It remains a hectic time in college basketball across the country as we continue to be in the middle of the open transfer portal period. Liberty has seen five players enter the portal, most recently when Owen Aquino decided to test the waters recently. One of those names have announced their new destination as Will Gibson has committed to Division II Cedarville where former Liberty assistant Rob Jones is the head coach.
The Flames also picked up their first commitment from the portal this past weekend as Virginia Tech transfer Ryan Jones, Jr. has pledged his commitment to Liberty and then added a commitment from West Liberty transfer JJ Harper. The Flames currently have two roster spots available as the team continues to be active in the portal.
Several of the names linked to Liberty through the portal that we have highlighted previously have committed elsewhere. This includes Wofford transfer Jeremy Lorenz who has committed to Depaul, Northern Arizona transfer Carson Towt who has committed to Notre Dame, VCU transfer Martin Carrere who has committed to Virginia, and Charleston Southern transfer RJ Johnson who has committed to Rhode Island.
We still don’t have an answer on the Taelon Peter and Jayvon Maughmer eligibility case as each are looking for an extra year of eligibility after spending the bulk of their career in the Division II ranks. It puts the Flames in an interesting case as to whether or not to keep roster spots open for them or move forward as if they won’t be back. It probably makes the most sense to assume they will not be back.
Liberty has three returning starters slated to return next season in Colin Porter, Kaden Metheny, and Zach Cleveland. This leaves two vacant spots in the starting lineup. If Isaiah Ihnen is fully healthy at the start of the season, he would certainly be a name to pencil into one of those spots. We could also see Josh Smith, who transferred to Liberty from Stetson a year ago, part of the starting lineup. Harper could slide into the role left vacated by Maughmer on the wing.
Depending on how the rest of the roster shakes out, rising sophomore Brett Decker looks like he could have a much larger role this coming season. Perhaps he slides into the role Peter had this past season as the top guard off the bench. Zander Yates and Ryan Jones will provide depth in the frontcourt behind Cleveland, Ihnen, and Smith. Incoming freshman Zander Carter could also have a role on the wing.
With the remaining roster spots, it seems like another longer guard, similar to what Peter and Maughmer provided this past season and Harper should provide, would be valuable. Of course, if those two (Peter and Maughmer) are able to return, that need goes away. Having another forward with length never hurts either.
