Friar Basketball Notebook: Providence Is Poised for a Top‑10 Transfer Haul — What Last Spring’s Winners Teach Us

Plus, Providence offers a pair of top 50 guards from Massachusetts. What to know about their games.

With transfer portal activity starting to slow, it’s safe to say that Providence will wind up with one of the most highly acclaimed classes of the spring.

Even though these rankings don’t include G League addition Dink Pate, the Friars still have a top‑ten group, according to both 247 Sports and CBS.

The writers at 247 rank Providence seventh nationally and tops in the Big East. The Friars headline four Big East schools in 247’s top 25, with Xavier (15), UConn (16), and Villanova (17) all included.

CBS is even higher on the next wave of Friars, ranking Bryan Hodgson’s group third in the country, behind just Indiana and Texas.

The outlier, in terms of national publications, is On3.com, which ranks Providence at No. 34. Their ranking equation takes into account players who have departed from the program, so the losses of Stefan Vaaks (Illinois), Jamier Jones (Missouri), and Oswin Erhunmwunse (Creighton) are considered significant.

Of course, the rankings mean little until November, but for perspective here’s a look at how 247’s top ten classes fared last year:

1. St. John’s: A group headlined by Bryce Hopkins, Dillon Mitchell, Dylan Darling, Ian Jackson, and Joson Sanon helped lead the Johnnies to 30 wins, a Sweet 16 appearance, and Big East regular season and tournament titles. The big caveat here is that the returning Zuby Ejiofor was their catalyst and best player.

2. Michigan: A grand slam for Dusty May, as the Wolverines won the national title behind transfers Yaxel Lendeborg, Aday Mara, Morez Johnson Jr., and Elliot Cadeau. It doesn’t get any better than that.

3. Louisville: Leading scorer Ryan Conwell transferred in from Xavier and helped lead Louisville to 24 wins and a first round NCAA Tournament victory over South Florida, despite playing without star freshman Mikel Brown Jr.

4. Kansas State: Okay, so a top-ten ranking doesn’t guarantee success. K-State was atrocious last year, finishing 3-15 in the Big 12 and 12-20 overall. Head coach Jerome Tang was fired in mid-February.

5. Kentucky: The Wildcats’ spending spree was enough to get them in the top five of 247’s rankings, but not enough to make them a Final Four contender. Kentucky won 22 games last season and reached the round of 32, before being blown out by Iowa State. Injuries to newcomers Jaland Lowe (9 games) and Jayden Quaintance (4 games) were massive for the Cats.

6. Florida: The Gators were outstanding once again (16-2 in the SEC), despite portal additions Xaivian Lee and Boogie Fland being somewhat underwhelming. They were actually that good in spite of their new backcourt. Both came in with huge reps, but they each underachieved.

7. USC: Losers of their final eight games, USC finished 18-14 and 7-13 in the Big Ten. Injuries and defections played a factor here. Maryland transfer Rodney Rice was averaging 20 points and six rebounds per game before going down for the season with a shoulder injury in November. Chad Baker-Mazara (26 years old and playing for his fifth program) was dismissed from the team late in the year.