Oregon State forward Raegan Beers cheers as she leaves the court as the Oregon State Beavers host Eastern Washington in the first round of the NCAA Tournament Friday, March 22, 2024, at Gill Coliseum in Corvallis, Ore.
ArticlesCollege BasketballFeaturedOriginalsBy Katie Lever on

Another college basketball offseason, another transfer news cycle. It’s a new reality fans, coaches, and other stakeholders in college sports are still adjusting to, but those who are navigating the landscape proactively will see great results for the 2024-2025 season–and there’s sizable talent making moves.

In no particular order, here are the top five women’s basketball transfers of the 2024 offseason.

Georgia Amoore, G (Virginia Tech to Kentucky)

What’s not to like about Georgia Amoore? The All-American point guard not only has four years of experience under her belt, but is also transferring with two teammates and her longtime Virginia Tech coach, Kenny Brooks, as he transitions to a head coaching role at Kentucky– so it’s safe to say her adjustment will likely go much smoother than most transfer situations. Last season, Amoore was fourth in the nation in assists, averaging 6.4 per game, while also averaging 18.8 points, so she’s a weapon on offense.

A likely future first-round draft pick herself, Amoore is familiar with pressure and no stranger to clutch performances, and she’ll have plenty of talent to dish to (like fellow Hokie-turned-Wildcat Clara Strack) and is sure to have a senior year to remember at UK. 

Raegan Beers, F (Oregon State to Undecided)

We know wine gets better with age, but Beers does, too. In between her freshman and sophomore seasons with Oregon State, Raegan Beers has shown nothing but positive momentum, increasing her average points scored by four, her average rebounds by nearly three, and raising her field goal percentage by over 10%. As the nation’s second best in field goal percentage during her sophomore season with a stellar 66.4 FG%, Beers will certainly be a force in her junior season and beyond. Her other stats indicate as much, too– last season, she averaged a double-double with 17.5 points and 10.3 rebounds per game. 

Beers’s consistent improvement will be a huge plus for whatever team scoops her up. She’s tied for 24th in the nation in double-doubles and scored in double-digits against every team Oregon State faced during March Madness– including an 18-point, 13-rebound performance against two-seed Notre Dame in the Sweet 16, as well as a 16-point, eight-rebound Elite Eight matchup against the now-defending national champion Gamecocks’ squad full of current and future WNBA Draft picks. 

The cherry on top of Beers’s stats is her potential longevity– she’s just going into her junior year in the 2024-25 season and has already made great strides between her freshman and sophomore years. Beers is reportedly choosing between Oklahoma and UConn, and she could make a huge impact for either program.

Kiki Iriafen, F (Stanford to USC)

Speaking of walking double-doubles, Kiki Iriafen is another hot scorer who’s on her way from one former Pac-12 school to another. But instead of playing with Stanford in the ACC, she will link up with JuJu Watkins and the USC Trojans. As one of the nation’s top power forwards, she’ll be a perfect complement to Watkins’s scoring prowess. Iriafen averaged a double-double of 19.4 points and 11 rebounds in her junior season with the Cardinal and is a key reason Stanford made it so far in last season’s tournament.

Iriafen’s impressive 41-point, 16-rebound performance against Iowa State was essential to Stanford’s Sweet 16 appearance after first-round WNBA Draft pick Cameron Brink fouled out against ISU. And like Beers, Iriafen’s stat lines show consistent leaps over time, with her average points and rebounds jumping from 4.2 and 2.2 as a freshman to her current double-double status– including being ninth in the nation in rebounding. Iriafen will be a strong addition to an already stacked USC team.

Deja Kelly, G (North Carolina to Undecided)

As the Tar Heels’ leading scorer for the last three years, North Carolina will certainly feel the loss of guard Deja Kelly, who entered the transfer portal alongside five of her teammates earlier in April. Kelly is reportedly in contact with LSU, and she could be a great addition to a Tigers team in need of a point guard. In past years, Kelly has also shown interest in the University of Texas, where her father Darren Kelly played from 1999-2001. Next season, Kelly could be a key player for a Longhorns team that might need some support at point guard after Rori Harmon went down last year with a torn ACL, injured meniscus, and sprained MCL in December 2023. 

Regardless of where Kelly goes, her experience and endurance will be assets– she was 26th in the nation in minutes played last season (averaging over 36 minutes a game),has started 120 of 121 career games played for the Tar Heels, and is a two-time Nancy Lieberman Watch List honoree. Not only that, but her stats show tremendous consistency over the years; her average points, rebounds, and assists have all remained relatively stable. Kelly is also a phenomenal, flexible leader who has had to step up and change positions in the face of team injuries in the past. A versatile, resilient, and consistent athlete, Kelly would make a great addition to a number of teams next season.

Hailey Van Lith, G (LSU to TCU)

Sure, Hailey Van Lith struggled in her senior season with LSU, but she’s poised to make a comeback in her Covid year of eligibility with TCU, as she made her commitment official last Friday. Van Lith will be a weapon for the Horned Frogs if they let her play her preferred position at shooting guard alongside senior point guard, Una Jovanovic. At LSU, Van Lith’s stats suffered greatly, as she underwent a position change, and one of the worst dips was her field goal attempts.

In the 2022-23 season, Van Lith was 14th in the nation in field goal attempts at Louisville, averaging 16.8 attempts per game, a stat that dropped to 9.9 attempts per game in 2023-24–good for 525th in the nation last season. However, over the span of Van Lith’s past two seasons, her field goal percentage only dropped a little over 3%, a discrepancy she can easily make up for if she gets back to a more familiar shooting guard position at TCU. For now, Van Lith has her sights on making the 2024 Olympic 3×3 team and her current training schedule alongside plenty of WNBA talent will only make her a stronger player next season.

Honorable mention: Lucy Olsen, G (Villanova to Iowa)

It’s hard to not include the third-best scorer of 2023-24 in a list of top transfers, and Villanova transfer Lindsey Olsen is certainly a bucket, averaging 23.3 points last season. However, Villanova’s strength of schedule leaves much to be desired for. Although Olsen performed well against low-top-25 teams, like Creighton and Marquette in January, the only top-10 team Villanova faced all season was 10th-ranked UConn on February 28th– and the Huskies held Olson to six points.

However, Olsen clearly has the ability to score, and she has plenty of experience under her belt– two areas where the Hawkeyes will need leadership with the loss of Kate Martin and Caitlin Clark to the WNBA Draft.

About Katie Lever

Dr. Katie Lever is a former Division 1 athlete and current freelance sports writer whose work has appeared in Global Sport Matters, Sportico, Extra Points, Forbes, and other outlets. She is also the award-winning author of Surviving the Second Tier, a dystopian novel about the dark side of the college sports industry, available on Amazon. Follow Katie on Twitter and Instagram: @leverfever.

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