{"id":705853,"date":"2026-04-08T20:37:50","date_gmt":"2026-04-08T20:37:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/705853\/"},"modified":"2026-04-08T20:37:50","modified_gmt":"2026-04-08T20:37:50","slug":"what-kentucky-basketball-is-doing-as-transfer-portal-opens","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/705853\/","title":{"rendered":"What Kentucky basketball is doing as transfer portal opens"},"content":{"rendered":"

The 2025-26 college basketball season is finished, and that means the transfer portal is open.<\/p>\n

A change to the NCAA\u2019s offseason calendar this year delayed the opening of the portal until the day after the national title game, and that day has now arrived, though there\u2019s been plenty of jockeying behind the scenes over the past few weeks.<\/p>\n

While no one was allowed to officially enter the portal until Tuesday morning, dozens of high-major college players had already signaled their intention to do so before the window opened, giving programs looking for portal talent \u2014 which is every program in the country \u2014 a head start on knowing who might be available this spring.<\/p>\n

Hundreds of additional players will hit the portal over the next couple of weeks, and Kentucky coach Mark Pope is looking to add a few new transfers to his roster for the 2026-27 season.<\/p>\n

One name to watch who entered the portal Tuesday afternoon: Syracuse forward Donnie Freeman, and he already has a UK connection.<\/p>\n

Freeman \u2014 a 6-foot-9 forward \u2014 was born in the Bahamas, raised in Washington, D.C., and wrapped up his high school career at IMG Academy in Florida, where he blossomed into a McDonald\u2019s All-American recruit and finished the 2024 cycle as the No. 15 overall prospect in the 247Sports rankings.<\/p>\n

He also played for the Bahamas national team during its attempt to qualify for the 2024 Olympics, and UK assistant Mikhail McLean was on the coaching staff for that squad. Kentucky is expected to be in the mix for Freeman now that he\u2019s officially in the portal.<\/p>\n

As a sophomore this past season, Freeman averaged 16.5 points and 7.2 rebounds in 31.3 minutes per game. He missed nine games during the nonconference portion of the schedule with a foot injury but returned to play the entire ACC slate.<\/p>\n

Syracuse fired head coach Adrian Autry after the team\u2019s 15-17 season, and former Orange guard and longtime assistant Gerry McNamara was hired as the new head coach after leading Siena to the NCAA Tournament.<\/p>\n

Freeman, who turns 21 years old in August, hasn\u2019t been a high-percentage perimeter shooter during his time in college \u2014 31.1% on 122 attempts \u2014 but he has shown an ability to be a three-level scorer and boasts an all-around game with proven results plus major upside.<\/p>\n

One player who hasn\u2019t hit the portal yet but has been speculated about for months is Santa Clara forward Allen Graves, who hit the 3-pointer with 2.4 seconds left to give the Broncos a lead over Kentucky in the NCAA Tournament, just before Otega Oweh\u2019s buzzer beater to force overtime.<\/p>\n

Graves \u2014 a 6-9 forward from Ponchatoula, Louisiana \u2014 is also a potential NBA draft pick this year, but he\u2019s expected to stay in college, and if he hits the portal, Kentucky will be in the mix.<\/p>\n

Duke is also expected to be among the portal options for Graves, who would be one of the most coveted transfers in the country after averaging 11.8 points and 6.5 rebounds per game while shooting 41.3% from 3-point range as a redshirt freshman this past season.<\/p>\n

The highest-ranked SEC player in the early transfer rankings, according to 247Sports, is LSU point guard Dedan Thomas Jr., who is No. 9 nationally on that list and will be in the portal for the second consecutive spring after transferring to the Tigers last year following two seasons at UNLV.<\/p>\n

Thomas averaged 15.3 points and 6.5 assists this past season, though he played in only 16 games due to injury and made his final appearance on Jan. 28 before undergoing foot surgery in February. Pope praised Thomas during the season \u2014 even though the 6-1 guard from Las Vegas didn\u2019t play in either of LSU\u2019s games against UK \u2014 and the Kentucky coach also pursued him in the portal last year before his commitment to the Tigers.<\/p>\n

The Cats are once again looking for a starting point guard after Jaland Lowe\u2019s decision to enter the transfer portal, and they\u2019re expected to be in the mix for Thomas for the second straight offseason. Alabama is also a potential landing spot for Thomas, who shot just 30.2% from 3-point range at LSU but was a 35.8% perimeter shooter in his first two seasons at UNLV.<\/p>\n

Oregon forward Kwame Evans Jr. is already in the portal, too, and Kentucky is expected to have some level of interest in his recruitment. Evans \u2014 a 6-10 player from Baltimore \u2014 was a major UK target during the John Calipari era before choosing the Ducks and spending the past three seasons there.<\/p>\n

A McDonald\u2019s All-American in high school, Evans has started 62 games during his three years in college. He averaged 13.3 points, 7.4 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.3 blocks in 30.9 minutes per game \u2014 all career highs \u2014 this past season. He\u2019s a 28.4% 3-point shooter on 229 career attempts, and his 30.4% hit rate during the 2025-26 season has been his best. 247Sports ranked him as the No. 26 transfer as of Tuesday morning.<\/p>\n

