The NCAA transfer portal is officially open, which means it is time for one of the longest, most painful times of the year. Just about every school will have players that will move around this spring for various reasons — money, playing time, opportunity, and in some cases, just a change in scenery. When it comes to the Tar Heels, things are a bit messier now that Hubert Davis is gone and Michael Malone is in.
That said, we will be doing a weekly transfer portal update summarizing who is in the portal,
who the Heels have gotten out of the portal, and of course, who the Heels may be interested in. Since the portal just opened, week 1 will just be a recap of who is in the portal so far and who has officially announced that they are staying. Let’s dive into who has already submitted their names.
UNC Players in the Portal
Derek Dixon
The 6’5” freshman guard announced that he is entering the portal, but left the door open to return to UNC. During his freshman season, Dixon averaged 6.5 points and 2.7 assists per game. His best statistical performance was in the loss on the road against Duke, where he finished with 17 points, three assists, and zero turnovers. Dixon has a lot of promise going into his sophomore season, and I could see him having a successful season under Michael Malone. That is, if he decides that it is worth it to stay in Chapel Hill.
Jonathan Powell
After transferring from West Virginia to UNC just a year ago, Jonathan Powell is returning to the portal. Much like Dixon, Powell intends to keep his options open, and whether or not him and Michael Malone decide to move forward together is anybody’s guess. While Dixon has a lot of room to develop, one could argue that Powell was more or less the same player that he was with the Mountaineers in his second season. Could that be because Hubert Davis wasn’t great at developing him? It is possible, but would Malone be willing to take a chance on Powell in hopes that he will be able to develop into a reliable perimeter threat? We’ll see.
Kyan Evans
Another guy that could potentially transfer to his third school in three seasons, Kyan Evans is opening his door for other suiters. The situation with Evans this season was a tough one — it was clear after the first 10 games that his game felt like a systematic mismatch for what Hubert Davis wanted to do. Evans did not state that he had any interest in returning to UNC, but Malone also hasn’t gotten to meet with the players on an individual level yet, so it may just depend on how that meeting pans out. But do not be surprised if he goes to another school and pulls a Cade Tyson and plays dramatically better than he did during the 2025-26 season.
Zayden High
Hubert Davis was willing to show mercy on Zayden High’s situation, which was one that I do not know a lot of coaches that would have done the same. For those that do not know what situation I am referencing, just search “What did Zayden High do?” on Google, but we will not be going into detail here. Ultimately, it’d be very surprising if Malone kept High around. Even if he was a better player it is not worth it, and we’ll just leave it at that.
James Brown
It’s hard not to feel bad for sophomore big man, James Brown. In a season where ultimately Hubert Davis needed some depth at forward/center, Brown ended up suffering a season-ending injury, which left Davis with Henri Veesaar, Jarin Stevenson, and Zayden High taking turns in the front court after Caleb Wilson joined him on the injury report. There is no sign that Brown has any interest in returning to UNC, and what type of interest there would be for him is unclear. It’s hard not to root for him, though, because he was a great student and a great teammate during his time on campus.
Isaiah Denis
It always felt like freshman guard Isaiah Denis had untapped potential, and now it’s likely that we will find out if that is true when he joins another school. Another guy who hasn’t explicitly said that he could return to UNC, Denis will leave campus with few college minutes to show for it. Part of that had to do with injuries, but mostly it was just Hubert Davis relegating him to the bench. Hopefully he will land somewhere where he can show off his full skill set, but it’s too bad we won’t get to see it while he’s wearing Carolina blue.
Jaydon Young
Prepping for his senior season, Jaydon Young is hoping to end his college career on a high note. He regressed statistically under Hubert Davis after having an OK sophomore season at Virginia Tech, but that didn’t stop us from seeing him in the starting lineup on occasion. To be honest, what could happen with Young at another school is anybody’s guess, but it’s hard to imagine that he will return to UNC this fall.
UNC Players Who Are Staying on Campus
Luka Bogavac
The Montenegrin guard announced yesterday that he has no plans on leaving UNC. Luka Bogavac finished his first season as a Tar Heels averaging 9.8 points and 2.2 assists per game while shooting 34.9% from the three-point line. Bogavac was a fairly hot and cold shooter this season, but it felt like there would’ve been more consistency had there been more actions drawn up for him. It felt like he was having to hunt for his shots on occasion, and at times he was even successful in doing so. Seeing how things pan out with Michael Malone should be interesting — while he can be a big-time threat offensively, defense has not been his strong suit, and that is something Malone will emphasize heavily in his scheme.
Now we want to hear from all of you: what do you think of the transfer portal situation so far? Let us know in the comments below.
