College basketball transfer rankings 2024: How the top five players in the portal will impact their new teams

The biggest waves, it seems, can start from the smallest ripples. On March 21, SMU fired Rob Lanier after just two seasons, a surprising move before the Mustangs moved to the ACC.

Just two and a half weeks later, a thank you Several moves were made in betweenJohn Calipari made the shocking decision to leave Kentucky for Arkansas. The basketball offseason — already a busy one — picked up speed. One of the top programs in the country was without a coach. One of the top coaches in the country was without a roster.

This year’s coaching cycle and transfer portal dance — which were largely intertwined — affected everyone, and it took until mid-July for all of this offseason’s top players to find their spots.

David Cobb of CBS Sports Ranking of top 80 transfersAnd now that things are (mostly) finally sorted out, here’s how their top five players will help their new teams.

After a stunning run to the 2023 Final Four, FAU never fulfilled the sky-high expectations in 2023-24. Still, with that iconic March Madness fresh in everyone’s mind, Dusty May took The Michigan job, and seven of his former Owls players also decided to leave FAU behind. Davis was not only the best of that group, but in David’s eyes, the best of any transfer this offseason.

He is also a perfect fit for an Arkansas roster that is Integration of different partsCalipari’s first Razorbacks team will include some players he brought in from Kentucky, some players who transferred in from other programs, some of his high-school players who committed to Kentucky and just one scholarship player from last year’s Razorbacks, Trevon Brazil.

It’s hard for anyone to predict what this group will look like, but Davis is a great place to start due to his positional flexibility and his huge offensive output. Davis technically joined FAU as a power forward, and at 6-foot-4 he held his own on the boards; his 6.3 rebounds per game ranked 14th nationally among all players 6-4 or shorter, and he posted a very respectable 16.6% defensive rebounding rate, according to KenPom.com.

But Davis is most notably offensive. A stellar shooter, Davis shot 41% from 3-point range and ranked in the 96th percentile nationally on catch-and-shoot jumpers (1.35 points per possession) last year, according to Synergy. And if Davis were just that — a great shooter and strong rebounder — he would still be a very good player.

Instead, he adds a terrific floor game to that combination. Davis is capable of handling the ball and is particularly good in pick-and-roll and isolation situations. And while that’s not a huge part of his game, Calipari can use Davis as a fun chess piece on handoffs. According to Synergy, Davis posted 1.535 points per handoff possession, which ranked in the 99th percentile nationally, albeit on a small sample size.

He especially loves the action from the top of the key, and he understands well how both his defender and the handoff player’s defender react. He has the handles and speed to get to the rim, the range to retreat, and the patience and shooting touch to get to his spot in the midrange.

Davis is the perfect player for a new-look roster. He can be the focal point, running the offense and/or being a key individual creator, but he can also be a supporting player as a terrific off-ball shooter. Either way, as Calipari finds his footing in his new home, he will be able to rely heavily on Davis.

Richmond began his career as an interesting but little-used player at Syracuse before transferring to Seton Hall, where he turned that interesting game into production. Richmond had four 20-point double-doubles in 2023-24, the third-most among Big East players, and his 15.7 points per game ranked 11th in the conference. In addition, he was graded as the Pirates’ top defender on EvanMiya.com.

Though Richmond’s 3-point shooting declined year-over-year (44% in 2022-23, 27% last year), he improved in other aspects, particularly as a ball handler. For the third year in a row, his assist rate increased while his turnover rate dropped, and he became much more efficient attacking pick-and-roll sets. Richmond’s 201 points off these possessions ranked 28th in Division I and were the most among Big East players, according to Synergy.

At 6-6, Richmond has the power and strength to score through bigger players and bury, shield and/or shoot over smaller defenders. But it’s not just his size. He has great body control and uses pump fakes and tight handles to get to the basket. And when that short jumper is falling, he’s really tough to stop. Look at how he attacked Creighton — one of the best defenses in the country — and three-time Big East Defensive Player of the Year Ryan Kalkbrenner.

This is a good thing.

Tucker and his father, Darian, were a package deal from Drake to West Virginia, and Tucker is considered the Mountaineers’ leader in the father-son duo’s first season.

Like Richmond, DeVries is also an excellent ball handler who causes major problems for opposing defenses in the pick-and-roll. However, unlike Richmond, DeVries is a great shooter rather than a downhill driver in these scenarios. And thanks to that shooting (49% on pick-and-roll 3-pointers), DeVries scored 1.047 points per possession in the pick-and-roll, which ranks fourth among 194 Division I players who have played at least 150 such possessions, according to Synergy.

Also a very good player on handoffs (79th percentile) and cuts (92nd percentile), DeVries’ statistical profile shows a player who hits the boards (21% defensive rebounding rate), moves the ball (21% assist rate) and draws fouls while not committing them. DeVries committed over five fouls per game last season, and when he gets to the free-throw line, he makes opponents pay over 82% of the time.

While it’s a big jump to go from the Missouri Valley to the Big 12, Devries is comfortable in the system and top-tier shooting is always helpful. How Devries performs against bigger, faster and more athletic competition will be key to getting West Virginia back on track.

Entering his third program in three years, Storr is a big scorer who had 11 games of 20+ points last season.

Storr shot 43.4% in both of his seasons, first at St. John’s and last year at Wisconsin, but they came in very different ways. With the Red Storm, Storr shot 40% on 3-pointers and 45% from 2-point range. With the Badgers, he shot 32% from 3-point range and 48% on 2-pointers, with the vast majority of his shots coming from inside the arc.

Clearly the top option in Wisconsin’s offense last year – no one took a higher percentage of his team’s shots in Big Ten play – Storr would fit well on a Kansas roster that has a post offense fulcrum in the form of Hunter Dickinson and a plethora of guards. In this setting, Storr could, ideally, be a strong driver and a catch-and-shoot option outside of it.

At 6-7, Storr has the length to become a strong slasher, taking advantage of the attention Dickinson and the Jayhawks’ guards are receiving. His 265 points at the rim in 2023-24 led all Big Ten non-centers, and he’s willing to be patient on his catches, throwing pump fakes or changes of speed/direction to go downhill. In his season-high 30-point performance against Northwestern in the Big Ten Tournament, Storr scored 15 points at the rim, made three 3-pointers and shot eight free throws. Bill Self will look for a similar shot profile from his highly coveted wing.

A behemoth at 7-foot and 260 pounds, Ballo entered his sixth year of college at his third school: two at Gonzaga, including a redshirt, and then three at Arizona.

Ballo scored 465 points last year, and 335 came at the rim, which ranked eighth in DI. The other 95 points came from free throws, though he took 192 points, good for just 49% from the charity stripe. He’s as throwback as a throwback can be: a true post-only scorer. According to Synergy, he took exactly four jump shots (and made two!) all season.

So, it makes sense he ended up at Indiana. Nearly 14% of the Hoosiers’ possessions ended in post-ups, the 10th-highest rate in DI, and Mike Woodson is stubbornly a pro-interior offense. Indiana ranked 349th in attempted 3-pointers last year. Ballo will be part of many two-big lineups, likely alongside Malik Reneau, and it’s something he’s accustomed to starting alongside Azuolas Tubelis in Arizona in 2022-23.

Overall, Ballo is a perfect fit for Woodson’s offense. He’s efficient as a post-up player and even better as a roller on the pick and roll. He fills up the point and rebound columns of the stats sheet, and he’s done it reliably for several years. How this translates into success at Indiana will be worth watching with Woodson on the hot seat.