UNLV landed its fourth transfer of the offseason, and you guessed it, it’s another player from the Big 12.
Former Texas wing Donovan Williams committed to UNLV on Friday, announcing it via his Twitter account:
A native of Texas, Williams was a 4-star prospect in the Class of 2019, and 247 Sports rated him the No. 73 player in the country. Oklahoma recruited him at the time, so it makes sense that the current UNLV staff was interested in adding him via the transfer portal.
Current UNLV head coach Kevin Kruger was an assistant at Oklahoma during Williams's recruitment, as was current scarlet and gray assistant Carlin Hartman. The Oklahoma head coach at the time was Kruger’s father Lon Kruger, who has since retired and is expected to take on an advisory role with the UNLV program.
Williams’s physical gifts are obvious. At 6-foot-6 he possesses tremendous size and length for the wing positions, and he has the athleticism to play above the rim. He is not a polished outside shooter—he made just 21.9% of his 3-pointers in two years at Texas—but he did connect on 84.6% of his free throws last year as a sophomore, hinting at solid shooting mechanics and the potential to extend his range beyond the arc.
Williams played in 41 games for the Longhorns, averaging 11.0 minutes as a freshman and 10.3 minutes as a sophomore. In 2020-21 he posted 3.3 points and 1.1 rebounds per game while shooting 30.4% from the field.
The stats may be on the modest size, but Williams is long on potential:
Williams is the fourth transfer to join UNLV this offseason and all four have similar college profiles. Point guard Jordan McCabe (West Virginia), forward Victor Iwuakor (Oklahoma), forward Royce Hamm (Texas) and now Williams were all heralded high-school recruits who never quite earned significant playing time in the Big 12. Kevin Kruger is hoping that by dropping down a level, they will realize their potential and be more productive as Mountain West players.
Williams will have at least two more years of eligibility remaining, and he should be able to suit up for UNLV in 2021-22.
Bryce Hamilton in portal, too
While the addition of Williams gives UNLV another wing option, it looks more and more like shooting guard Bryce Hamilton will be leaving the program, one way or another.
The junior guard entered the transfer portal on Thursday. He had previously announced his intention to go through the NBA Draft process, but left open the door for another year in college; by entering the portal, that additional college year doesn’t necessarily have to be at UNLV.
Hamilton led the scarlet and gray by scoring 17.9 points per game in 2020-21. Though his efficiency dropped across the board from his breakout sophomore campaign, he was UNLV’s only true off-the-dribble threat.
Hamilton is the eighth UNLV player to enter the transfer portal since the end of the season.
Diong still up in the air
Another player who is still determining his future is center Mbacke Diong. The 6-foot-11 big man posted career highs as a senior in 2020-21 with 8.9 points per game on 60.7% from the field, and now he has to decide whether he wants to come back and do it again.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the NCAA is not counting the 2020-21 season when it comes to players’ eligibility. So though Diong has played four seasons, he could come back for a fifth year without counting against UNLV’s scholarship limit.
For now, Kruger is cautiously proceeding as though Diong will return next season.
“We’ve been talking to him,” Kruger said. “He hasn’t said or hinted about doing anything different. But he’s such a good kid, we can’t not support him [if he were to leave]. He’s been working his tail off. We’re rooting for him.”
Kruger finalizes staff
UNLV announced the hiring of assistant coach Brandon Chappell on Friday, completing Kruger’s first staff.
Chappell spent the past four years as an assistant at Lamar, and before that he served one season at Division-II Arkansas-Fort Smith. Kruger worked with Chappell in 2014-15, when Kruger was an assistant at Northern Arizona and Chappell was a grad assistant for the Lumberjacks.
Kruger hired former Oklahoma assistant Carlin Hartman last week, and Tim Buckley will remain from T.J. Otzelberger’s staff.
Mike Grimala can be reached at 702-948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Mike on Twitter at twitter.com/mikegrimala.
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