The transfer portal for college basketball officially opened on Monday.
To date, more than 600 players have entered, and that number is expected to rise. Last year, about 1,400 men’s college basketball players entered the portal.
Two Division I teams in Rhode Island have been among the hardest hit in college basketball. The portal remains open until April 22.
To start, let us review some of the economics of college basketball today.
Presently, there are a little more than 5,600 Division I basketball players playing on 352 teams.
The revenue in college basketball generates an estimated $2 billion annually from broadcast rights, ticket sales, and merchandising.
Players in Focus
On average, men’s basketball players in the NCAA earn about $65,853 annually through NIL deals as of July 2024.
However, this figure can vary significantly based on the player’s profile and the conference they play in. Duke All-American Cooper Flagg reportedly made upwards of $5 million this year and that number is climbing with additional endorsement deals.
If every player made an average of $100,000, it would only total $560 million. It is important to know that NIL payments are not paid out of the revenue the NCAA and the colleges and universities receive. NIL monies are payments to players from third parties — alumni and sponsors.
NIL dollars come in big and little payments. As Kevin Stacom recently highlighted, Rick Pitino’s St. John’s roster is funded primarily by one donor — billionaire Mike Repole. For Repole, donating $5 million or so in NIL monies is far cheaper than trying to buy the Knicks.
For two of the local teams — PC and URI — the portal is causing significant chaos.
For PC, the value of the men’s basketball team is inextricably linked to the college.
Nearly every home game is a sell-out and the school claims it is big business. A report commissioned by PC and released this year highlights the effect of men’s basketball, which the school claims is responsible for $24 million annually in local economic impact.
Meanwhile, Bryant and Brown Universities have yet to be impacted by mass defections of players to the portal.
Bryant’s situation may change as its coach, Phil Martelli, Jr., is leaving. He has accepted the top job at Virginia Commonwealth University, and often, players follow coaches.
One Brown player has entered the portal, and he has exhausted his Ivy League eligibility.
In this past season’s Providence College team photo, sixteen players posed for the photographer.
Five of the players have exhausted theor eligibility. It is not known how many will graduate with diplomas.
Those five players are Bensley Joseph, Jabri Abdur-Rahim, Wesley Cardet, Jr., and walk-ons Luke Fonts and Kieran O’Haire.
Then, six players have entered the transfer portal: Jayden Pierre, Bryce Hopkins, Anton Bonke, Eli DeLaurier, Christ Essandoko, and Justyn Fernandez.
Of the 16 Friars, just five are scheduled to return—Ryan Mela, Rich Barron, Oswin Erhunmwunse, Nilavan Jotham Daniels, and Corey Floyd, Jr.
However, the Friars do have two talented 4-star recruits enrolling in the fall of 2025.
Lots of Holes to Fill
The Friars have a half-dozen slots to fill and massive scoring gaps. Of the Friars returning, the leading scorer was Floyd at 9.2 ppg. Moreover, the scoring of all the returning players is just 29 ppg.
Rams Only Have Two Experienced Players Returning with Any Experience
The news in Kingston is more dire, as the Rams have not seen the postseason since 2017-18.
URI has only gone to the NCAA Tournament twice in the past 20 years (both times under then-coach Dan Hurley). In the 20 years before that, the Rams went five times.
Now, the proverbial cupboard has never been more bare.
First, the Rams graduated 71% of their scoring, and then were hit with four additional players announcing they are entering the portal.
The Rams that have announced their entrance to the portal are Cam Estevez, Tyronne Farrell, David Fuchs, and Always Wright..
The first is that he only has two players with any functional game experience —Jamarques Lawrence, who averaged 9.9 ppg, and Drissa Traore, who averaged 2.8 ppg.
The next most experienced returning player is freshman walk-on Jaymien Aponte, who played five minutes and scored no points.
For PC and URI, the immediate future looks uncertain at best.
But, in the new world order, just one major donor can turn the lowest of mid-majors and turn them into a formidable program.
Tyronne Farrell
University of Rhode Island
Tyrone Farrell, a 6-6 sophomore forward who averaged 5.2 ppg, has also announced he intends to enter the portal.
Nana Owusu-Anane
Brown University ➡️ Southern Methodist University
Brown senior Nana Owusu-Anane, who suffered a shoulder injury this past season, has entered the portal and committed to SMU.
He was an All-Ivy selection in the 2023-2024 season and entered the portal last year and then decided to return to Brown.
