Two Kansas State forwards will transfer after multiple seasons with Wildcats
A pair of Kansas State basketball players wasted little time moving forward with their future plans after the Wildcats’ season came to an unexpected end this week.
Nigel Shadd and James Love both entered their names into the transfer portal on Friday.
Shadd is a 6-foot-9 redshirt sophomore forward who spent three seasons with the Wildcats. Love is a 6-11 redshirt junior who spent four seasons in Manhattan.
Both departures from the K-State basketball team were not unexpected, as Love and Shadd have been stuck at the end of the team’s bench throughout their college careers.
Shadd only saw seven minutes of action this season after playing a total of 68 minutes in his first two injury-filled seasons with the Wildcats. Love appeared in one game this season, logging two minutes against Mississippi State.
Most will remember Love for what he did at the conclusion of K-State’s game against Kansas earlier this season at Allen Fieldhouse. Love left the bench in that game and threw some punches at KU forward Silvio De Sousa during a brawl that featured players from both teams and gained national attention.
Love was suspended for eight games afterward, but he was unable to properl serve the suspension as he later underwent foot surgery to repair a pre-existing injury. That surgery ended his season and possibly his college basketball career. But it seems he will at least try to play somewhere else next season after graduating from K-State.
The Wildcats signed Shadd as a three-star recruit out of Mesa, Arizona three years ago. Shadd was one of the most athletic players on the roster and saw action in three straight seasons, but he was always playing catch up with his teammates while he dealt with various injuries.
He averaged no points and 2.7 rebounds while appearing in three games this season.
The exits of Love and Shadd leave K-State with at least one extra scholarship to use for next season. The Wildcats signed high school seniors Nijel Pack, Luke Kasubke, Davion Bradford and Selton Miguel last fall and then added UTEP transfer Kaosi Ezeagu earlier this semester.
K-State coach Bruce Weber has previously said he would like to add as many as seven new players to the roster next season. It remains unclear if junior guard Cartier Diarra will return or decide to test the professional waters.
This story was originally published March 13, 2020 at 12:43 PM.