BOOM
Ohio State lands its kicker for 2026 as Baylor transfer Connor Hawkins commits to the Buckeyes.
As perhaps the wildest and most unruly football transfer portal window yet in its nine-year history rages on, changes are coming to basketball's portal timing.
On Wednesday, the NCAA Division I adopted a new transfer portal window for basketball. The time for players to notify their previous schools of their departure has been shortened from 30 days to 15 days. Unlike college football, the portal won’t open until the postseason is complete, as it will open the day after the NCAA Tournament championship game for both men's and women's basketball. Last season, players had a 30-day window that began after the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Major changes are also being made to the coaching change exception, aligning with the new rules in football. Previously, players were given 30 days after their previous coach was fired or left for a new job or retired to enter the portal. Now, the players get a 15-day window starting five days after the new head coach is announced. If their school fails to hire a new head coach within 30 days, the 15-day window starts then.
While the new windows are unlikely to curb the frantic nature of the portal era in basketball, which often sees a larger percentage of roster turnover for teams than even football, it should help coaches to shift the timing to later in the calendar when teams aren't fresh off their season or even still active in the NCAA Tournament. And it should aid roster retention for teams undergoing coaching changes.
Changes were also announced to the portal windows for wrestling, men's ice hockey and men's and women's track and field. All changes will take immediate effect for the 2026 transfer portal window.
