Impact Transfers

Author:
SI Staff
Publish date:
Nov 8, 2011

Impact Transfers

Chris Allen

The Cyclones could start as many as four transfers, but Allen is the most recognizable name. The fifth-year senior started and averaged 8.2 points per game as a three-point terror for Michigan State in 2009-10, playing on two Final Four teams in his East Lansing tenure. He was kicked off the Spartans before the 2010-11 season, reasons unspecified. Allen will be a prominent part of Fred Hoiberg's plan to improve upon last year's Big 12-worst 3-13 conference record.

Carlon Brown

Both Brown's old school and new school are entering the Pac-12 this season. Colorado won 24 games last year but missed the NCAA tournament for the eighth straight season. The Buffaloes must replace leading scorer Alec Burks and 75 percent of their overall scoring. The 6-foot-5 Brown will be counted on to step up, given he led the Utes with 12.6 points per game in his last season in Salt Lake City.

Matt Carlino

Carlino first committed to Indiana, then left UCLA as a freshman with a record of zero games played and one concussion. Last year wasn't a total loss, though, as he guarded Jimmer Fredette in practice with the Cougars. Carlino won't be eligible to play until mid-December but is in the running to replace Fredette as the starting point guard once he gets going.

Justin Cobbs

Cobbs, a 6-foot-2 sophomore, could start at the point for Mike Montgomery, though the coach warned that Cobbs has trouble keeping his focus. Cobbs left Minnesota after playing 10 minutes per game as a freshman and sought to play closer to his Torrance, Calif., home. Expectations are high for the Golden Bears, who return four starters and were voted to finish second to UCLA in the Pac-12 this season.

Kevin Dillard

First-year Dayton coach Archie Miller expects big things from Dillard, who led Southern Illinois in points and assists in both of his seasons in Carbondale. The 2008 Illinois Mr. Basketball won the 2008-09 Missouri Valley Player of the Year and led the league in assists as a sophomore before transferring in May 2010. Dillard delivered in the first exhibition game, scoring 16 points.

Aaron Fuller

USC returns just one starter, point guard Maurice Jones, but four transfers could play major minutes for Kevin O'Neill. Fuller is the known commodity. He could slot his 6-foot-6, 235-pound frame in at power forward or, at times, small forward if the Trojans go big with their two 7-footers. In 2010, Fuller paced Iowa with 12.3 points and 7.6 rebounds per game in conference play, earning All-Big Ten honorable mention.

Justin Hamilton

Hamilton's transfer after playing two seasons with the Cyclones was head-scratching. He said he wanted to play closer to home (he's from Utah) and promptly picked LSU (Baton Rouge is 500 miles farther from Utah than Ames is). The 7-footer was a two-year starter for the Cyclones and provides a complement to freshman Johnny O'Bryant III, a 6-foot-9 McDonald's All-American. Coach Trent Johnson has reportedly tabbed Hamilton to start.

Pierre Jackson

SI's Seth Davis called Jackson the Bears' X factor . The 5-foot-10 point guard was the national junior college player of the year, scoring 18.6 points with 4.4 assists per game and winning the national championship. He could supplant A.J. Walton as the Bears' starting point guard.

Lamont 'MoMo' Jones

Jones learned in late October he'd be able to play for Iona this season, receiving a hardship waiver from the NCAA as he wished to move closer to his Harlem home to be with his ailing grandmother. Iona, the preseason MAAC favorite, gets the starting point guard from Arizona's Pac-10 title and Elite Eight team. With the junior Jones, Iona is absolutely loaded. The Gaels also return preseason MAAC Player of the Year Mike Glover, the league's leading returning scorer and rebounder.

Devoe Joseph

Joseph left Minnesota in the middle of last season after being suspended for the first six games for a violation of team rules. A sixth man/combo guard with the Gophers, Joseph averaged 11.3 points per game in that shortened junior season. He won't be eligible to play for the Ducks until Dec. 10. If Joseph impresses, he could unseat senior Garrett Sim as the starting point guard.

Kenny Kadji

Kadji could never find a role in Florida's frontcourt behind Vernon Macklin, Alex Tyus, Erik Murphy and Patric Young. He made it through seven games in 2009-10 before undergoing back surgery in February 2010 and opting to leave that July. Kadji, a 6-foot-11 native of Cameroon, has three years of eligibility with the Hurricanes. With centers Reggie Johnson and Julian Gamble suffering significant knee injuries, Kadji should get starter's minutes right away. However, coach Jim Larranaga suspended Kadji for a Nov. 3 preseason game due to a violation of "team expectations."

Jelan Kendrick

A McDonald's All-American, Kendrick was dismissed from Memphis a day after its season opener last year for reported "disruptive behavior." He didn't play a second for the Tigers. Kendrick landed at rival Ole Miss over West Virginia and could start once eligible in December at shooting guard for Andy Kennedy.

Sam Maniscalco

Nobody expects Maniscalco to fill Demetri McCamey's shoes at the point, especially given his two ankle surgeries in the last year. He already sat out the Illini's first exhibition game. But, Illinois must replace a bevy of minutes after losing four starters plus troubled but talented freshman Jereme Richmond. If Bruce Weber employs a three-guard attack, Maniscalco, who averaged 13.1 points per game at Bradley two years ago, could join up with juniors Brandon Paul and D.J. Richardson.

