The UConn Huskies are about to navigate foreign waters. As the two-time defending national champions, coach Dan Hurley’s squad has mostly avoided the transfer portal. That will all change now that the teams’ 13-game NCAA Tournament winning streak has come to an end.
Hurley recently told “60 Minutes” that, “50% of my roster or more is at least considering going in the portal, if not already knows what school they’re going to.”
Players Leaving UConn
Players like Alex Karaban, freshman standout Liam McNeeley, Solo Ball, and Tarris Reed Jr. all have NBA Draft decisions to make. Below is an initial outlook for the Huskies in the portal this offseason.
Despite Hurley’s claim, only one UConn player has entered the transfer portal so far:
F Isaiah Abraham – the former top 100 recruit out of St. Paul’s VI, saw limited action this season, averaging 1.6 points in nine games. His father, Faisal Abraham, played for Marquette in the mid-1990s, and the Golden Eagles were a finalist in his son’s recruitment. If coach Shaka Smart considers using the portal for the first time, Abraham could be heading to Milwaukee.
While no other players have officially announced their intent to depart, new announcements could occur any day now. Hassan Diarra and Samson Johnson are the only other players confirmed to be departing, as they have exhausted their eligibility.
G Hassan Diarra: The guard, the 2023-24 Big East Sixth Man award winner, became a full-time starter for the first time this season and established career highs with 7.7 points, 5.7 assists, and 3.7 rebounds. Diarra spent three seasons in Storrs after transferring from Texas A&M.
C Samson Johnson Like Diarra, Johnson entered the starting lineup regularly for the first time, setting career highs with 7.5 points and 3.5 rebounds. The Togo native appeared in 99 games for the Huskies the past four seasons.
Players Joining UConn
The Huskies have not added any players out of the portal yet, but have been linked to one big name currently still in the portal.
F Amarri Monroe: The 6’7″, 220-pound forward led Quinnipiac, the regular season Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference champs, with 18.1 points and 9.1 rebounds. He’s a stretch-4 capable of guarding any position.
The Huskies expect to look significantly different next season. McNeeley is a fringe lottery pick, Ball may go at the end of the first round, and Karaban needs to decide if the opportunity presented as a mid-to-late second-round pick is worth leaving Storrs.
The departures of Diarra and Johnson were expected and Hurley is expected to plug those holes. The X-factor here is how the transfer portal impacts the Huskies in terms of losses. Abraham is already gone, and players like Jaylin Stewart and Ahmad Nowell are expected to follow him out the door.
UConn will most likely need a little bit of everything: shooters, inside presence, effective distributors. Hurley told the Stamford Advocate his team will be “hunting, not the hunted” this offseason.
Hurley and UConn are now in the thick of modern-day college basketball. Expect Hurley to pursue his goals with the transfer portal just as aggressively as anywhere else. And he is still recruiting at a high level as well.
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Three of his incoming Class of 2025 — shooting guards Darius Adams and Braylon Mullins and center Eric Reibe, were all selected as McDonald’s All-Americans. They will be joined by Australian guard Jacob Furphy to make up the top-5 class.
Hurley’s annual expectations in Storrs are now national championship or bust. What he does in the portal over the next couple of weeks will help determine if a third title in four years is in the offing.
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