: TCU
The Horned Frogs felt like a team that was going to keep things together after a surge to finish Big 12 play. But, eight TCU players are in the transfer portal, and the first official departure was a gut punch. Quite literally.
Forward David Punch committed to Texas. That one hurts. It’s not just that Punch transferred out but he transferred to the “evil empire” down in Austin. Also in the portal is TCU’s best 3-point shooter, Liutauras Lelevicius, along with other meaningful pieces of last year’s team.
Now, TCU still has quality players returning in Xavier Edmonds, Brock Harding, Micah Robinson and Tanner Toolson. It’s a good start. But TCU hasn’t landed a transfer coming in yet. But can the Horned Frogs land a player with Punch’s versatility? That remains to be seen.
Loser: Kansas
So far, the Jayhawks seem well behind the curve, not just in the Big 12 but nationally. Kansas has already lost forward Flory Bidunga to Louisville and freshman forward Samis Calderon to Butler. The Jayhawks haven’t taken in a transfer yet and freshman Darryn Peterson hasn’t yet announced his intention to go to the NBA.
Now that coach Bill Self is coming back for at least one more year, Kansas has work to do. Now, the Jayhawks have another incredible freshman class coming in, which accounts for five scholarships next season. The only player that looks like a starter that appears to be returning next season is Kohl Rosario.
This is now where anyone expects Kansas to be at this stage. Many of the top players are off the board.
