Moves I Like, Moves I Question: 2025 Edition
Stephen Gillaspie notes some of the biggest transfer portal decisions for the 2025-2026 college basketball season!
This column is the third such column that I have written here at No Ceilings. Normally, I have tried to outline the majority of transfers up to this point as “bonus content” within other articles that focus on specific prospects. This year, the portal has been as volatile and unstable as ever. Depending on who you talk to, somewhere between 1,000-2,000 players have entered the NCAA Men’s Basketball transfer portal. Some of these players genuinely want to move from one school to another. In my many discussions with agents, some players have used the transfer portal as a way to leverage more money from their current university.
I’m not here to discuss the morality of the portal. Personally, I’m of the mindset that every person involved in college sports right now is doing the exact thing they should be doing. Until further regulations are implemented, this is the way things will go. And while this is the current process, I opted for sanity and waited until the transfer portal is “closed” before I dissected moves and tracked who has entered, committed, or de-and-recommitted.
After running through the transfers, here are the moves I like—and the moves I question.
Move I Like
Yaxel Lendeborg | Forward | UAB → Michigan
I’ll start this write-up completely acknowledging that Yaxel Lendeborg very well could be taken in the 2025 NBA Draft. While “Yax” did put his name in the NBA Draft, he also opted to maintain his college eligibility and commit to Michigan. He does join a group that consists of Morez Johnson Jr. and Aday Mara in the frontcourt, so there could be a bit of a “feel out” process with the depth in the frontcourt. What makes this decision so much fun is what we just saw head coach Dusty May do with Danny Wolf, the transfer from Yale. Yaxel has a vast offensive skill set that could be utilized for team success and for improving his draft stock, should he elect to stay in college for an additional year.
Move I Question
Michael Rataj | Forward | Oregon State → Baylor
I have been a huge Michael Rataj fan this season, having him within my Top 50 throughout a huge portion of the season. While I understand Michael's decision to move on from Oregon State to an extent, Baylor was a peculiar choice, in my humble opinion. Baylor has a highly-touted prospect, Tounde Yessoufou, committed to the program. Along with Yessoufou, Dan Skillings Jr. has transferred from Cincinnati. This potential log-jam at forward is only accentuated by the fact that head coach Scott Drew typically focuses on creation and scoring with his guards, which could detract from the overall value Michael Rataj brings to a team.
Move I Like
Xaivian Lee | Guard | Princeton → Florida
Florida seems to be among the best teams in the country at identifying talent in the transfer portal that fits within their team philosophy. Xaivian Lee has been a talented guard over the past two seasons within the Ivy League and opted to play for head coach Todd Golden to help elevate his draft stock. Lee has the ability to make his teammates better with his passing and his scoring, and he should be able to captain this team in a similar manner to what we just saw Walter Clayton Jr. was able to do. While players like Alex Condon and Thomas Haugh are testing the draft waters, they could return to elevate their stock as well. Florida has reloaded, and Xaivian could be the biggest returner of next year’s class as a Gator Boy.
Move I Question
AJ Storr | Wing | Kansas → Mississippi
A lot has been made of the constant churn of places AJ Storr has played basketball over the past few seasons. Coming out of Wisconsin, AJ transferred to the Jayhawks and had a bit of a disappointing season. Kansas looked to reload with a mix of highly-touted high school recruits and transfers, while Storr may look to be the focal point in Oxford. Mississippi plays a very rugged style on both ends, which should theoretically help AJ recover his draft stock. However, that style of play hasn’t necessarily been his M.O. With the departures Mississippi has had, AJ could get the role and volume he has been searching for, but I’m curious about how that impacts winning and his draft outlook.
Move I Like
Alvaro Folgueiras | Forward | Robert Morris → Iowa
After what felt like one of the longer stints in the transfer portal, the highly productive Robert Morris transfer Alvaro Folgueiras committed to play for Ben McCollum’s new team. While Bennett Stirtz is a more well-known draft commodity, Alvaro had a fantastic season as a scorer, rebounder, and defender. Not only has he done well in college, but Alvaro has also had success in international competitions. Several teams lobbied for Folgueiras’s services, including Kentucky. With his 6’9” frame and three point shooting ability, Alvaro should fit well into McCollum’s free-flowing, motion offense, and serve as a strong running mate for Stirtz—should he return.
Move I Question
Mouhamed Dioubate | Forward/Big | Alabama → Kentucky
I was a proponent of Mouhamed Dioubate entering the transfer portal—and I didn’t even hate the decision to play in a Mark Pope style of offense. But, what I am a little troubled by is the number of mouths that will need to be fed in the Kentucky frontcourt. Jayden Quaintance was also brought in through the portal, and he figures to be heavily featured as a top draft prospect. International forward/big man, Andrija Jelavic, has also committed to play in Lexington. Malachi Moreno—a top big man prospect coming in from high school—has also signed his letter of intent to play for Coach Pope. Even if you feel Mouhamed could play the three, Kam Williams was brought in from Tulane. With all of this talent, I’m concerned Dioubate could just be a cog in the machine, rather than being a featured focus.
