Former Cal Wing Jalen Celestine Settles on Next School: Baylor

Celestine was Cal's top perimeter shooter last season, converting 44% from 3-point range.

Former Cal wing Jalen Celestine / Photo by Darren Yamashita, USA Today

Former Cal wing Jalen Celestine, who entered the transfer portal on April 1, has settled on a new school: Baylor.

Jeff Goodman first reported the news that Celestine, a 6-foot-6 junior, would join the Bears of the Big 12 Conference.

Celestine averaged 8.7 points and 3.2 rebounds last season, posting the lowest scoring mark of Cal’s five starters. But he ranked second in the Pac-12 in 3-point accuracy, making 44 percent from beyond the arc.

He scored double digits 11 times last season, including 21 points in the opener vs. St. Thomas.

A native of Glen Head, N.Y., Celestine was recruited to Cal by former coach Mark Fox. He spent four seasons in Berkeley, but missed all of the 2022-23 season due to a knee injury.

In 80 games with Cal, the former three-star high school prospect averaged 6.6 points, 2.8 rebounds and made 40 percent of his 3-point attempts.

Celestine will join a Baylor squad that was 24-11 last season and lost in the second round of the NCAA tournament for the third straight year. Coach Scott Drew’s squad won the 2021 national championship, routing Gonzaga 86-70 in the title game.