CHARLOTTE, N.C., — Illinois State University, University of Tennessee, Butler University, University of Virginia, University of Missouri, Stanford University and Clemson University.
Those are the schools where NC State men’s basketball’s top seven scorers from a season ago started their collegiate careers. Five of them were in their first season with the Wolfpack while two had been there for more than a year.
It’s as if head coach Kevin Keatts had his own collection of misfit transfers that led NC State to its first ACC Championship since 1987 and first Final Four in 41 years. But that is the new way of life in college basketball. Instead of rebuilding a team with just high school recruits, most squads retool with veteran players in the portal.
Just look at the other three teams that made the Final Four. Alabama’s top three scorers were transfers. UConn’s top two scorers started their careers elsewhere. Purdue was the only outlier — just one of its top five scorers transferred in.
Ever since transfers didn’t have to sit out a year starting in 2021, Keatts has strategically used the portal to improve his squad. In 2021, he brought in Casey Morsell who was a key player for the last three years. In 2022, he brought in Jarkel Joiner and DJ Burns who helped the Wolfpack make it back to the NCAA Tournament. And of course, last season, the seven players he played during the Pack’s nine-game win streak spanning the ACC and NCAA Tournament were all transfers.
It’s safe to say that Keatts is a black belt in Portal Kombat, but he’s not willing to give away his secrets.
“I’m not going to give you my secret, but I think we have a good formula of bringing in transfers that have been successful,” Keatts said. “When you look at my tenure here, we’ve had some guys who have come in and done a great job for us as transfers.”
This season is no different. Keatts brought in five transfers in the form of senior forwards Brandon Huntley-Hatfield and Dontrez Styles, redshirt junior guard Mike James, senior guard Marcus Hill and junior forward Ismael Diouf.
Like Keatts’ previous teams, these players are expected to play significant roles for the Wolfpack in their first season with the team. Luckily for those five, three transfers from last season are back — graduate guard Michael O’Connell, senior guard Jayden Taylor and senior forward Ben Middlebrooks — and can guide them in their first seasons in Raleigh.
“The biggest thing is to just ask questions,” O’Connell said. “It’s kind of hard to learn things if you don’t ask questions, and if you’re in the dark on information, it’s going to be tough. So whether it’s just about school, about campus or obviously basketball, just don’t be afraid to ask that. No one’s gonna judge you because we had the same exact questions you had last year.”
Last season it took time for NC State to find out its chemistry, almost too late. The Wolfpack ended the season losing 10 of its last 14 games and looked disconnected on the court. At the time, it seemed like all the transfers Keatts put together could not get on the same page and the only legacy they would have at NC State was getting Keatts fired.
But they found out how to play together just at the perfect time to win five games in five days for the ACC Championship and make that improbable run to the Final Four. So for Taylor, his advice to the transfer class is to stay even-keeled during the highs and lows.
“I’m telling them there is going to be some adversity,” Taylor said. “That’s the one thing that’s going to come with basketball and college sports — adversity. But it’s how you get through that adversity. It’s going to test you, but you can’t break so I say just fighting through adversity, because adversity breaks teams. It makes teams too. I feel like it made us last year.”
While he won’t admit it, Keatts’ personality and leadership style are a big reason why transfers have been so successful under him. He’s always seen with a smile on his face and brings energy everywhere he goes.
He even gets the team ice cream after it wins a game on the road. Taylor explained why he loves to play for Keatts.
“I would just say his confidence that he walks with and the joy that he comes in every day with,” Taylor said. “It just kind of inspires you to play hard for somebody who can be so passionate about the game. It’s kind of like we’re playing for him. He believes in us, so it gives you a different type of level of confidence every day.”
When O’Connell visited NC State after he put his name in the portal, Keatts broke down his film and showed him how he could fit in the offense and where he could see him grow with the Wolfpack.
That left a lasting impression on O’Connell and was a big part of why he chose NC State to finish his college career.
“When you have a coach when you first get there and he’s telling you, ‘I know I can help you get better as long as you’re willing to buy into something,’ that’s huge,” O’Connell said. “You just know he’s confident. When you have a coach who has confidence in you on the court, it makes the game so much easier. You don’t have to worry about looking over your shoulder if you messed up.”
Keatts has indeed leaned heavily on the portal to find talent as of late, but he’s still hitting the high school recruiting trail. He brought in two four-star prospects in freshmen guards Paul McNeil and Bryce Heard along with three-star guard Trey Parker.
Those three might play a role on this year’s squad, but expect NC State’s main producers to be composed of players who started their careers elsewhere. If last year’s squad proved anything, that might not be a bad thing.