Move I Like
Carter Welling | Big | Utah Valley → Clemson
With names like Viktor Lakhin, PJ Hall, Hunter Tyson, and Ian Schieffelin having a good bit of success playing for head coach Brad Brownell, Carter Welling seems like an awesome fit. Carter had a great season for Utah Valley, showing a nice blend of size, skill, and feel. Welling will be coming to Clemson with several other frontcourt players, but he will likely get some burn at the four and the five. Welling brings some ability to play high-low, which will endear him to the collegiate level, along with the rebounding and floor spacing that NBA teams will covet. Carter doesn’t have the same amount of hype as some previously-mentioned players, but Welling could be a long play as an NBA-level prospect.
Move I Question
Kanon Catchings | Wing/Forward | BYU → Georgia
Kanon Catchings had an up-and-down season for BYU, but left a lot of people encouraged with his upside. With BYU adding one of the top prospects in the 2025-2026 class, AJ Dybantsa, it would make sense for Kanon to try to find a team where he could be a higher usage player. Moving to Georgia seems like a peculiar route to go to do that, though. Georgia typically finishes towards the bottom of the SEC rankings, which could mean we have a smaller sample of games for Catchings. Besides that, neither Georgia’s play style nor the outline of their roster seems conducive to his skill set. Last season, the Bulldogs were 111th in effective field goal percentage and 220th in three-point percentage. The year before, they ranked 224th and 175th in those same fields, respectively. Kanon could help in those areas, but he would likely be the guy teams key in on to stop on offense.
Move I Like
Max Green | Wing/Forward | Holy Cross → Northwestern
I wrote about Max Green in my Sicko Scouting Notes back in mid-February. What stands out about his game is his size, shooting, and some ability to create off the bounce. One thing I mentioned in that piece was how Max would eventually have to move up in competition if the NBA is the goal. This move to Northwestern is the perfect fit. The Wildcats run an efficient offense that converts many shots from deep. Max brings that sort of offense and will only be a sophomore next season, and could be playing with Brooks Barnhizer and Nick Martinelli if everything goes according to plan. Green may not be the initial focal point for head coach Chris Collins, but I think a 2 through 4 lineup of Max, Nick, and Brooks could be a special foundation for a starting lineup.
Move I Question
Taylor Bol Bowen | Forward | Florida State → Alabama
I get why Taylor Bol Bowen would be interested in playing for Alabama. Coach Nate Oats runs an efficient and effective offense. The Tide typically value the length and athleticism Bowen brings. Where the questions start for me is how he will be utilized for this team. Taylor can block shots and even started to space the floor this year, but this team typically runs deep lineups. If the idea is for Bowen to fill the Jarin Stevenson role, Jarin came off the bench and averaged less than 19 MPG. If he fills the Mouhamed Dioubate role, Dioubate only played 16 MPG. Those two transferred as well, with a larger role seemingly waiting in the wings. If guys who succeeded within this program and were projected to have a large role felt like they had to transfer, how are we supposed to feel confident with Taylor’s decision?
Move I Like
Jalil Bethea | Guard | Miami → Alabama
Honestly, I’ve wrestled with how I feel about this move for Jalil Bethea. I wasn’t super high on Jalil coming into the year, and his disappointing season with the Hurricanes didn’t come as much of a surprise. So, why did I land on liking this move for Jalil? Even when I’m lower on a player, I still want them to succeed. Looking at the recent track record of guards at Alabama, I think this could be the place where Bethea could recover his draft stock. His size and suddenness fit the SEC conference, and he is likely to be more creative in a Coach Oates offense. There is plenty of work that Bethea will have to put in individually—to include getting stronger—but I think he could thrive in this system.
Move I Question
Keonte Jones | Wing | Cal State Northridge → USC
In the aforementioned Sicko Scouting Notes piece I referenced for Max Green, Keonte Jones was also included. Jones built up a significant amount of buzz playing for a smaller conference team and putting up ridiculous numbers. Of course, I agree with the decision to transfer up, but USC worries me a little bit. The Trojans have just grabbed at talent over the past couple of seasons, seemingly without worrying about fit. I feel last season’s team was constructed a little better, while having an abundance of depth. One could argue that, for now, the depth could be a bit more favorable for Keonte to have a sizeable role. However, there are some “style of play” flags that are concerning on paper. With the names of the players USC grabbed last year not receiving any sort of boost to their draft stock, I’m worried that Jones could be another casualty of a poorly constructed team.
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