John Calipari lands top transfer portal player

Johnell Davis, arguably the top men’s basketball player in the transfer portal, has found his home for next season.

When John Calipari was hired at Arkansas, the coach quipped in his first press conference, “There is no team.” The team just got a significant addition.

Davis is headed to Arkansas to play for Calipari. The news was reported by Field of 68’s Jeff Goodman, who added “Johnell Davis is ranked as the No. 1 player in the portal by @TheFieldOf68.”

Johnell Davis is ranked as the No. 1 player in the portal by @TheFieldOf68. https://t.co/G7bG3bwKX7

— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) May 1, 2024

There’s a good reason for that ranking.

Davis led Florida Atlantic in scoring during the 2022-23 season, which resulted in a Final Four birth for the Owls. He averaged 13.8 points per game that season, shooting 48.6% from the field, 35.7% on threes and 85.5% on free throws. The 2023-24 season was even better for Davis, who averaged 18.2 points per game while shooting at a 48.3/41.4/85.7 clip. He also averaged 6.3 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game, both career highs.

And while the Owls didn’t enjoy the same kind of postseason success in 2024 that they did in 2023, they did return to the NCAA Tournament. Davis was a big reason why.

Johnell Davis with a buzzer-beating 3 for the FAU win! 🏀🧅🚨pic.twitter.com/Bt14SsHRs2

— The Comeback (@thecomeback) January 28, 2024

Johnell Davis gives FAU the lead! #MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/7w14U9NZLu

— The Comeback (@thecomeback) March 22, 2024

One of Calipari’s bigger issues as Kentucky’s head coach — particularly in his later years with the Wildcats — was a lack of NCAA Tournament success. While many things contributed to that, a key one was the inexperience of his teams. Calipari’s best players tended to be one-and-done players. And even if they had far better NBA prospects than the upperclassmen they faced in the NCAA Tournament, the teams weren’t as developed. Davis represents a deviation from that.

Obviously, a transfer player is going to have to mesh with new teammates. But Davis, who will be entering his fifth season of college basketball, is a well-developed player with ample experience on the game’s biggest stages.

[Jeff Goodman on Twitter/X]