Wichita State basketball player entered transfer portal at the 11th hour
A promising up-and-coming player on the Wichita State men’s basketball team entered the transfer portal at the 11th hour.
There was no social media evidence of Zion Pipkin’s intentions before the transfer portal closed at midnight Tuesday, but the sophomore point guard indeed entered his name in the portal, a spokesperson at WSU confirmed Wednesday.
The 6-foot point guard was buried on the depth chart behind two seniors and played in just 67 minutes spread across nine games, averaging 1.4 points and 1.6 assists, during his freshman season at WSU. But the former top-150 recruit in the class of 2024 flashed enough talent that it was reasonable to expect him to push for extended playing time as soon as this upcoming season.
“He’ll be given the keys to this car eventually one day,” WSU head coach Paul Mills said about Pipkin during last season. “We can’t give you the keys unless you’re out there competing every opportunity and he competes at every opportunity. He’s earning trust and doing all of the things we’ve asked of him. He’s just got older, more experienced guys in front of him right now.”
Entering the portal does not guarantee Pipkin’s exit from the program, but it does signal his interest in pursuing other opportunities.
WSU is now projected to lose virtually its entire production from a 19-win team that played in the NIT this past season. Quincy Ballard (Mississippi State) and Corey Washington (SMU) were notable departures through the transfer portal, while WSU had seven other players who exhausted their eligibility.
Pipkin and fellow reserve Yanis Bamba (Maine) also hit the portal, leaving junior wing Joy Ighovodja (87 minutes) and junior walk-on Henry Thengvall (nine minutes) as the only players set to return from last season’s team.
Pipkin’s decision to enter the portal comes as somewhat of a surprise with WSU expected to announce his former high school coach and fellow Houston native, P.J. Couisnard, as an assistant coach sometime this week.
With Pipkin in the portal, WSU now has at least four scholarships remaining to hand out to complete its 2025-26 roster. The Shockers will likely be in the recruiting market for a point guard, shooting guard, power forward and center.
Wichita State basketball 2025-26 roster
Dillon Battie, so., 6-8, F (Temple)
Will Berg, jr,. 7-2, C (Purdue)
Karon Boyd, sr., 6-5, F (East Tennessee State)
Pierre Couisnard Jr., fr., 6-3, G
Kenyon Giles, sr., 5-9, G (UNC Greensboro)
Noah Hill, fr., 6-8, F-C
Joy Ighovodja, jr., 6-4, G-F
Keandre Kindell, jr., 6-0, G (Barton Community College)
Tyrus Rathan-Mayes, fr., 6-6, G-F
Henry Thengvall, jr., 6-6, G
T.J. Williams, fr., 6-5, G-F
This story was originally published April 23, 2025 at 2:19 PM.
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