Roster churn continues for Arkansas, with John Calipari getting another spot to fill
More roster changes are coming for Arkansas basketball. DJ Wagner is hitting the transfer portal. Yahoo! Sports has more details:
"Wagner played under John Carlipari for his entire college career so far. Now, he’ll be looking elsewhere to play during his senior season.
"He averaged 7.4 points, 2.4 assists and 1.6 rebounds for Arkansas this past season. He mostly came off the bench this season, though he still averaged 23.6 minutes per game. He went on to start in 19 of 35 games he appeared in after starting in 64 of the first 65 games of his career. On his career, Wagner has played in 100 total games, logging 83 starts with 9.5 points and 2.4 assists per game.
"Arkansas finished its season in the Sweet 16 following a 21-point loss to No. 1 seed Arizona. The Razorbacks ended the year with a 29-8 record, including a 13-5 mark vs. the SEC. Wagner helped Arkansas win to the SEC Tournament championship as well. It was the second-straight Sweet 16 appearance for Arkansas under John Calipari. During Wagner’s lone season at UK, the Wildcats were eliminated in the round of 64 against Oakland.
"As for Wagner, he was a highly-touted recruit coming out of high school. According to the Rivals Industry Rankings, which is a proprietary algorithm that compiles ratings and rankings from all four primary recruiting media services, he was a Five-Star Plus+ guard in the 2023 recruiting class. He was the top-ranked combo guard in his class and No. 7 overall.
"With that type of pedigree, Wagner will likely have a number of suitors trying to acquire his services in the NCAA transfer portal this offseason. Where the Camden, NJ native ends up, for now remains to be seen. What is for sure is that Wagner is now looking for his third college basketball home in four seasons."
The incoming class of guards for Arkansas is very highly-regarded. Wagner made the calculation -- a wise one, it seems -- that he was not going to get extended minutes next season. As it was, Wagner was a reserve this past season, so going someplace where he can start seems to be in his best interests.
As for Arkansas, the move opens up a roster spot. Calipari's need to get a 3-and-D type of player now becomes even more evident. JJ Andrews and Jordan Smith can play defense. Arkansas needs a capable defender who can hit shots to round out its perimeter alignment next season.