NCAA Basketball: 10 teams who should target Purdue transfer Nojel Eastern

Nojel Eastern of Purdue has entered the NCAA Basketball transfer portal. Which team should be in play to land the all-around wing?

Over a year ago, the Purdue Boilermakers were just an overtime away from making the 2019 NCAA Basketball Final Four. They fell to Virginia but had an incredible year overall, led by All-American Carsen Edwards. He did have a solid supporting cast to work with, including Matt Haarms, Ryan Cline and Nojel Eastern.

Things have certainly changed since then. In the past few weeks, both Haarms and Eastern have left the program and entered the portal. The big man is going to BYU, while the recruitment for the wing is only starting. He had originally entered the NBA Draft this offseason but has since left, now looking for a new team next season.

After coming off the bench as a freshman, Eastern was a starter on the Elite 8 squad for Purdue. He averaged 7.5 ppg. 5.5 rpg and 2.5 apg in 28 mpg. Those numbers don’t seem elite but it doesn’t show how incredibly talented a defender the 6’7 wing is. He has the speed and athleticism to deal with perimeter and fellow wings, while also having the size and strength to not get pushed around by frontcourt players.

Add his passing and ability to rebound, Eastern can be a big asset for any team he picks. And if he can provide any level of shooting and overall offense, the former Boilermaker can be an NBA prospect in the future. He likely will have to sit out next season but will have an impact on the 2021-22 campaign.

For this piece, I’ll be looking at 10 teams that could use Eastern’s abilities. I tried to look at defensive-minded programs where he would fit best at, along with offensively sound systems that Eastern could also grow and improve his offense at. Here at the ones I had in mind.