Niko Medved is finally getting a career homecoming. The Minneapolis native and Minnesota alum is returning to his alma mater to lead the Golden Gophers men’s basketball program after seven successful seasons at Colorado State. The Rams were nearly the Cinderella story of March Madness but once a Derik Queen buzzer-beater gave Maryland the spot in the Sweet 16, Medved was ready to make the jump to the Big Ten.
Now, with the transfer portal officially opening just hours after his former team’s second-round NCAA Tournament loss, Medved will get to work on building his roster at Minnesota. While he can’t bring star senior Nique Clifford, who is out of eligibility after a five-year career and heading to the NBA, with him to Minnesota, there are a couple of players from the Mountain West Tournament champs who could get the transfer portal invite from their coach.
While Clifford led Colorado State to The Big Dance with an outstanding run in the Mountain West Tournament, Evans is the biggest reason the Rams pulled a first-round upset of No. 5 seed Memphis. The sharp-shooting freshman point guard went a ridiculous 6/9 from three for 23 points with four assists and two steals in the 78-70 win.
For the season, Evans averaged just over 10 points a game and shot well over 40% from beyond the arc. He’s a bit undersized at just 6-foot-2 175 pounds, but shooting like that will play in the Big Ten and could give Medved a foundational piece for his new program.
Jaylen Crocker-Johnson is already well-traveled in his short college basketball career, so he’d likely have no reservations about following Medved to Minnesota if he gets the invite. Crocker-Johnson transferred to Colorado State from Little Rock and in his first season with the Rams last year averaged nine points and 4.4 rebounds a game. At 6-foot-8, the San Antonio native provided physicality and athleticism on the interior while still being able to step out and hit threes at a 35% clip.
Crocker-Johnson would be a role player in the Big Ten, but he’d be a worthwhile addition for a Golden Gophers team that won just seven games in conference play last year.