Another player who is already in the portal and has been tied to Kentucky as a possible target is Florida Atlantic guard Devin Vanterpool, who played sparingly as a freshman but emerged as the Owls\u2019 leading scorer during his sophomore year this past season.<\/p>\n

Vanterpool \u2014 a 6-4 guard from Laurel, Maryland \u2014 averaged 15.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.5 steals per game while shooting 35.1% on 148 3-point attempts during the 2025-26 season. He missed the final seven games of the season with an ankle injury and was No. 74 in the 247Sports transfer rankings as of Tuesday morning.<\/p>\n

Those are five names to watch in the coming days. Many more will emerge as portal madness heats up.<\/p>\n

\"Donnie Donnie Freeman averaged 16.5 points and 7.2 rebounds per game for Syracuse as a sophomore this past season. Rich Barnes Getty Images Acaden Lewis in the portal<\/p>\n

A familiar name to Kentucky fans let it be known Sunday that he would be jumping into the transfer portal this spring.<\/p>\n

Villanova point guard Acaden Lewis is looking for a new school for next season after a better-than-expected freshman year with the Wildcats in which he started all 33 games and averaged 12.2 points, 5.3 assists and 1.9 steals.<\/p>\n

The 6-foot-2 guard from Washington, D.C. was originally signed with UK for this past season.<\/p>\n

Lewis is expected to be one of the most coveted playmakers in the portal, but as of Tuesday morning, there\u2019s been nothing yet to indicate that Kentucky will be seriously pursuing him in this cycle.<\/p>\n

In his final radio show of the season two weeks ago, Pope mentioned Lewis by name, lamenting that he had backed out of his commitment to the Cats at such a late date in the 2025 cycle that there was little UK could do to fill the backup point guard void behind Jaland Lowe.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had Acaden Lewis here as a signed commit,\u201d Pope said. \u201cActually, his family, on their own, engaged in helping to recruit Jaland Lowe. And then once that was (set), we felt like, \u2018Man, we have the greatest one-two punch at the point guard.\u2019 Felt like those guys would have played on the court beautifully together. And then late \u2014 after all that process was done \u2014 for his own personal reasons, family reasons, they decided to go.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lewis ended up as a second-team All-Big East selection and earned All-Freshman Team honors in the league, while Lowe played in only nine games and was ruled out in January due to an injury suffered in the preseason, leaving the Cats with no true point guard on the roster.<\/p>\n

With Lowe also in the portal again this spring, Pope will be looking for another starter-level point guard in this cycle, but \u2014 while things this time of year can quickly change \u2014 it doesn\u2019t sound like Lewis will be the guy.<\/p>\n

One school to watch for Lewis: the Miami Hurricanes, who made an incredible turnaround under first-year head coach Jai Lucas (a former UK assistant), advancing to the second round of the NCAA Tournament after going 3-17 in the ACC the previous year.<\/p>\n

Lucas, a former McDonald\u2019s All-American point guard, hosted Lewis for an official visit after he decommitted to Kentucky last year, and he\u2019ll be looking to build on his success from Year 1 as a head coach. Lucas also locked up his top potential returnee, Shelton Henderson, who has already announced he will be back with Miami next season.<\/p>\n

Where is Somto Cyril going?<\/p>\n

Another former Kentucky commitment will be on the move this spring.<\/p>\n

Somto Cyril, who was a member of John Calipari\u2019s 2024 recruiting class at UK before the head coach left for Arkansas, is entering the portal after two years at Georgia, where he averaged 9.3 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.2 blocked shots as a sophomore this past season.<\/p>\n

Cyril \u2014 a 6-11 center \u2014 started 32 games for the Bulldogs and is one of the most coveted bigs in the portal so far. With Kentucky prioritizing starting center Malachi Moreno as a top player to retain this offseason \u2014 and Moreno confirming Monday night that he will be back at UK if he withdraws from the NBA draft, which remains the most likely scenario \u2014 Cyril reconnecting with the Cats after two years doesn\u2019t make much sense.<\/p>\n

The favorites for Cyril as the portal opens are Arkansas and Miami.<\/p>\n

The Razorbacks are an obvious contender, with Calipari and much of the former UK coaching staff that helped recruit Cyril to Lexington now at Arkansas, which was missing a consistent, physical presence in the frontcourt to complement Darius Acuff Jr. and Meleek Thomas on the perimeter this past season.<\/p>\n

Miami is retaining Shelton Henderson, but the Canes are losing three key seniors, including starting center Ernest Udeh Jr. this offseason, and Jai Lucas is expected to make a major splash in the portal, with Cyril shaping up as a big target in the early going.<\/p>\n

\"Arkansas Arkansas head coach John Calipari talks to Razorbacks guard D.J. Wagner during a game against the Kentucky Wildcats at Rupp Arena on Feb. 1, 2025. Ryan C. Hermens rhermens@herald-leader.com D.J. Wagner is moving on<\/p>\n

