On the hardwood, Michai White is a rim-running, ankle-breaking, shotmaking dynamo who attacks the rim with reckless abandon and drains deep treys, contested or open, with ease.
You would be hard-pressed to find one iota of fear in the 6-foot-1 floor general when he laces them up.
Still, if you mention college basketball’s infamous transfer portal, White’s demeanor changes a full 180 degrees.
“It’s scary,” White said of the transfer portal. “You have everybody jumping in and it seems like it just never stops.”
Last week, when the transfer portal closed its proverbial doors, more than 2,500 college players had entered the fray.
“I look at all the players going in and the names are the thing that shocks me,” said 2027 wing Ryan Hampton, who is ranked No. 12 in the SportsCenter Next 60. “There are big-name guys who you think wouldn’t do that. It just goes to show you that it’s a business now.”
From the “produce and portal” mindset of mid-major stars looking to step into the Power 4 spotlight to high major stars commanding million-dollar NIL deals, the portal is filled with proven prospects.
Not an ideal scenario for teenage stars devoid of collegiate experience.
“It hurts us because you’ve got coaches saying they’re not recruiting high school players,” said 2028 forward Colton Hiller, who is ranked No. 3 in the SportsCenter Next 25. “Of course, you’re going to take the 20-year-old over the 18-year-old but it’s like a grudge to work harder. You have to find the best fit for you.”
To that end, White said players are torn between committing early to secure their spot or taking their time to make sure they’re in the best situation to potentially prevent their emergence into the portal in the future.
As it stands, White is opting for the latter.
“The whole thing is crazy,” said White, who is ranked No. 17 in the SportsCenter Next 25 of 2028. “When it’s my time to decide, I’m going to really take my time to pick the right coach that’s going to stay and trust me. I want to be with the same coach and stick it out. … But I guess that’s everyone’s goal. It’s scary man.”
The most intimidating part?
“The players are so old,” Hiller said. “That scares me a bit, but the portal doesn’t really scare me; just got to work hard.”
That’s the general consensus among elite high school prospects who remain confident that their skill set will help them prevail at the next level.
“It doesn’t scare me because I know what I have and I know I can come in and contribute as a freshman,” Hampton said. “I think all of us are confident in our abilities and it is a little different with all the older transfers but, at the end of the day, it’s just competition. None of us are afraid of that.”