He has completed his eligibility at Brown.
Christ Essandoko
Providence College ➡️ South Carolina
He came to Providence via the portal after playing at St. Joseph’s University. A native of France, he averaged 4.3 ppg. and 3.9 rebounds.
He is a 7-0 and was expected to be a major impact player, but weight issues and injuries diminished his success.
Always Wright
University of Rhode Island
Redshirt junior, Always Wright, also announced he was entering the transfer portal.
As a sophomore, he appeared in 24 games, with four starts.
Wright averaged 2.2 points and 1.4 rebounds per game in 2023-24.
David Fuchs
University of Rhode Island
The 6-9, 245 lbs. Fuchs came on in his sophomore season to be a rebounding force.
He appeared in 29 games for the Rams and averaged 7.4 ppg and 7.5 rebounds per game.
Fuchs led the team with 218 total rebounds and became a major scoring threat on the pick-and-roll.
The native of Austria leaving the program would be a major blow.
Jayden Pierre
Providence College
Pierre, a starting guard for coach Kim English this past year, entered the portal and is transferring to Seattle, according to 24/7 Sports.
He was the Friars’ second-leading scorer this season, averaging 13.2 ppg, second only to Bensley Joseph, who is graduating. He also tied for the most assists with Joseph at 101.
Pierre was the only Friar to start all 32 games this season.
Anton Bonke
Providence College
Anton Bonke, the 7-2 center.
The freshman was one of the Friars with the most intriguing stories.
He averaged 1.2 ppg and 1.1 rebounds a game.
Eli DeLaurier
Providence College
The 6-10 redshirt freshman showed moments of strong play but had injury issues and never seemed to gain coach Kim English’s confidence.
He could shoot the 3-pointer but only averaged 1.2 ppg. and 1.1 rebounds in his limited play.
He played one game in the 2023-24 season before being redshirted.
DeLaurier spent three years at the Miller School in Charlottesville, Va. (2021-23)and helped lead his team to a 20-13 mark in 2023.
Bryce Hopkins
Providence College
In the ever-changing world of college basketball, Providence College forward Bryce Hopkins has officially announced he is entering the transfer portal.
Going into this season, Hopkins was a pre-season Big East first-team selection, but he played in just three games for the Friars.
He averaged 17 points a game. The Friars won two games and lost one—beating BYU and DePaul and losing to URI.
Previous Season
An ACL injury knocked him out for the previous season, the 2023-2024 campaign.
He was averaging 15.5 ppg and 8.6 rpg when he was injured.
In the 2022-2023 season, his first year with the Friars, he averaged 15.8 ppg and 8.5 rpg.
Hopkins had ACL surgery in January of 2024.
He transferred to Providence after a year at Kentucky.
Justyn Fernandez
Providence College
Justyn Fernandez showed some brilliance this past season for the Providence College team.
Now, Fernandez has entered the transfer portal. He came to PC with coach Kim English from George Mason two years ago.
The redshirt sophomore who, when he played, scored. In 26 minutes against Villanova, Fernandez scored 17 points, and in 31 minutes against Xavier had 15 points. He often looked like the best athlete on the court. His block against Georgetown made highlight films.
Inexplicably Fernandez played just three minutes in the Big East tournament loss to Butler.
His entrance to the portal was first reported by 24/7.
Cam Estevez
University of Rhode Island
Cam Estevez, a sophomore URI guard who averaged 4.5 points per game, has announced he is entering the portal.
”After talking to my close circle and family, I have decided to enter the transfer portal #AGTG,” he posted on social media.
Tyronne Farrell
University of Rhode Island
Tyrone Farrell, a 6-6 sophomore forward who averaged 5.2 ppg, has also announced he intends to enter the portal.
Nana Owusu-Anane
Brown University ➡️ Southern Methodist University
Brown senior Nana Owusu-Anane, who suffered a shoulder injury this past season, has entered the portal and committed to SMU.
He was an All-Ivy selection in the 2023-2024 season and entered the portal last year and then decided to return to Brown.
He has completed his eligibility at Brown.
Christ Essandoko
Providence College ➡️ South Carolina
He came to Providence via the portal after playing at St. Joseph’s University. A native of France, he averaged 4.3 ppg. and 3.9 rebounds.
He is a 7-0 and was expected to be a major impact player, but weight issues and injuries diminished his success.
