Providence is on the board in the 2024 transfer portal with the commitment of point guard Bensley Joseph
When Kim English took over at Providence last spring he made the decision to go with a younger, high-upside duo at point guard by retaining Jayden Pierre (then a freshman) and pairing him with a top 40 prospect in Garwey Dual. While Pierre made strides in his second year with the program, it became apparent that the Friars could have benefitted from another experienced hand running the offense.
That won’t be the case next season, however, as Providence returns Pierre for his junior year and picked up a commitment from Miami transfer Bensley Joseph on Friday afternoon.
In Joseph, the Friars are getting a point guard who shouldn’t be fazed by anything he sees next year. During his freshman season, Miami reached the Elite 8, falling to eventual national champion Kansas, and when he was a sophomore the Canes went a step further — making it to the Final Four and losing to Connecticut in the semifinals. Good luck finding a stage that feels too big for him at this point of his career.
This is a homecoming of sorts for Joseph, who was born in Miami but moved to Arlington, MA at a young age. On the grassroots circuit with Expressions Elite and during a prep career that took him from Cushing Academy to Putnam Science, the lefty developed a reputation as one of the more charismatic leaders and tougher defenders at the point guard spot in New England. Coming out of high school, Joseph’s jump shot and size were the two biggest question marks, but he has shot 37% from distance over his three-year career at Miami, and is a well-built 6’2 guard at this stage of his career.
Providence was one of the schools pushing hardest for a commitment from Joseph coming out of high school, but he chose Miami over the Friars and a number of other high major programs.
The Hurricanes took a step back as a program this season, finishing 15-17 overall while Joseph averaged 9.6 points, 3.4 assists, and 3.4 rebounds, and shot 37% from three and 79% at the free throw line. The final eight games of his stint in Miami served as his most aggressive, as he looked for his shot more frequently and went 24-55 (43%) from three over those final eight games.
With his experience, toughness, and ability to stretch the floor some, Joseph should be a great complement to Pierre. Like so many of Providence’s portal targets this spring, he has great numbers on spot up opportunities (1.135 points per possession/87th percentile in the country). He ranked in the 76th percentile in jumpers off the dribble, 74th on unguarded jumpers, and 72nd on the catch and shoot. He is capable of knocking down step-back jump shots from beyond the arc as well. Joseph is quick with the ball in his hands, but can be prone to dribbling into traffic or taking tough shots with his aggressive approach. He’s a more effective scorer in pick and roll as opposed to going iso. On3.com currently ranks him as the 52nd best player in the transfer portal.
Joseph is just the first domino to fall this spring, as Providence looks to reload after losing Devin Carter, Josh Oduro, Ticket Gaines, and Dual. Joseph was one of two visitors to campus this week, joining Rutgers shooter Gavin Griffiths. Griffiths was a top 40 player in the class of 2023 out of Simsbury, CT who possesses terrific size at 6’8. Rutgers was rather inept offensively this year, and Griffiths spent much of his freshman season trying to find his role in an offense that played without a point guard for much of the year. Providence is also expected to get a visit from Sam Alexis, a 6’9, 230 pound Chattanooga transfer who also has Florida, Xavier, Mississippi State, and Georgia among his final five schools. He is an Apopka, FL native who averaged 10.8 points and 9.1 rebounds per game as a sophomore this year. Alexis had four games of 15+ rebounds and eight others of 4+ blocked shots. He was one of the better post scorers in the country last season.
Joseph, Griffiths, and Alexis each have profiles in our list of transfer portal targets:
Now that English and his staff have shored up the point guard spot, they will likely look to add two players between the off guard and wing spots, as well as a big man. Early hits with Joseph and another scoring wing might allow the staff to be very selective when searching for another guard or wing in the portal in the coming weeks.
Great job Coach English and staff. Pitino really wanted this kid!