Nijel Pack will transfer to familiar SEC school after considering a return to K-State
Nijel Pack’s college basketball career will not end at the same place where it began.
The talented senior guard listed Kansas State among his top five transfer destinations (along with KU, Clemson, Indiana and Oklahoma) over the weekend. But he ultimately decided that he would rather play in the SEC than return to his old stomping grounds.
Pack announced on Monday that he will suit up for the Oklahoma Sooners next season.
A possible return to Manhattan and the Wildcats would have been an interesting turn of events for both sides.
Pack spent his first two seasons playing for K-State under former coach Bruce Weber. And he performed well in a purple uniform, posting career-high numbers of 17.4 points and 3.8 rebounds per game as a sophomore. He earned first team All-Big 12 honors that season.
But Pack decided to enter the transfer portal after K-State fired Weber and replaced him with current head coach Jerome Tang.
That led Pack to an eye-popping (at the time) NIL deal from Miami, where he spent the past three seasons playing shooting guard for the Hurricanes. He helped them reach the Final Four in his first season in Coral Gables, but Miami basketball cratered this year as Pack played in just nine games because of injuries.
He was once again on the transfer market after the season ended.
A return to K-State might have helped Pack regain his form — and given the Wildcats a boost as they look to return to the postseason. It is unusual for college basketball players to transfer back to their original school, but it does happen on occasion. Caleb Grill went from Iowa State to UNLV and then back to Iowa State before he finished at Missouri.
Pack also considered a move to the Jayhawks, which would’ve given him an opportunity to play on both sides of the Sunflower Showdown rivalry.
Pack didn’t have any obvious connections to Oklahoma or Clemson, but he has played against both teams in the past.
The Sooners had actually been a familiar opponent for him. He played against them four times during his K-State career. Now, he will call home Norman home.
Pack averaged 13.9 points, 3.1 rebounds and 3.0 assists before he suffered injuries this past season. He is an excellent 3-point shooter and a capable ball-handler who is looking to play a sixth year of college basketball next season.
One tricky thing about his recruitment is that he will need to receive a medical hardship waiver from the NCAA in order to extend his eligibility and play for the Sooners
This story was originally published April 7, 2025 at 10:44 AM.