NCAA Basketball: Top 25 impact transfers midway through 2022-23 season

6. KJ Williams – LSU Tigers

2022-23 stats: 19.3 ppg, 8.3 rpg, 1.7 spg

Last year’s Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year was a dominant mid-major frontcourt player at Murray State. The 6’10 forward has clearly had an easy transition, producing similar numbers at the SEC level. He’s been in double figures in all but one game, while having a pair of 30+ point efforts in the non-conference. One of those was 35 points and 10 rebounds in a victory over Wake Forest.

It will be interesting to see how Williams fares in SEC play against many bigs with his size. But he’s the leader of an LSU squad that’s exceeded expectations through the non-con, currently with an 11-1 record. As of now, Williams might not be conference player of the year but is an all-SEC caliber contributor.

5. Bryce Hopkins – Providence Friars

2022-23 stats: 16.7 ppg, 9.7 rpg, 2.6 apg

Along with Keion Brooks, Hopkins is another former Kentucky player that left for a large role and has succeeded. He leads the Friars in both points and rebounds while scoring 10+ points in all but one game. Three of his last four games include 20+ points, including a career-high 29 points and 23 rebounds in a double-overtime victory over Marquette.

After losing plenty of talent last offseason, Coach Ed Cooley has once again done well in the portal, hitting a home run with the 6’6 forward. Hopkins was known as a prolific offensive player out of high school and while it didn’t work out at Kentucky, now is one of the best players in the Big East.