NC State Basketball: What Manny Bates’ transfer means for Wolfpack

Current outlook of NC State’s roster

Bates is the fourth NC State player to enter the transfer portal so far, joining sophomore PG Cam Hayes, senior G Thomas Allen, and sophomore F Jaylon Gibson.

The Wolfpack were also dealt a blow with the de-commitment of class of 2023 five-star Robert Dillingham — a top 10 player in both 247Sports and ESPN’s player rankings.

Jericole Hellems’ decision also remains up in the air. NC State’s third-leading scorer could return next season as a super-senior, but the general expectation is that it’s unlikely.

Finally (so far), NC State’s two best players — Dereon Seabron and Terquavion Smith — have NBA Draft decisions looming. ESPN’s most recent mock draft has Seabron going undrafted and Smith projected as a second-round prospect.

Smith will get drafted if he chooses to enter, but a sophomore season in Raleigh could help boost his draft stock well into the first round. For now, let’s assume both returns, although it’s not unlikely that Smith ends up declaring for the 2022 NBA Draft.

We’re only about three weeks into the offseason for most teams, so it’s tough to rule out additional outgoing transfers. All NC State fans can do is hope and pray at this point. On the bright side, most if not all of the team’s transfers have made their decisions early in the offseason, leaving Keatts and his staff with plenty of time to find some impactful incoming transfers.