Mike Moser

Moser changed his commitment from Arizona to UCLA but played scant minutes in 15 games for the Bruins in 2009-10. Moser could be new coach Dave Rice's top scorer -- he co-led the Rebels with 14 points in their exhibition opener as the starting power forward.

Arnett Moultrie

Moultrie departed UTEP after coach Tony Barbee bolted for Auburn. The Bulldogs hope Moultrie. 6-foot-11, can team with troubled 6-foot-10 Renardo Sidney for a twin towers frontcourt. It was evident in the exhibition opener as both players recorded double-doubles. At UTEP, Moultrie started 67 games in two seasons, scoring 9.3 points per game with 7.5 rebounds and also played for Team USA at the 2009 FIBA U-19 World Championships. He has two years of eligibility left.

Romero Osby

Osby fits into first-year coach Lon Kruger's starting lineup at power forward after leaving Starkville in the summer of 2010. He hopes to be the physical, rebounding presence the Sooners lacked last year, a forgettable 14-18 campaign that led to Jeff Capel's firing. Osby transferred because he wanted more minutes than at Mississippi State, where he played two years with three total starts. It looks like he'll get plenty of run for OU.

Mike Rosario

Rosario was Rutgers' leading scorer as a freshman (16.2 ppg) and a sophomore (16.7 ppg) but grew disenchanted with the program's poor record, deciding to transfer and, in the same week, choosing Florida. He won't be asked to shoulder the load for the Gators, who already boast Kenny Boynton and Erving Walker in the backcourt.

Rakim Sanders

Fairfield will look very different this season. New coach. New star. Sydney Johnson was hired from Princeton to replace Ed Cooley, a former assistant at Boston College who took the Providence job. Sanders intended to play his final college season for Cooley when he transferred in April 2010. The 6-foot-5 forward actually picked Fairfield over Providence, and the two schools will play each other Nov. 14. Sanders averaged at least 11 points per game in all three seasons at BC and is now one of the MAAC's marquee players. Fairfield returns four starters from a school-record 25-win team, looking to catch preseason favorite Iona and make its first NCAA tournament in 15 years.

Dominique Sutton

Sutton, a Durham native, left Kansas State to be closer to home after the 2009-10 season, when he started as a junior for the 29-win Wildcats. Sutton's bid for a hardship waiver was declined, and he sat out a year. So his arrival coincides with North Carolina Central's first year as a Division I team in the MEAC.

Travis Taylor

Taylor, a 6-foot-7 power forward, was Monmouth's leading scorer in 2009-10, averaging 17.8 points and 7.6 rebounds per game. Taylor, who has two years of eligbility remaining, could start right away for a Xavier squad again expected to challenge for the A-10 title.

Xavier Thames

Thames was tabbed the Mountain West's Preseason Newcomer of the Year for good reason. Steve Fisher has already made him the starting point guard. Thames transferred after one season at Washington State, where he made four starts in 2009-10. The Aztecs also welcome LSU transfer Garrett Green, a center.

Elston Turner

The sharpshooter started three games for Washington as a sophomore but was relegated to bench duty for the rest of the 2009-10 season and chose to transfer afterward. He wanted to be closer to his Missouri City, Texas, home. Turner led the Aggies with 13.8 points per game in their four-game European tour.

David Wear

David and his twin brother, Travis, both left North Carolina following their freshman seasons in 2009-10 for reasons unknown. They were McDonald's All-Americans at Mater Dei High School in Huntington Beach, Calif. David averaged 2.9 points and 1.7 rebounds per game for the Tar Heels and is expected to play small forward for the Bruins.

Travis Wear

Travis was a bit more productive than his brother at UNC, posting 3.5 points per game. He slots in at power forward or center for Ben Howland. UCLA's frontcourt is extremely deep, so the Wear twins will be battling for minutes.

Royce White

White is the Big 12 preseason newcomer of the year and may just end up being the most impactful transfer this season. He and three other transfers are expected to infuse talent for Fred Hoiberg's Cyclones, who were last in the Big 12 in 2010-11. White is 6-foot-8 and 270 pounds, but he's never played a college game. Tubby Smith suspended him following legal troubles as a freshman two years ago.

Jamil Wilson

Wilson made 14 starts for the Ducks as a freshman in 2009-10 before deciding to move closer to his Racine, Wis., home. If the 6-foot-7 Wilson can live up to his prep pedigree, he could take the departed Jimmy Butler's spot in the Buzz Williams' lineup.

Brandon Wood

Wood already appears set in Tom Izzo's starting lineup as the Spartans need somebody to step up at guard with Kalin Lucas, Korie Lucious and Chris Allen gone. Wood graduated from Valparaiso earlier this year but still has a year of eligibility remaining, allowing him to play immediately under NCAA transfer rules. Wood led Valpo with 16.7 points per game last season, making the All-Horizon League team.

Impact Transfers