Former Kentucky guard D.J. Wagner is also looking for a new college basketball home.<\/p>\n

Wagner was a highly touted recruit \u2014 long considered the No. 1 player in his class \u2014 on John Calipari\u2019s final UK team, and he followed the coach to Arkansas after an underwhelming freshman year in Lexington.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s yet to meet those sky-high expectations that were set for him in high school, and after three years with Calipari, another head coach is going to get a chance for Wagner\u2019s final college season.<\/p>\n

The 6-4 guard is expected to have a wide range of suitors in the portal, and while Memphis \u2014 where his father Dajuan was a one-and-done player under Calipari \u2014 is expected to be in the mix, there doesn\u2019t appear to be any clear favorite as Wagner begins his transfer process.<\/p>\n

He averaged 7.4 points and 2.4 assists in 23.6 minutes per game \u2014 all career lows \u2014 as a junior at Arkansas, where Acuff earned SEC player of the year honors and was a dominant on-ball presence this past season.<\/p>\n

Transfer portal rankings<\/p>\n

Kansas center Flory Bidunga topped the 247Sports transfer rankings as the clock struck midnight to usher in Tuesday and the official start of portal season.<\/p>\n

Bidunga averaged 13.3 points and 9.0 rebounds per game, earning Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year as a sophomore this past season. Duke, which was a major contender in his recruitment out of high school, is once again expected to be in the mix here, though Bidunga will have plenty of high-major suitors. (No sign of any UK pursuit there.)<\/p>\n

The rest of the 247Sports top five heading into opening day of the portal featured Wisconsin shooting guard John Blackwell, Wake Forest guard Juke Harris, Saint Mary\u2019s big man Paulius Murauskas and San Diego State wing Miles Byrd.<\/p>\n

Of those players, Byrd has brought the most Kentucky-related chatter.<\/p>\n

A 6-6 player from Stockton, California, he was Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year this past season and is the kind of versatile perimeter defender that Pope will be looking for in the portal, especially with the loss of Otega Oweh.<\/p>\n

Byrd isn\u2019t as offensively accomplished as Oweh, but he has averaged 11.3 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.7 assists in two seasons as a starter while proving himself as one of the best perimeter defenders in the country. He revealed his intentions to enter the portal early in the process and could have a college decision by the end of this week.<\/p>\n

Kentucky basketball roster tracker<\/p>\n

A quick look at where things stand with the Kentucky basketball roster as the portal opens:<\/p>\n

Leaving Kentucky: In addition to departing seniors Otega Oweh and Denzel Aberdeen \u2014 as well as Walker Horn and Zach Tow, who joined the program as walk-ons \u2014 Jayden Quaintance is still expected to enter and remain in the 2026 NBA draft. Beyond that group, UK has already lost Mouhamed Dioubate, Brandon Garrison, Andrija Jelavic, Jasper Johnson and Jaland Lowe to the transfer portal. Aberdeen was also a surprise addition to the first wave of names to hit the college basketball portal list Tuesday morning. He would need a waiver to be granted by the NCAA for a fifth year of eligibility.<\/p>\n

Waiting on decisions: Those defections still leave six players from the 2025-26 roster with unresolved futures. Those players are Collin Chandler, Malachi Moreno and Trent Noah, as well as Braydon Hawthorne and Reece Potter, who sat out this past season as redshirts. Any of those players who want to move on from UK and play elsewhere next season must enter the transfer portal by April 21. Moreno announced Monday night that he will return to Kentucky if he withdraws from the NBA draft. The draft withdrawal deadline for college players is May 27. Jelavic is also keeping open the option of a return to Kentucky for next season.<\/p>\n

2026-27 roster so far: UK guard Kam Williams committed to return to the Cats for next season on Tuesday. Four-star point guard Mason Williams \u2014 son of new UK assistant coach Mo Williams \u2014 is the only firm commitment for next season. Kentucky is expected to retain other players from the group currently on the fence. Hawthorne and Potter both told the Herald-Leader toward the end of the season that they expected to be back in Lexington for the 2026-27 campaign.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s next? While there has been plenty of activity behind the scenes in recent weeks, Tuesday is the first day that college coaches can officially reach out directly to prospective transfers. And Friday will mark the first day that coaches are permitted to meet with those players off campus and\/or host them for official visits. The next few days should bring plenty of new developments as Pope puts the pieces together on his 2026-27 roster.<\/p>\n

This story was originally published April 7, 2026 at 6:15 AM.<\/p>\n


\n \"Profile
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

Ben Roberts<\/a><\/p>\n

Lexington Herald-Leader<\/p>\n

Ben Roberts is the University of Kentucky men\u2019s basketball beat writer for the Lexington Herald-Leader. He has previously specialized in UK basketball recruiting coverage and created and maintained the Next Cats blog. He is a Franklin County native and first joined the Herald-Leader in 2006.
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