Yellow Jacket fans didn’t know they had it so good. At the time of Cooper Flagg‘s injury in the ACC quarterfinals, Georgia Tech was stifling the Blue Devils and looked like they had a chance to pull off the upset against the eventual ACC champions and national championship favorites. Since then, not much has gone right. Georgia Tech blew the lead, ending their competitive season. They were selected for the NIT, only to be blown out at home by Jacksonville State. If things couldn’t get any worse, Georgia Tech has had arguably the worst 2025 transfer portal in the ACC. What have they already lost, and how can they recover in the next few weeks of the portal?
Georgia Tech’s Disastrous 2025 Transfer Portal
Productive Players Lost
The leading scorer for the Yellow Jackets, Lance Terry, is a senior. Naithan George surprisingly entered the transfer portal and chose to stay in the ACC, committing to Syracuse with teammate Ibrahim Souare. Duncan Powell, one of the finalists for ACC Sixth Man of the Year, also chose to enter the transfer portal, committing to Georgetown. Those four players combined for 51.8 points, 9.1 assists, 16.4 rebounds, 3.1 steals, and 1.6 blocks per game. Georgia Tech has lost most of its production to the 2025 transfer portal. Baye Ndongo will likely return, averaging 13.4 points and 8.9 rebounds per game. Unfortunately for the Yellow Jackets, he will need some serious help if they hope to gather some momentum moving forward.
Georgia Tech’s Nonexistent 2025 Transfer Portal Class
Teams lose players at an alarming rate in modern college basketball, so it shouldn’t be surprising that Georgia Tech lost some players to more renowned programs. However, what’s far worse for the Yellow Jackets is their lack of transfer commitments to replace those players. Georgia Tech has not received a single commitment from the transfer portal as of April 14th. The transfer portal is the easiest way to replace production, yet the Yellow Jackets have been one of the few teams to do nothing. Most of the other silent teams haven’t lost quality players, unlike Georgia Tech.
The only way this could be seen as a good thing is if they had an elite high school class, but they don’t. Georgia Tech has five high school recruits, two four-stars, and three three-stars. Outside of a top-20 center, the other players don’t appear ready to make a strong impact in the 2025-26 season. This leaves Georgia Tech with limited support next year.
Is Next Season Doomed?
Unless Damon Stoudamire finds some late gems in the portal, it appears unlikely that the Yellow Jackets will contend next season. Georgia Tech’s 2025 transfer portal disaster is not dissimilar to the downfall of the ACC in general. Regardless, Stoudamire needs to immediately find guards in the transfer portal. They won’t be in contention for any of the top names. However, the number of quality mid-major guards looking for a power conference chance is encouraging. If they can find a few commitments in the next couple of weeks, they may be able to salvage a mid-table finish in the ACC again. However, without those commitments, it may be a long season for Yellow Jacket fans.
Photo credit: © Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images
