Reports: 6 Penn State men’s basketball players enter transfer portal after coaching hire
Penn State men’s basketball has reportedly lost six players to the transfer portal. Nittany Lion center John Harrar, forward Trent Buttrick and guards Myreon Jones and Izaiah Brockington are in the transfer portal, according to a report from Blue White Illustrated’s Nate Bauer. And senior guard Jamari Wheeler is in as well, according to The Athletic’s Matt Fortuna.
Forward Seth Lundy will also reportedly transfer, according to a report from Jake Weingarten of StockRisers.
The six players are in the portal one day after the Nittany Lions hired former Purdue associate head coach Micah Shrewsberry as their new head coach. The hire was made after former head coach Pat Chambers resigned in October and was replaced on an interim basis by then-assistant Jim Ferry.
All six players were recruited by Chambers, with Brockington joining the team as a transfer. Harrar committed to the former Penn State head coach after initially committing to Army to play football.
The senior center spent four years as a Nittany Lion and took over as a starter this season after one of the program’s best big men of all-time, Mike Watkins, left after the 2019-20 season.
He averaged 8.8 points and 8.8 rebounds per game this season, receiving frequent praise from Ferry throughout for his leadership and consistency and was also selected as Penn State’s 2020 and 2021 Big Ten Sportsmanship Award recipient.
“John Harrar is the greatest leader I’ve ever been around,” Ferry said earlier this season. “I’ve coached for 30 years. He’s the most consistent human being, and that’s in everything. ... He leaves every ounce of energy he has on the court, every day. I see John again get 11 rebounds and it doesn’t surprise me. Sometimes I don’t think John gets enough credit for how good of a basketball player he is. He’s truly the heart and soul (of the team).”
Jones was the team’s leading scorer this season, averaging 15.3 points per game on 39.5% shooting from 3-point range. His scoring improved by two points from the season before when he was the team’s second-leading scorer.
Wheeler was one of the team’s emotional leaders on and off the court and helped the team with his infectious energy. He tied for the Big Ten lead in steals per game with 1.8 as a senior and made the Big Ten All-Defensive Team as a junior and senior.
Brockington was the team’s second-leading scorer this season with 12.6 points per game. He was a solid defender who used his explosiveness on offense to finish around the rim.
Buttrick was Harrar’s primary backup at center and spaced the floor for the Nittany Lions. He shot a career best 34.8% from 3-point range and averaged a career high 13.3 minutes per game.
Lundy averaged 10.1 points and 4.2 points per game as a sophomore this season.
This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates.
This story was originally published March 16, 2021 at 10:45 AM.
