We will know who’s returning by Thursday
There are three major milestones after the portal window opens every transfer season. This year’s dates are:
Saturday April 27 – (11:59 PM ET) – NBA Early Entry Deadline
Mo Diarra was the only player we were truly worried might submit his name, and sadly, he did. From the ‘glass half full’ perspective, we will have no one to worry about in the draft getting NBA feedback and considering going pro like we have had in recent seasons.
Wednesday May 1 – Last day for college basketball players (undergrads and grads) to submit names to transfer portal and still be eligible to play next season.
We are down to six returning players, Breon Pass, Michael O’Connell, Jayden Taylor, Dennis Parker, Jr, MJ Rice, and Ben Middlebrooks. Any could transfer, but many have wondered if, similar to Ernest Ross, Breon Pass would want to spend his senior season in a place where he might get more playing time. That question, and five others, will be answered by Thursday.
Wednesday May 29 – (11:59 PM ET) – NCAA Early Entry Withdrawal Deadline
In his announcement Mo stated, “And now I’m going to turn my focus 100 percent to pursuing my professional career”. He’s not going to return. The coaches are actively looking for his replacement.
Roster Turnover / Next Transfer Season
- Last season (’23-’24) we had 8 new players, 7 incoming transfers and 1 freshman, to integrate with two returning starters, Burns and Morsell. Those numbers ranked on the high end of D1 turnover. That team under achieved early but finished unbelievably.
- This coming season (’24-’25) at this point it looks like we’ll have 7 new players, 5 incoming transfers and 2 freshmen, to integrate with one returning starter, O’Connell. (Taylor (29 starts), Parker Jr (12 starts), and Middlebrooks (3 starts) were not starting by season’s end) The good news is, we’ll be experienced again next season. The bad news is the following season.
- Our 2025 transfer season will be the craziest yet. Currently we have 7 players (and counting) who will exhaust their eligibility. Additionally, any of the other 5 on the roster have the potential for breakout seasons after which they might either be considering jumping to pro ball and/or shopping for a better NIL deal. That kind of talent is a great problem to have, hopefully we’ll make the most of it.
Roster Status:
We currently have one open scholarship (fingers crossed!) to be used to attempt to find a player to fill the huge hole left by Mo Diarra. It’s still early, this one could take a while to find the right fit. It took some time to find Diarra.
Recruiting Notes: Vague, ‘silly season’ rumors (aka Wishful thinking? Balderdash?) from social media on potential candidates. NC State is rumored to have contacted these guys, but we haven’t been told that anywhere publicly, nor are there announced visits, so it may not be true. Read at your own peril.
Trazarien White – 6’7” 190 lb forward out of UNC-W. (30.4 mins per game, 19.8 ppg, 6.8 rpg) 1 year eligibility
- He has a strong list of interested parties, including NIL $TUD$ Kentucky & Arkansas, as well as Miss St, Baylor, Texas Tech, Oklahoma and WVU.
- White announced he was transferring Thursday. As per social media, Coach Keatts was in Wilmington on Friday. (where he owns a home at a nearby beach, so maybe a weekend off?)
Sean Stewart – 6’9” 227 lb forward out of Duke. (8.4 mins per game, 2.6 ppg, 3.2 rpg) 3 years eligibility
- He has a huge list of impressive suitors, also including Kentucky & Arkansas, as well as Indiana, Miami, OSU, Baylor, Tennessee, and of course, Harvard.
- The Locked on Wolfpack podcast reported Friday that Sean’s father followed them on Facebook Thursday. (I warned you this stuff was weak)
Other names that have been tossed about as possibilities:
Brandon White – 6’10” 245 lb center out of Texas A&M. While there was no information on the school site, Aggie fan sites (grain of salt!) refer to him as a walk-on, they say he seriously injured his knee his junior year in high school, and that he has not yet played college ball. He’s from Spencer NC.
Ezra Ausar – 6’8” 247 lb forward out of ECU. (26.3 mins per game, 11.4 ppg, 4.7 rpg) 2 years eligibility. He’s from Charlotte.
- Schools he has heard from include West Virginia, Arizona State, Georgetown, Georgia Tech, Iowa State, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Seton Hall, Utah, and Virginia Tech