Arkansas and Ole Miss listed as SEC basketball teams that struggled in the transfer portal.

The transfer portal has become a cornerstone of roster-building in college basketball, rivaling or even surpassing the importance of signing top high school recruits. The days of relying solely on long-term player development are fading, with SEC programs increasingly using the portal to retool quickly and stay competitive. While freshmen remain vital for sustained success, adding experienced, ready-to-play transfers has become a game-changer.

Every SEC team has leaned heavily into the transfer portal in recent years, and last season’s top teams—Florida, Alabama, and Auburn—illustrate its impact, with their key players coming via transfers. This offseason, all 16 SEC teams added multiple portal players, but some programs capitalized better than others. Below, we highlight three SEC teams that struggled in the transfer market, emerging as relative “losers” in this cycle.

**Arkansas Razorbacks**
John Calipari, known for his success with freshmen, leaned on the transfer portal last offseason to build a roster that led Arkansas to a surprising Sweet Sixteen run in his first year. Despite that success, Calipari shifted focus this offseason, prioritizing highly rated high school recruits over aggressive portal activity. This approach left Arkansas underwhelming in the transfer market.

The Razorbacks lost significant talent to the portal, including Zvonimir Ivisic (to Illinois) and Boogie Fland (to Florida), alongside departures like Adou Thiero and Johnell Davis. To offset these losses, Arkansas added just two transfers: Nick Pringle (9.5 ppg, 6.3 rpg from South Carolina) and Malique Ewin (14.2 ppg, 7.6 rpg). While both are solid big men, they don’t address the team’s critical need for experienced guards. A veteran playmaker could have elevated this transfer class, but with only two additions, Arkansas’s portal haul feels lackluster.

**Ole Miss Rebels**
Chris Beard’s transfer-heavy roster fueled a surprising Sweet Sixteen run last season, but this year’s roster overhaul was less inspiring. With most of last season’s squad—seven of the top eight scorers—either graduating or transferring out, only Malik Dia remained as a key contributor. Beard responded by adding five Power 5 transfers, but the group lacks the firepower needed for a team desperate for scoring.

The additions include James Scott (7.1 ppg, 6.1 rpg from Louisville), Koren Johnson (3.0 ppg, 1.5 rpg from Louisville), Travis Perry (2.7 ppg, 0.8 rpg from Kentucky), AJ Storr (6.1 ppg, 1.7 rpg from Kansas), and Corey Chest (6.1 ppg, 6.6 rpg from LSU). Storr, who averaged nearly 17 points two seasons ago at Wisconsin, is the only proven scorer, but his lackluster performance at Kansas raises concerns about his ability to carry the offense. Beard’s coaching prowess is undeniable, but this transfer class lacks the high-impact scoring needed to replicate last season’s success.

**South Carolina Gamecocks**
South Carolina showed promise last season despite winning only two SEC games, but their lack of offensive firepower in clutch moments held them back. The offseason brought significant roster turnover, with most players either graduating, transferring, or, in the case of star forward Collin Murray-Boyles, declaring for the NBA Draft. The Gamecocks needed to add significant scoring but fell short in the portal.

Their top addition is Meechie Johnson (9.1 ppg, 2.5 rpg), a familiar face who previously led South Carolina with 14.1 points per game two seasons ago. Other transfers include Nordin Kapic (10.7 ppg, 5.5 rpg from UC San Diego), Kobe Knox (10.8 ppg, 3.1 rpg from South Florida), Mike Sharavjamts (7.2 ppg, 3.4 rpg from Utah), Elijah Strong (9.6 ppg, 4.1 rpg from Boston College), and Christ Essandoko (4.3 ppg, 3.9 rpg from Providence). While these players posted decent numbers, none were primary scoring options at their previous stops. The hope is that Johnson can rediscover his scoring touch and the group can gel, but this transfer class lacks the elite scoring punch needed to turn things around. For coach Lamont Paris, whose job security is shaky, this modest portal haul might not be enough to secure his future.

In a conference where the transfer portal often dictates immediate success, these three programs missed opportunities to bolster their rosters effectively, potentially impacting their competitiveness in the upcoming season.