As the April 7 opening of the college basketball transfer portal draws ever closer, more and more players have announced that they will be changing schools. Some of them will be considered a big blow to the program as they were once their best scorers or defenders, while others may just be searching for better opportunities. Here are the five best ones for this cycle so far:
Top 5 Most Viable Transfer Portal Players For 2026 Cycle
Isiah Harwell, Houston Shooting Guard
The latest big name to announce that he will be leaving his school is Houston’s Isiah Harwell. He was one of three five-star freshmen to choose Houston last year and the team started out strong before sputtering out during March Madness.
Despite playing for 32 games, Kelvin Sampson did not let him play much and he did not get much touches, only averaging 3.6 points, 2.0 rebounds, and 0.5 assists per game.
Paulius Murauskas, Saint Mary’s Power Forward
Ranked as a four-star transfer, this junior big man from Lithuania helped the Gaels to go to the NCAA Tournament. He is a double-double machine who averaged 18.6 points, 8.0 rebounds and 2.4 steals per game, so his addition could be a boon for any team.
Miles Byrd, San Diego State Shooting Guard
Miles Byrd has been with the Aztecs since his freshman year, and for his redshirt senior year, he will be entering the transfer portal. He led the Aztecs to becoming a possible March Madness entry but ultimately failed to do so.
The redshirt junior averaged 11.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 1.5 blocks and 2.2 steals per game, which means that he could be an asset on both sides of the floor.
Stefan Vaaks, Providence Shooting Guard
Another prolific scorer, Vaaks led Providence in scoring but ultimately failed to lead the Friars to March Madness. He may be looking for a bigger program to develop his game further after averaging 16.2 points, 2.6 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game for his freshman year. Any team picking him up could greatly improve their offensive output with him around.
Dedan Thomas Jr., LSU Point Guard
With LSU doing a rebuild and having a new coach, Dedan Thomas Jr., the team’s pure point guard is jumping ship after one year at Baton Rouge. He averaged 11.3 points, 4.0 assists and 2.7 rebounds per game after a disastrous season with the Tigers, so he may be looking for a better team to play possibly his last season.
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