Creighton Basketball: Why Pop Isaacs is the most important team transfer for 2024-25

The last few seasons have been excellent at Creighton and their powerful lineup has been a major reason for that success. The Bluejays rode legendary talent like Trey Alexander, Ryan Kalkbrenner, and Baylor Scheierman to an Elite Eight in 2023 and a Sweet Sixteen run last season. Doug McDermott has clearly built some feisty and talented lineups during his long run in Omaha.

Things are very different moving forward, as Scheierman is off to the NBA while Alexander and other recent studs have departed or graduated. Center and defensive magician Kalkbrenner does return for one final season, while Creighton will get another season out of Steven Ashworth as well, though a few additions were certainly needed.

Creighton didn’t lose a lot in the Transfer Portal but did add a few very important pieces. Forward Jamiya Neal is fresh off a breakout effort as a junior at Arizona State and might fit very nicely into this Bluejays frontcourt. However, it’s the other major addition that us even a little more excited for this upcoming year.

A former Top 100 prospect, Pop Isaacs spent the first two seasons of his collegiate career at Texas Tech. The native of Las Vegas was a full-time starting guard during both years with the Red Raiders. His development as a sophomore was one of the reasons that Texas Tech bounced back nicely and found themselves in the NCAA Tournament.

However, Isaacs opted to transfer after putting up 15.8 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 3.5 assists per game as a sophomore. His shooting numbers didn’t exactly develop as expected but he remained an all-around weapon and became an intriguing piece in the Portal. His departure from Texas Tech soon became Creighton’s great addition.

Isaacs slides into the lineup in place of Alexander, though obviously we can’t expect him to immediately replace that production. Creighton would love to see Isaacs putting those same type of figures up, and it’ll be interesting to see if he can take that step forward with his shooting after making just 29% of his 3-pointers as a sophomore.

While it’s hard to replace Scheierman and some of the other talent lost in recent years, Isaacs is a major addition to the Bluejays. He has the potential to really blossom into a star in this game if he takes another step forward in these new surroundings. Can he help Creighton maintain their footing near the top of the Big East standings? Can Isaacs also replicate the production that this high-powered Bluejays offense has been accustomed to in recent years?