Building a cohesive program in college basketball has never been more difficult with the recent changes in NIL and the transfer portal and that fact is evident on a near daily basis. Despite making great strides last season, even Villanova is an example of that as they saw brilliant freshman point guard Acaden Lewis enter the portal and find his new home.
Lewis is a 6-2 point guard from Washington DC who was a Top 40 recruit in last year’s rankings. He obviously entered his college career with heightened expectations, landing at a Villanova team looking to make a bounce back in the Big East under new head coach Kevin Willard. While this was in fact a very improved season for the Wildcats, it did still fall short of many of their expectations.
NEWS: Villanova transfer guard Acaden Lewis has committed to Miami, he announced.
— Joe Tipton (@JoeTipton) April 14, 2026
The 6-2 freshman averaged 12.2 points, 5.3 assists, and 1.9 steals per game this season, earning All-Big East Second Team honors.https://t.co/P2CLLLO2iq pic.twitter.com/oOfv1C0ztY
Miami lands Villanova transfer Acaden Lewis
All things considered, it was a pretty solid freshman year for Lewis, who averaged 12.2 points and 5.3 assists as the everyday starter for the Wildcats in their backcourt. Lewis was an effective point guard, though his shooting remains a work in progress, shooting just 27% from outside the arc in limited chances. However, his leadership was on full display even as a freshman in a season where he was named both All-Freshman and Second Team All-Big East.
Lewis finished Top 4 in the Big East in both assists and steals per game and was an effective weapon on both ends for the Wildcats. He had a number of 20-point performances, notably scoring 26 points in an early February win at Georgetown. His first career double-double came against Xavier in the regular season finale while Lewis would eventually help lead the Wildcats back to the NCAA Tournament, falling in the first round to Utah State.
Villanova gave Lewis every opportunity to prove himself and assert his role in this offense, yet he entered the transfer portal not too long after their season concluded. A young point guard with this type of skill and potential attracted plenty of attention, but Lewis is taking his talents down to Miami and will look to replicate that production in the ACC.
In his first season as head coach of the Hurricanes, Jai Lucas got Miami back into the Big Dance and even outlasted Villanova in the NCAA Tournament. Now, Lewis becomes the second big portal addition alongside former Georgia center Somto Cyril, who committed a few days earlier. After building a formidable team in his first season using the portal, Lucas is attempting the same strategy and has hit big on a pair of additions already. The addition of Lewis gives Miami a reliable and dependable leader at the point; is this team trending towards national contention next season?
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