Top 5 College Basketball Transfer Portal Classes

The transfer portal for College Basketball has been in full swing over the last few weeks.

Now that the NCAA Tournament has ended, players are flying off the board at a record pace. Declarations are being made fast and furiously, and there’s truly an unprecedented amount of players who’ve hit the portal in hopes of finding a new home.

With all of that said, who’s been crushing it with transfer commitments? Pundit/analytics guru Evan Miyakawa offered a look at his top-five portal classes (as of Apr. 11).

Miyakawa has UCLA coming in with the No. 5 transfer class. Of course, the jewel of the group Mick Cronin is bringing in would be non other than former New Mexico guard Donovan Dent. A slippery and explosive guard, Dent is a three-level scorer — being efficient from three, the mid-range, and in the paint. He’s excellent at getting to the line, and is very good at involving his teammates.

The Bruins sorely lacked a stable guard presence last year — and essentially has been without one since the days of Tyger Campbell. Dent originally is from Southern California, and he should immediately be in contention for all-conference honors within the Big Ten.

Joining Dent is former Michigan State big man Xavier Booker. A former 5-star prospect, Booker is projected to be the team’s starting center. Role players Jamar Brown (Kansas City) and Steven Jamerson (San Diego) join as depth pieces.

New Miami head coach Jai Lucas has nabbed the No. 4 portal class. The Hurricanes are in a total rebuild after a disastrous 2024-25 year in which they finished 7-24. The four-man group is rock-solid. Guards Tre Donaldson (Michigan) and Tru Washington (New Mexico) should make up the backcourt. Malik Reneau came over from Indiana to presumably man the four-spot. Lastly, former Kansas/TCU center Ernest Udeh will provide rim protection.

At No. 3, Tennessee has a two-man class. While on the shorter end of things numbers-wise, the Vols are not short on quality. The headliner is guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie. A Tennessee native, he began his career at Belmont before playing this past year for Maryland. In the Big Ten, Gillespie was one of the more dynamic guards within the conference. He averaged 14.7 PPG on 40.7 percent from three. He should immediately fill the vacancy left by Chaz Lanier.

Joining Gillespie is former Vanderbilt big man Jaylen Carey. Carey is a big body with the ability carve space out for himself in the paint. He averaged 8.0 PPG and 5.7 RPG in only 20.2 minutes for the Commodores.

At No. 2 is Kentucky. Mark Pope is facing a similar situation as the one John Calipari often encountered: massive roster turnover.

The Wildcats currently have four portal commitments at this given time. Chief among them is former 5-star prospect Jayden Quaintance. He’s got all the metrics to be a fantastic small-ball center with long arms, an explosive first step, and elite shot-blocking skills. He played this past year at ASU and is currently recovering from a torn ACL. However, Quaintance reportedly believes he’ll be back by the start of next year.

Athletic Mouhamed Diabate (Alabama) offers some frontcourt depth. Former Pitt guard Jaland Lowe will add some pace to the backcourt, and ex-Tulane wing Kam Williams might be the best pro prospect on the team next year.

Lastly, Michigan comes in as having the best portal class. Dusty May needed to reload after losing the core of this year’s squad — and boy did he.

The frontcourt is well stocked with former UCLA center Aday Mara and ex-Illinois big man Morez Johnson. If the Wolverines can convince Yaxel Lendeborg to stay in school, he’s a potential Big Ten POY candidate (and is the presumed best player in the portal). Former UNC guard Elliot Cadeau figures to run the show. He’s excellent at facilitating and is one of the best athletes at his position in the country.