What are NC State basketball’s transfer portal needs? Here are three

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NC State basketball’s work in the transfer portal paid off with an ACC Tournament championship and Final Four appearance this season.

Each of the Wolfpack’s five starters in Phoenix started their careers elsewhere, but will leave NC State as part of a group that changed the trajectory of the program under head coach Kevin Keatts.

DJ Horne, DJ Burns and Casey Morsell – three of NC State’s starters against Purdue in the Final Four – are gone, so Keatts has to get back to work and fill out the 2024-25 roster.

Here are the top three needs for the Wolfpack in the transfer portal.

NC State basketball gets Louisville’s Brandon Huntley-Hatfield, so what’s next?

Not only did the Wolfpack enjoy a run to the Final Four, but it got started on next season’s roster in Arizona with the addition of Louisville transfer Brandon Huntley-Hatfield. With Burns out of the picture, Huntley-Hatfield projects as NC State’s primary post option after averaging 12.9 points and 8.4 rebounds per game.

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If Mo Diarra and Ben Middlebrooks return, the Wolfpack should be set on the interior; Diarra (311 rebounds) and Middlebrooks (179) were NC State’s top two rebounders this season. If one of them leaves, Keatts will need to find another big to team up with Huntley-Hatfield.

Who will be Wolfpack lead guard to follow Jarkel Joiner, DJ Horne

Guards get you to March Madness, and NC State has found some good ones in the portal the last two offseasons. Ahead of the 2022-23 season, Keatts brought in Ole Miss transfer Jarkel Joiner to aid Terquavion Smith in the backcourt. Joiner averaged 17 points per game and was one of State’s top defenders on the way to an NCAA Tournament appearance.

Arizona State transfer DJ Horne, a Raleigh native, took things to another level for the Wolfpack this year. Horne led the team with…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/nc-state-basketball-transfer-portal-080526719.html

Author : The Fayetteville Observer

Publish date : 2024-04-11 08:05:26

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