The College Basketball Transfer Portal and Its Process

Keep an eye on the BetUS college basketball odds as the stakes increase.

Let’s look at the college basketball portal rankings.

Look At Player Movement in College Basketball

Transfer Portal Taking Over

Many teams in contention for the College Football Playoff title had the best crop of incoming transfers in college football.

That isn’t the case in college basketball, even if some of the best college basketball players land in the portal. Arkansas and Indiana were ranked first and second in the 247sports.com list of the transfer classes heading into the 2024-25 college basketball season.

Arkansas may find its way into the March Madness field, but Indiana will likely need to make an improbable run to get the Big Ten tournament title to receive a bid. Some of Indiana’s teams from a different era could be in the conversation among the greatest college basketball teams of all time. This year’s team is not in that category.

St. John’s, Kentucky, and Alabama are among the teams in the top ten in the transfer rankings. After grabbing players in the transfer portal, they are viewed as possible title contenders.

How Times Have Changed

Transfers did occur in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, and there were occasions when the top teams added players who began their collegiate careers elsewhere.

The issue was that the player would have to sit out a season per NCAA rules, and in some cases, transferring within the same conference would result in a two-year wait to suit up for their new team. The percentage of college basketball players that go pro is low enough when they stay at one school, but in a different era, those who transferred faced longer odds of making it to the NBA.

Any player with professional basketball aspirations would be reluctant to sit out after transferring.

In terms of winning championships, UCLA’s John Wooden is considered the winningest coach in college basketball. He did before there was such a thing as the college basketball portal.

There is no waiting period in the modern era, so a player can transfer and play for a different team the following season. This has created a Wild West feel when it comes to transfers.

Well-respected coaches like Tony Bennett of Virginia and Jim Larranaga stepped away from the game, citing the changing times.

The Name and Image Likeness part of the process and can impact the college basketball portal rankings. The fact that transfers often go to the highest bidder can’t be ignored. It can be said that teams can buy players, and while that has happened in the past, it would result in NCAA violations if the NCAA did its job properly.

Transfers Rise To The Top

While Duke freshman Cooper Flagg has taken the college basketball world by storm as the Blue Devils are vying for a No. 1 seed in the March Madness bracket, he was not favored in the National Player of the Year odds when the season began.

Kansas 7-footer Hunter Dickinson, who began his career at Michigan, was tied with veteran North Carolina guard RJ Davis at +800 for the shortest odds of winning the Wooden Award.

Flagg wasn’t far behind at +1200.

More transfers come after that.

Alabama guard Mark Sears, who spent two seasons at Ohio University before landing in the college basketball transfer portal, was at +700. AJ Storr of Kansas is playing for his third team in as many seasons as he has been priced at +1800, as was Johni Broome, the former Morehead State star now playing at Auburn.

Looking Back At The Top Transfers

There have been mixed results regarding top college basketball transfers turning things around for their new teams.

Former Seton Hall star Kadary Richmond has played a key role in St. John’s soaring to the top of the Big East standings. However, Oumar Ballo has not had the same impact when helping Indiana become relevant again in the Big Ten.

AJ Storr of Kansas has not had a significant impact, while Norchad Omier, who left Miami for Baylor, is making his presence felt.

Javon Small stayed in the Big 12 when he went from Oklahoma State to West Virginia, and he is the conference’s top scorer. Many other stories of players in the college basketball portal thriving at a new location exist.