Providence forward Bryce Hopkins planning to enter NCAA transfer portal

Providence forward Bryce Hopkins plans to enter the NCAA transfer portal, On3 has learned. Hopkins spent three seasons playing for the Friars after beginning his career at Kentucky.

Hopkins played in 28 games for Kentucky as a freshman in 2021, starting none of them. He entered the portal after that season and went on to have a breakout season after committing to the Friars. Hopkins averaged 15.8 points per game with 8.5 rebounds while starting all 33 of Providence’s games that season.

His numbers were nearly identical during his junior season. However, he would tear his ACL in January 2024, limiting him to 14 games on the season.

Hopkins was able to return to the lineup 11 months later in Dec. 2024. He played three games as a senior but his nagging knee issues shut him down for the rest of the season. However, Hopkins was impressive despite not playing at 100%.

In those three games, Hopkins averaged 17.0 points, 7.7 rebounds and 3.0 assists for the Friars. Providence went 2-1 with him in the lineup, including an 83-64 win over BYU, who earned a No. 6 seed in the NCAA Tournament this season.

Without Hopkins in the lineup, Providence finished 12-20 overall with a 6-14 record in the Big East. The Friars lost six games in a row to end the season, including a first-round exit in the conference tournament.

Before college, Hopkins was a four-star recruit, according to the On3 Industry Rankings, a proprietary algorithm that compiles ratings and rankings from all four primary recruiting media services. He was the No. 8 power forward in the 2021 recruiting class, and No. 2 player from the state of Illinois.

Hopkins was a part of a four-player deep freshman class for John Calipari at Kentucky. Despite the low number of recruits, the class ranked No. 1 in the On3 Industry Rankings.

He was joined by three Five Star Plus+ recruits. Portland Trail Blazers standout Shaedon Sharpe (who never played a minute for Kentucky), current NBA player TyTy Washington and current LSU forward Daimion Collins. He was also joined by a transfer portal class that featured Oscar Tshiebwe, who would go on to win the Wooden Award that season, among others.

To keep up with the latest players on the move, check out On3’s Transfer Portal wire. The On3 Transfer Portal Instagram account and Twitter account are excellent resources to stay up to date with the latest moves.