Junior reserve forward James Okonkwo became the first member of the UNC men’s basketball team to enter the transfer portal on Friday morning. The 2023-24 season was Okonkwo’s only year with the Tar Heels.

Okonkwo spent two years at West Virginia prior to transferring to Carolina. He appeared in 31 games his sophomore season with the Mountaineers and logged 20 or more minutes in a game twice. That playing time did not translate to Chapel Hill, where Okonkwo logged just 44 minutes in total for the whole season. He never played more than eight minutes in a game and did not appear in Carolina’s season-ending loss to Alabama in the Sweet 16.

Okonkwo is the first Tar Heel to enter the transfer portal since the end of the season in late March. As a two-time transfer, he will have to sit out a year before playing at whichever school he chooses in the portal. As a rising senior, he will have one year of eligibility remaining.

 

Featured image via Todd Melet

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