The effects of the transfer portal in college basketball – Nebraska News Service

Nebraska junior forward Rienk Mast and junior guard Brice Williams speak to the media before their open practice session on Thursday, March 21 at FedExForum in Memphis, Tenn. Mast and Williams were two of 10 transfers who suited up for the Huskers during the 2023-24 season. Mast transferred to Nebraska last year after four seasons at Bradley, while Williams transferred in last year after three seasons at Charlotte.

Nebraska junior forward Rienk Mast and junior guard Brice Williams speak to the media before their open practice session on Thursday, March 21 at FedExForum in Memphis, Tenn. Mast and Williams were two of 10 transfers who suited up for the Huskers during the 2023-24 season. Mast transferred to Nebraska last year after four seasons at Bradley, while Williams transferred in last year after three seasons at Charlotte.
In recent years, the NCAA transfer portal has changed the landscape of college basketball and with the inclusion of name, image, and likeness, the game has become even more complicated.
The transfer portal in college basketball has given players a route to get out of situations where they do not feel like it’s benefiting themselves. However, it’s also being used as a path for them to make the most money they can through name, image, and likeness.
Nebraska is no different from other programs. Since Fred Hoiberg was hired as the head men’s basketball coach of the Huskers, fans have seen an uptick of transfers, 19 to be exact, join the program. 
“Fred Hoiberg is one of the pioneers of using transfers in college basketball,” Robin Washut said. “Hoiberg was kind of at the forefront of using transfers at Iowa State, but when he got to Nebraska especially over the last couple of years, that formula has become irrelevant at this point.”
Washut is a senior writer for On3 affiliate, HuskerOnline.com, where he covers football, men’s basketball and men’s basketball recruiting.
Washut said that with the rapidly changing landscape of college basketball, Hoiberg has had to adjust to how he uses the transfer portal. He describes Hoiberg’s new formula of using the transfer portal as one of finding players that would fit into their program.
“About two off-seasons ago, they went after the portal in a much different way,” Washut said. “They went after guys that weren’t just good players, but ones that would be the right fit, ‘culture guys.’ Players that could be that core, foundational group that they needed to get things off the ground.”
In 2010, Hoiberg arrived at his alma mater, Iowa State, in hopes of turning the program around. In order to get talent to Ames right away, he called upon transfers. In the 2011-12 season, the program reached the NCAA Tournament and knocked off defending national champion UConn in the first round, before the Cyclones fell to eventual champion Kentucky in the second round. That season was just the start of Hoiberg’s use of transfers in his programs.
After multiple successful seasons at Iowa State and a four-year stint as the head coach of the Chicago Bulls, Hoiberg returned to the college ranks as the head coach of Nebraska. With his use of the transfer portal, each season with the Huskers has produced more wins with the most recent season being his best. Nebraska finished with a record of 23-11 and made the NCAA Tournament this past season.
Washut said he believes that this offseason is critical for Nebraska men’s basketball.
“They’ve taken steps the last two years,” Washut said. “The first year was just laying the foundation and getting the right pieces to compete at the Big Ten level. This year they took another step and had one of their most successful seasons in program history. Now, the task is taking another step where you’re not just a team that’s competing in the top half of the Big Ten and making the NCAA Tournament. You’re a team that’s competing to win the Big Ten and multiple NCAA Tournament games.”
In recent years, college programs have used the portal more. However, Nebraska men’s basketball recruiting coordinator Padyn Borders said he believes it’s still important to recruit at the high school level.
“It’s still very important to bring in high school kids,” Borders said. “We can develop them and install our culture, system, etc. into them as they stick around over a couple years. It’s very valuable for the program.”
Borders also emphasized that Nebraska men’s basketball looks for players who will be ‘good guys’ to have in the locker room.
“Not only are we trying to grab talented players, but we are going after guys that fit our culture,” Border said. “Guys that will be a good teammate in the locker room.”
The transfer portal has become a more common route for student-athletes in the last several years. According to Fox Sports college basketball reporter John Fanta in a post on X, “when it’s all said and done, there will be in the neighborhood of 2,000 names in college basketball’s transfer portal.”
Many reasons play into why a player decides to enter their name into the portal, such as the opportunity to play at a higher-level program, that they weren’t getting enough playing time at their current university, their coach is leaving and perhaps the most common of them all; the chance to make more money at another program with the inclusion of name, image and likeness.
Executive Associate Athletic Director of Compliance at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Jamie Vaughn said there are many elements to how student-athletes use the transfer portal, including NIL. But that’s not the lone one.
“It’s definitely a factor, but it’s not as definitive as everyone thinks it is,” Jamie Vaughn said. “There are student-athletes that are making decisions based on other things that they want to accomplish in the transfer process.”
According to the NCAA rulebook, NIL, by rule, cannot be used as an inducement to get someone to transfer.
“What we see a lot and what we do here is make sure that we educate anyone that is interested in coming, whether it’s an incoming freshman or a transfer student,” Vaughn said. “We make sure they understand what the rules are and how things operate at Nebraska.”
The transfer portal has become widely used by both college coaches and student-athletes. For student-athletes, a chance for a fresh start or a chance to make more money via NIL. For coaches, it’s an opportunity to turn their program around or enhance it.
The NCAA transfer portal is ever-changing. Vaughn is among those who are unsure what the future looks like for the transfer portal.
Either way, the transfer portal is and will continue to change the landscape of college basketball.
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