Winning in the transfer portal is not always just chasing stars. It’s finding players who fit a vision and role, and putting them in a system that pulls out their greatest strengths. Often, that’s where the wins happen. Or, in this new NIL world, where the bargains are found.
Over the last week, I’ve been studying the portal fits I liked best this spring. These are not necessarily the best prospects, but the players who fit a need and also went to programs where they’re likely set up to excel.
These five portal marriages should lead to happiness for both parties.
Ty’Reek Coleman, Iowa
2025-26 stats (at Illinois State): 10.0 points, 2.7 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 0.9 steals per game
The Athletic transfer portal rank: unranked
Hawkeyes coach Ben McCollum has an eye for point guards. He found Trevor Hudgins from Manhattan, Kan., and Hudgins was a back-to-back National Player of the Year in Division II and went on to play for the Houston Rockets. He brought Bennett Stirtz to Northwest Missouri State, and Stirtz is about to be a first-round NBA Draft pick after following McCollum to Drake and Iowa, where the Hawkeyes went on an Elite Eight run this year.
Coleman could be next. His counting stats were not spectacular in his freshman season at Illinois State, but he was on a talented team and often deferred to upperclassmen. There is a lot to like when you look beyond the numbers and study the tape.
His effort and instincts defensively jump off the screen. He’s always putting pressure on the ball and is willing to make multiple efforts:
Offensively, McCollum has his point guards working out of a lot of ball screens. The sample size isn’t big, but Coleman was the most efficient player in college hoops of anyone who finished at least 70 pick-and-roll plays, per Synergy.
What Coleman does best is get paint touches and make great paint decisions. He plays under control and makes the right read when he sees traffic, willing to find the open man:
This is going to play great at Iowa, where patience is preached and McCollum will surround Coleman with shooters. The beauty with the Hawkeyes is if you pitch it out and re-space, the ball will often come back to you. Coleman has shown the ability to make 3s (41.6 percent) and does his best work attacking closeouts, which plays like the one below will happen frequently in the Iowa offense.
It wouldn’t be surprising to see Coleman’s usage go up in Iowa’s guard-friendly offense. Coleman isn’t likely to get Stirtz-like usage as a sophomore, but McCollum is sure to find ways to utilize his speed and generate as many paint touches as possible.
David Punch, Texas
2025-26 stats (at TCU): 14.1 points, 2.0 assists, 6.8 rebounds, 1.9 blocks and 1.3 steals per game
The Athletic transfer portal rank: 7
Among teams that overhauled through the transfer portal and spent big this spring, Texas was as thoughtful as any at building a roster that fit how its coach wants to play. In Sean Miller’s year away after getting fired at Arizona, he studied the Gonzaga continuity ball-screen offense and has implemented it since, upping his team’s usage of ball screens and post-ups.
Last spring, Miller struck gold in the transfer portal with the addition of Matas Vokietaitis, who averaged 10.2 points per game as a freshman at Florida Atlantic and surprisingly saw his production shoot up (15.6 ppg) moving up a level to the SEC. Miller thrives with two-big lineups, and the best Gonzaga teams always have two bigs and usually a skilled power forward who can pass.
That’s why landing Punch was so important. Punch does his best work around the basket, but he’s also comfortable handling the ball on the perimeter and he’s a good passer.
Punch is not quite as gifted as Dailyn Swain in the playmaking category, but he could be more dynamic in Miller’s offense because of his ability to score with his back to the basket.
With Miller also adding 6-foot-8 Elyjah Freeman from Auburn, he has a big, imposing frontcourt that should be able to dominate the glass and massively improve a defense that ranked 83rd in adjusted efficiency last year. They’re also going to live at the line.
Miller was also smart to go grab two guards comfortable playing out of ball screens in Isaiah Johnson and Mikey Lewis. The only real question mark I have is whether Texas can get enough shooting at the 3-4 spots. If the Horns can at least make enough 3s to keep defenses honest, then Punch and Vokietaitis should be able to eat playing alongside guards who can get them the ball in advantageous positions.
On paper, it looks like Texas spent wisely, and Punch could be UT’s version of Yaxel Lendeborg that takes the Horns from good to great.
J.P. Estrella is one of the transfer bigs who will try to replicate the success Michigan had with its frontcourt last season. (Gregory Shamus / Getty Images)
J.P. Estrella, Michigan
2025-26 stats (at Tennessee): 10.0 points and 5.4 rebounds in 18.3 minutes per game, a 60.4 effective-field goal percentage
The Athletic transfer portal rank: 25
Estrella is a big who can pass and probably wasn’t utilized as much as he should have been at Tennessee based on his skill level.
