Five things to know about Kansas State’s incoming class of basketball transfers
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- PJ Haggerty transferred to Texas A&M after averaging 23.4 pts, 5.3 rebounds, 3.8 assists.
- Taj Manning committed to Iowa State after four years with the K-State program.
- K-State landed 7 incoming transfers, 2 high school recruits, has 6 scholarship spots open.
The Kansas State men’s basketball program lost eight players to the transfer portal after former head coach Jerome Tang was fired midway through a disatrous 2025-26 season.
New head coach Casey Alexander, hired from Belmont, has been rebuilding the K-State roster with seven incoming transfers and two high school recruits thus far. Andrej Kostic is the only returner. The Wildcats have five roster spots remaining.
Here are some key takeaways from K-State’s (incomplete) portal haul:
• The biggest loss: Leading scorer PJ Haggerty transferred to Texas A&M, taking his 23.4 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game to the SEC. He earned honorable-mention honors from the Big 12 and had several big games in a purple uniform, including a 37-point night against Mississippi State and 34-point outings against both Baylor and Utah.
• A rival lands a Wildcat: Taj Manning committed to Iowa State, switching sides in the Farmageddon rivalry after four years at K-State. He averaged 4.2 points and 5.1 rebounds while starting 13 games as a redshirt junior.
• Six other players entered the portal: Abdi Bashir, Dorin Buca, David Castillo, Mobi Ikegwuruka, Stephen Osei and Exavier Wilson also departed. Buca, an Italian big man, averaged 3.2 points and 3.3 rebounds during his lone season in Manhattan.
• Alexander is restocking quickly: K-State has landed seven incoming transfers and two high school recruits, giving the program 10 players with five scholarship spots still open.
• The incoming transfers have upside: Only one incoming K-State basketball transfer was a double-digit scorer last season, as Brandon Rechsteiner averaged 12 points per game at Colorado State. But several newcomers were once touted recruits. Jaden Schutt began his college career at Duke. Isaiah Abraham committed to Connecticut out of high school. Matt Gilhool and JT Rock were both once four-star recruits.
The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists. The source reporting referenced above was written and edited entirely by journalists.