In the modern era of college athletics, players hitting the transfer portal in search of better financial opportunity has become relatively commonplace.
Successful teams aren’t immune to this either, as the 2023-24 Alabama men’s basketball team lost seven players to the portal despite the team advancing to the program’s first ever Final Four.
But is the grass greener on the other side? Here’s a look at how each transfer player has fared since departing the Capstone.
Kris Parker, guard (transferred to Villanova, then to UCF)
Parker redshirted the 2023-24 season as a true freshman and didn’t see the floor in his lone year in Tuscaloosa.
He did appear to enjoy his time at Alabama upon his exit, though, telling The Tuscaloosa News that “Tuscaloosa was incredible.”
The Tallahassee, Florida, native decided to transfer to Villanova but did not live up to his four-star billing out of high school, averaging just 2.6 points and 1.4 rebounds per game off the bench for the Wildcats.
Following the disappointing stint in eastern Pennsylvania last season, Parker entered his name into the transfer portal for a second time and committed to play at Central Florida this season.
Rylan Griffen, guard (transferred to Kansas, then to Texas A&M)
Griffen spent his first two years of college in Tuscaloosa and was a staple of the team’s starting lineup in 2023-24 season, starting 33 games for the Crimson Tide during its run to the Final Four.
He improved his shooting across the board, quickly becoming one of the most impactful players on the team and a fan favorite. He shot 45.4% from the field, 39.2% from 3 and 81% from the free throw line.
“I was really happy to see him play well on offense,” Alabama head coach Nate Oats said in Nov. 2023 after Griffen’s hot start to the season. “You like for the guys that are about the right stuff to get rewarded.”
His value as a shooter made him a huge fish in the transfer portal, which he decided to enter after the team’s NCAA tournament run.
Griffen landed in Kansas with both sides hoping he could make an immediate impact on the team’s national title aspirations; however, he was not nearly as productive as he was the season before.
His averages went down in just about every statistical category. This included a dropoff to shooting 37.2% from the field and 33.6% from deep. Additionally, his free throw efficiency took a nosedive, dropping to 67.5%.
The Jayhawks were a first round exit in the NCAA tournament as a 7-seed, and Griffen hit the road soon after, entering the transfer portal for a second time.
There were rumors of a reunion in Tuscaloosa, with Griffen even taking a visit in April, but he ultimately decided to return to his home state of Texas, committing to Texas A&M.
Davin Cosby Jr., guard (transferred to Wake Forest, then to Kennesaw State)
At Alabama, Cosby mostly came off the bench for the Crimson Tide, appearing in 22 games in 2023-24. He averaged 3.6 points per game while shooting 36.6% from the field during Alabama’s run.
Cosby transferred to Wake Forest and appeared in 17 games for the Demon Deacons. He averaged a career high 5.6 points per game on a similar shooting clip of 31.3% last season.
However, it appears that the former four-star recruit did not find much of a home in Winston-Salem, re-entering the transfer portal in March and committing to Kennesaw State in April.
Mohamed Wague, forward (transferred to Oklahoma)
Wague originally transferred to Alabama in 2023 from West Virginia and became a role player, mostly off the bench for the Crimson Tide during his tenure in Tuscaloosa.
The 6-foot-10 big man averaged 3.1 points per game during the 2023-24 season and entered the transfer portal for his senior year at the conclusion of the season.
He ultimately chose to take his talents to Norman, Oklahoma, to play for the Sooners in the program’s first year of SEC play.
“Mo brings a ton of high-level experience at West Virginia and Alabama,” Oklahoma head coach Porter Moser said after Wague announced his decision to transfer to his team. “He brings us an athletic and long presence who plays with extreme toughness. Mo is a rim protector but showcases his athleticism by getting up and down the floor.”
Wague marks the first player on this list to actually play a regular season game against his former team in 2024-25, falling to the Crimson Tide in the SEC opener at Coleman Coliseum 107-79. He scored just two points in five minutes of play for the Sooners.
Wague appeared in 33 games for Oklahoma last year and averaged 3.9 points per game, a slight boost from his season at Alabama.
Last season was expected to be Wague’s last year at the collegiate level due to eligibility restrictions; however, the NCAA granted a waiver that allows athletes who competed at a non-NCAA school, which Wague did for his freshman year before attending West Virginia, one or more years to remain eligible to compete in 2025-26, barring the use of their final season of eligibility during the 2024-25 season.
He is expected to return to play for the Sooners for his final year of eligibility this upcoming season.
Nick Pringle, forward (transferred to South Carolina, then to Arkansas)
2025 will mark Pringle’s fourth school in five years after beginning his career with Wofford, joining the Crimson Tide for two years, doing a year-long stint with South Carolina and now spending year five at Arkansas.
Pringle was a key contributor during the team’s Final Four run, stepping up for injured players throughout the tournament and starting 16 games throughout the 2023-24 season. He ended the season with 6.8 points per game on 62.3% shooting and reeled in 5.1 rebounds per game.
He was a highly sought after target from many schools aftering entering his name into the portal. Pringle decided on South Carolina after graduating from Alabama, and looked to become a fixture in the Gamecocks lineup.
He went onto start all 32 of South Carolina’s games and averaged 9.5 points per game on 57.2% shooting, while collecting 6.3 rebounds per game.
Pringle also faced off against the Crimson Tide in 2024-25, scoring 13 points in a 88-68 loss in Columbia on January 8.
He will now join legendary coach John Calipari and use his final year of eligibility to play in Fayetteville for the Arkansas Razorbacks.
Sam Walters, forward (transferred to Michigan, then to SMU)
Walters was a key contributor off the bench for Alabama during his freshman year, knocking down timely 3-pointers, while also becoming a fan favorite for his personality.
He averaged 5.4 points per game while wearing crimson, shooting 39.4% from long-range.
Walters ultimately transferred to Michigan where he looked like a valuable asset to the Wolverines, with his coach Dusty May commenting on his shooting ability.
“He’s got unlimited range. When he walks in the gym, he’s in range,” May said. “He gets it off quick, and he is confident. If he can see the rim, he’s letting it fly.
Walters suffered a late season back injury that kept him sidelined for more than a month to close the season.
Before the injury, Walters was averaging 5 points per game and 12.7 minutes per game.
Walter re-entered the portal this spring and had a strange sequence of events that resulted in him committing to SMU on April 22, just five days after initially committing to Mississippi State.
Kai Spears, guard (transferred to Marshall)
Spears was a former fan-favorite walk-on who worked his way to a scholarship spot in 2023-24 with Alabama and was able to appear in 11 games.
He averaged 1.2 points per game and shot 40% from the field during his time with the team.
Spears decided to test the mid-major waters by transferring to Marshall, where his father is the Athletic Director ahead of the 2024-25 season. He appeared in 22 games for the Thundering Herd and averaged 1 point per game on 27.3% shooting.
