Rick Pitino is back in Power-6 basketball for the first time since his Louisville tenure. Pitino was hired by St. John’s in the spring and has immediately made a positive impact in the program bringing in a top transfer class.
St. John’s heads into the 2023-24 season as one of the most intriguing teams in the country. Within days of taking the job, Pitino evaluated his current roster and went one by one to see who was up for the challenge of rebuilding the program. SJU big man Joel Soriano was one of the only players to remain after the coaching transition from Mike Anderson to Pitino.
Pitino and his staff did a great job balancing talent with promising youth from the portal.
St. John’s Transfer Portal Class:
Nahiem Alleyne, G – UConn
Stats: 5.2 PTS, 1.2 REB, 0.8 AST
Sadiku Ayo, F – Iona
Stats: 2.6 PTS, 1.5 REB
Sean Conway, G – VMI
Stats: 12.1 PTS, 4.9 REB, 1.4 AST
Cruz Davis, G – Iona
Stats: 6.5 PTS, 1.4 REB, 1.0 AST
Jordan Dingle, G – Penn
Stats: 23.4 PTS, 3.6 REB, 2.3 AST
Zuby Ejiofor, C – Kansas
Stats: 1.2 PTS, 1.7 REB
Chris Ledlum, F – Harvard
Stats: 18.8 PTS, 8.5 REB, 1.5 AST
RJ Luis, G – UMass
Stats: 11.5 PTS, 4.6 REB, 1.3 AST
Daniss Jenkins, G – Iona
Stats: 15.6 PTS, 4.4 REB, 4.9 AST
Glenn Taylor Jr., F – Oregon State
Stats: 11.6 PTS, 3.7 REB, 2.2 AST
After a summer haul of talented players, many analysts and computers don’t know what to expect from the Red Storm this season. SJU received AP vote points in the preseason poll and comes in at No. 60 in KenPom’s initial rankings.
St. John’s will be watched by all of America this season as Pitino looks to bring them back to relevancy. SJU looks to return to the NCAA Tournament for the third time in the last decade and is searching for its first NCAAT win since 2000.
