Arkansas basketball under John Calipari: Insiders explain transfer portal news, 2024 roster, recruits, targets

After the decision to leave Kentucky this offseason, John Calipari is hoping to put Arkansas basketball back on the map after the program missed the NCAA Tournament last season. Arkansas doesn’t have a single scholarship player from last year’s team returning at the moment and Calipari has set out to rebuild the Arkansas basketball roster. He signed three top-25 college basketball recruits in the Class of 2024 and then brought three of his former pupils at Kentucky with him in the college basketball transfer portal.

However, Calipari will still need to make more additions between now and the start of the season with only eight commitments total. Who else will Arkansas basketball target on the Arkansas basketball recruiting trail and what is Calipari’s long-term vision for the program? If you love the Razorbacks, or just want the latest roster updates and college basketball transfer portal news, be sure to see what the proven team of insiders are saying at HawgSports, the 247Sports affiliate that covers Arkansas.

The team of insiders at HawgSports.com are providing up-to-the-minute scoop on the latest intel surrounding the Arkansas basketball coaching transition and roster changes. Launched in 2002, HawgSports has established itself as the top source for insider Arkansas basketball coverage. Trey Biddy, Danny West and Connor Goodson have a combined 30 years of experience covering the Razorbacks professionally. And right now, HawgSports is offering 30% off the first year of an annual subscription*, so now is the time to sign up.

The team at HawgSports has full coverage of who is coming and who is going on the Arkansas basketball roster. Head to HawgSports now to see all the insider info.

Arkansas basketball roster departures 

Last year’s Arkansas team returned 36.3% of its scoring from the 2022-23 roster, which is a high rate in this age of the transfer portal. But this year’s Arkansas Razorbacks squad returns .0003% of its scoring, thanks to the lone holdover, Lawson Blake, scoring just one point a year ago. Thus, Calipari has a complete roster overhaul to make as the 2024-25 Arkansas basketball team will have no continuity. Double-digit scorers Tramon Mark and Khalif Battle have respectively transferred to Texas and Gonzaga as part of the mass exodus from Fayetteville.

The Razorbacks’ average age of 22.7 last season was the second-oldest in Division I, when weighted by minutes. The team is losing nine seniors, and even those who lowered the average age have since departed. Layden Blocker and Baye Fall, who were Class of 2023 freshmen and top-10 national prospects at their respective positions, have since committed to other programs. So while Calipari has done a nice job in adding highly-ranked incoming recruits and transfers, he still just has a seven-man squad so there’s lots of work to be done. Join HawgSports to see the latest on all of Arkansas’ roster changes. 

Arkansas basketball news, roster

Calipari has widely been considered one of the best recruiters in the country and he’s quickly convinced several players with connections from his time in Kentucky to join him in Fayetteville. Boogie Fland, Karter Knox and Billy Richmond were all Kentucky signees in the Class of 2024 who were let out of their national letters of intent and chose to follow Calipari to Arkansas.

Meanwhile, D.J. Wagner, Adou Thiero and Zvonimir Ivisic were all on Kentucky’s roster last season and they’ll join Calipari with the Hawgs after entering the college basketball transfer portal. Calipari also managed to secure transfer portal commitments from second-team All-SEC center Jonas Aidoo (Tennessee) and 2023-24 AAC Player of the Year Johnell Davis, who helped lead FAU to the Final Four in 2023. Join HawgSports to get the latest on all of Arkansas’ roster additions.

How to get insider Arkansas basketball roster updates

Calipari has already been in contact with multiple transfers from power-conference teams, so be sure to join HawgSports to see who they are and get the rest of the insider roster news. 

Who are the top names Arkansas basketball is pursuing under coach John Calipari, and which power-conference transfers could land in Fayetteville? Go to HawgSports to see their insider information, all from a team of reporters with years of experience covering the Razorbacks, and find out. And reminder, HawgSports is offering 30% off the first year of an annual VIP membership*, so subscribe now before it’s too late.

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