What could that look like when moving to Michigan?
| MPG | PPG | RPG | APG | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Mara (24-25 at UCLA) |
13.1 |
6.4 |
4 |
1 |
|
Mara (25-26 at Michigan) |
23.4 |
12.1 |
6.8 |
2.4 |
Estrella, at 6-11, is not exactly an apples-to-apples comparison to Aday Mara, but he could be a blend between Mara and Danny Wolf, who also saw his assist rate increase in the Michigan offense after transferring from Yale in 2024-25. Estrella’s assist rate was not as high as either Mara or Wolf before their moves to Michigan, but the passes he’s able to make suggest he’s capable of being the type of hub Mara and Wolf were for the Wolverines.
Estrella is excellent out of short rolls:
You can also have some fun with some creative play designs like this one he’s able to execute:
And in the two-big lineups that Dusty May loves to play — Estrella figures to start next to 7-foot-2 Moustapha Thiam — and Estrella is great delivering high-low entries:
Then, similar to Mara, he’s more deserving of low-post touches because of his efficiency. Estrella has one of the best jump hooks in college basketball. Among players who shot at least 50 hooks last year, he ranked second in percentage of makes (58.6 percent), per Synergy. Estrella also had the eighth-best offensive rebounding rate in college hoops and is a capable 3-point shooter who will probably get the green light to shoot more at Michigan — he made 4 of 10 3s last season.
The Vols were better on both ends when Estrella was on the floor. Tennessee had a lot of depth up front, but his production and efficiency suggest he should have been playing more than 18.3 minutes per game. The same was true for Mara at UCLA. I’m not predicting Estrella’s impact will be as great as Mara’s, but he’s another big man who could make May look smart.
Sananda Fru, Marquette
2025-26 stats (at Louisville): 9.0 points, 6.1 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 1.4 blocks per game, made 76.5 percent of his 2s
The Athletic transfer portal rank: 39
Marquette’s two best offensive years under Shaka Smart were when Smart unleashed center Oso Ighodaro as a playmaker.
Smart finally went portal shopping this year after a down year and found what could be his next Ighodaro in Fru, who shows the flashes on tape with similar athleticism and advanced numbers as Ighodaro before his junior year explosion.
| Off. rating | %Poss | Ast. Rate | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Ighodaro (21-22) |
124.4 |
13.5 |
9.1 |
|
Ighodaro (22-23) |
123.8 |
18.2 |
18.2 |
|
Fru (25-26) |
131.3 |
17.8 |
10.2 |
|
Fru (26-27) |
?? |
?? |
?? |
Ighodaro had the freedom to bring the ball up because of his ballhandling. That’s probably the biggest question mark with whether Fru can be used similarly, but there is proof of him looking capable of putting it on the floor:
Fru can make the type of passes that Ighodaro made for Marquette, whether it was feeding cutters or a quick-connecting dribble-handoff.
One of Smart’s greatest strengths is empowering his players to grow their games. It’s one reason he bet on development over hitting the portal every year. If he can pull off something similar with a portal player in Fru, then Marquette could find itself back in the NCAA Tournament.
Sam Orme, Nebraska
2025-26 stats (at Belmont): 12.7 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists per game, a 65.1 effective field-goal percentage
The Athletic transfer portal rank: 91
Nebraska coach Fred Hoiberg pairs well with players who see the game on both ends. Hoiberg runs a lot of sets that require multiple reads and the best shots often come behind the play once switches happen or the Huskers get the defense in rotation. Defensively, Nebraska runs a no-middle system that requires defenders to really pay attention off the ball. Anyone who can see and process what is happening is going to be a good fit.
That’s where Orme jumps off the screen. Orme is a perfect role player and a great fit for Nebraska at the 4 spot vacated by Berke Buyuktuncel.
Nebraska is going to miss Buyuktuncel’s length and physicality on the defensive end and offensive glass, but Orme should be an upgrade on offense, and his ability to process the game should help make up for his physical tools not quite being on Buyuktuncel’s level.
Defenses were willing to leave Buyuktuncel wide open on the perimeter and he rarely made them pay, making only 24.1 percent of his 3s. Orme is not an elite shooter but he shot 38.7 percent from 3 in two seasons at Belmont.
Most of Nebraska’s actions will be to set up shooters Pryce Sandfort, Braden Frager and Connor Essegian, and sometimes the best way to take those shots away is through switching. Orme is smart at recognizing when he gets a smaller defender on him and punishing in the post:
Orme is also a smart cutter, reading his defender and timing it correctly on drives:
Nebraska was an elite cutting team last season, and that ability to read and react will play well in Hoiberg’s offense.
Nebraska defensive coordinator Nate Loenser will also appreciate Orme’s ability to read the game on that end. He can anticipate an action coming and bait the offense into throwing a pass, as he does here against this Illinois State flare action:
These glue guys can be the difference between average and good teams, and Orme was a smart add. I’m not sure this group will be able to match the size and physicality of Hoiberg’s Sweet 16 team this past year, but Orme could improve Nebraska’s offensive efficiency and make up the difference if the defense slips.
Orme is a great example of the importance of finding lower-usage glue guys. It’s easy to see Orme fitting a specific role, because how Nebraska will ask him to play is very similar to what he just did at Belmont.