On April 15th, Stanford men's basketball is diving into the offseason transfer portal, gunning for talent to push toward the NCAA tournament in 20. 26-27. They're casting a wide net bazeroing in on former NC State guard Matt Abel, a four-star recruit who could be a game-changer right away. Abel put up 8.8 points and 3.9 rebounds as a freshman for the Wolf Pack before entering the portal.
He picked NC State over heavy hitters like Alabama and Baylor, but the head coach bolted for LSU, shaking up the program and sending Abel looking for stability and more shine time. Stanford's hurting a guard after losing freshman star Ibuka, Okori to the NBA draft, Ryan Agarwal and Jeremy Dinsmith to the portal, and shooter. Beni Guehler to graduation. The remaining backcourt crew lacks big-minute experience, so fans and coaches are hungry for a vet like Abel who logged 34 games in over 20 minutes of pop and high-stakes spots.
Abel just visited UCLA this week and has seven schools in the mix, including Stanford, Baylor, North Carolina, Miami, Virginia, and UConn. He's moving quick on a decision and in coach Smith's system guards thrive, think Okori this year or Jalen Blakes before and making Abel a seamless plug and play fit. The portal stays open all offseason with high school kids still picking spots, but for Stanford to rebuild momentum, snagging a talent like Abel early could set the tone and get them back in contention. // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // // //