Sad news: A nother Tar Heels player suffered a rather significant injury that may end his carrier.
The former star basketball player for UNC has sustained a serious injury that will terminate his BC Wolves career.
Unfortunately, former UNC basketball star Garrison Brooks was injured during the season while playing for the BC Wolves of the Lithuanian Basketball League.
Brooks was diagnosed with a fractured sacrum, according to the team’s official press statement, and they anticipate that he will need at least two months to recuperate. Due to this, the former Tar Heel will miss the rest of the season with his team.
Before the injury, Brooks averaged 8.1 points and 4.5 rebounds across 19 games in the National League. Brooks participated in nine games in the European Cup (BKT EuroCup) competition, averaging 7.6 points and 4.3 rebounds per game.
The now 24-year-old is disappointed by this news, as he has been playing overseas since the 2023–2024 season began. The former Tar Heel will now focus on recovering from his injury in order to resume his professional basketball career as soon as possible.
During his first four years of college, Brooks was a member of the UNC basketball team, where he became a valuable post player for the Tar Heels. In his most successful year to date, Brooks was named to the second team of the ACC during his junior year and was also named the conference’s Most Improved Player.
Warmest regards for Garrison Brooks, the former Tar Heel, as he recovers from his season-ending injury.
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Basketball transfer portal rankings: The ACC’s top ten transfers for the next campaign, ordered
The top players in the college basketball transfer portal were acquired by these ACC teams.
Despite leading all conferences with four teams in the Sweet 16, the ACC ranks sixth in terms of NCAA Tournament bids this postseason. This is the seventh consecutive tournament in which the league has led or shared the lead in regional semifinal berths. With the addition of some of the best transfer portal players in the country this offseason, which helped the league place numerous teams in the preseason top 25, the ACC is primed for another successful tournament in 2024–2025.
This offseason, the ACC became home to ten of the top 100 prospects according to the transfer portal; we’ve highlighted all ten of them in this post. Duke leads all ACC teams in the top 100 transfers with three, despite being the only significant collegiate basketball team to not sign a transfer during the previous offseason.
With top 25 portal classes, NC State and Louisville join the Blue Devils, while Syracuse, SMU, and Miami assemble formidable recruits featuring three four-star talents each. Although North Carolina has only signed one talent thus far, he is one of the conference’s top commits.
The following is a ranking of the top 10 transfers to the ACC for the 2024–25 college basketball season:
Prior Institution: Purdue
Transfer Portal Rank: 20 SF | 95 OVR
Searching for seasoned players to complement its elite high school recruiting class, Duke entered the portal. With Gillis, a five-year college veteran fresh off a national championship run with Purdue, Jon Scheyer and company checked that box. Gillis poses no danger on the attack. In the championship game versus UConn, he scored zero points in 24 minutes despite averaging 6.5 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game the previous season. Nevertheless, he is a versatile defensive player who can also shoot well enough to create space for himself offensively—he shot 46.8% from three last season.
Former Institution: Virginia Tech
Transfer Portal Rank: 16 C | 85 OVR
Kidd, who began his career at Clemson and has spent the last three seasons at Virginia Tech, is making his second intra-conference move. Last year at Blacksburg, he had an incredible season averaging 13.2 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 1.1 assists per game. His field goal percentage of 66.8% topped the ACC and was No. 4 in the country. With a height of 6-foot-10 and a weight of 235 pounds, Kidd provides much-needed size to a Miami frontcourt that lost three large players—including standout power forward Norchad Omier—before the trade deadline.
Prior Institution: Iowa State
Transfer Portal Rank: 11 PF | 82 OVR
Had Biliew committed to Wake Forest straight out of high school, he would have finished only behind Chris Paul as the second-highest-rated recruit in Wake Forest history. Biliew is a former McDonald’s All-American. Rather, he comes to Winston Salem off a challenging first campaign at Iowa State, where he played 7.4 minutes a game and averaged 2.4 points and 1.3 rebounds. We selected Biliew as the McDonald’s All-American week 2023’s best defender, and we anticipate seeing him showcase his ball-stopping abilities in the ACC the following year. Steve Forbes, the head coach of Wake Forest, has successfully rescued other elite recruits, such as Hunter Sallis.
Former educational institution: James Madison
Ranking of the Transfer Portal: 81 OVR | 5 CG
In 2022–23, Edwards was named Sun Belt Sixth Man of the Year. The previous season, he elevated his performance even further, finishing as the Sun Belt Player of the Year with an average of 17.2 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 3.4 assists per game. Last season, he hit 34.3% from three-point range and 42.7% from the field to lead James Madison to its first NCAA Tournament berth in more than ten years.
Former educational institution: Duke
Transfer Portal Rank: 10 PF | 76 OVR
This offseason, this is among the greatest fits available on the transfer portal. Power was a five-star and top-20 recruit when he came to Duke last season, but he struggled to break through Jon Scheyer’s rotation, averaging just 2.1 points and 0.7 rebounds in just 7.0 minutes per game. That won’t be an issue for him in Charlottesville with Tony Bennett. Virginia has to be shot, and Power has fascinating potential. Despite having limited opportunity to establish a rhythm, the 6-foot-9 player managed to shoot 35.7% from beyond the arc. Power is a serious contender to win the ACC Most Improved Player award the next campaign.
Former Educational Institution: Syracuse
Rank of Transfer Portal: No. 9 PF | No. 70 OVR
Based on Duke’s current roster, I anticipate Brown to be in the starting lineup when the Blue Devils play their first games of the season. With 61 career games played, he provides Duke’s frontcourt with a much-needed seasoned presence. He is effective on offensively and tenacious on defense. Brown averaged 9.5 points, 7.2 rebounds, 2.2 steals, and 0.9 blocks per game as a sophomore in the previous campaign. According to KenPom.com, he had the third-highest effective field goal percentage (71.3%) in the country while shooting 69.8% from the field. With 71 thefts, he led the conference and was named to the ACC All-Defensive Team.
Prior Institution: Tulane
Ranking of the Transfer Portal: No. 11 SG | No. 65 OVR
James completed the jigsaw of Duke’s offseason. In order to make up for the loss of Jeremy Roach, the Blue Devils sought out a seasoned guard in the portal. James, who averaged 14.0 points, 5.4 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.6 steals per game the previous season, was recruited. Though there are concerns about how his attacking style will translate to the ACC, his defensive ability is undeniable. At six feet five, he swatted 23 shots last season and averaged 1.6 steals per game. He’s a crucial piece in the Blue Devils’ chess set for the upcoming campaign.
Former educational institution: Louisville
Rank of Transfer Portal: No. 11 C | No. 55 OVR
DJ Horne and DJ Burns used up all of their eligibility this summer, meaning NC State lost the heart and soul of their Final Four squad. In order to maintain the Wolfpack’s upward trajectory, Huntley-Hatfield must live up to his previous five-star billing. Huntley-Hatfield is a key component of what Kevin Keatts hopes to accomplish next season. Last season, the 240-pound, 6-foot-10 big man averaged 12.6 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 56.7% shooting from the field. Throughout his three seasons in college, he has progressively become a better shooter. In his most recent season, he made 42.9% of his shots and connected on 9 out of 21 tries
Former educational institution: Oklahoma
Rank of Transfer Portal: No. 4 CG | No. 45 OVR
McCollum received offers from more established collegiate basketball powers like Kentucky, Michigan, and Florida, but ultimately decided on Georgia Tech and head coach Damon Stoudamire. The 6-foot-2, 160-pound guard, who averaged 13.3 points, 3.4 assists, and 2.6 rebounds per game the previous season, is eager to play for Georgia Tech and will be a vital member of the Yellow Jackets’ backcourt. Last season, he hit 31.4% from three-point range and 40.4% from the field to earn All-Big 12 Honorable Mention recognition.
Former educational institution: Belmont
Transfer Portal Rank: 9 SF | 37 OVR
Hubert Davis of UNC is one of the best collegiate basketball coaches in terms of spotting transfer prospects. The Tar Heels had a great season last year because to major contributions from Cormac Ryan and Harrison Ingram, and they pulled off one of the portal’s biggest success stories in Brady Manek in 2021–2022. Tyson, who starts in place of Ryan in Chapel Hill, ought to have comparable success.
Tyson hit 49.3% from the field and 46.5% from three-point range in his sophomore season, when he averaged 16.2 points and 5.9 rebounds. The NCAA placed him second in the country for both stats. Rare are players with his height (6-foot-7) and shooting ability, and Davis will position him to excel next season with a talented backcourt. Next season, Tyson is expected to be one of the most significant additions in the country.
