Three Buffs hit the NCAA men’s basketball transfer portal

After a disappointing finish to a season that can only be described as interesting, three former Buffs have tested their luck in the ever-so-popular transfer portal.

Within a week of an embarrassing finish to the 2022-23 season, former Buffaloes Lawson Lovering, Nique Clifford, and Quincy Allen all decided to enter their names into the NCAA transfer portal.

While at least one Buff was expected to enter the transfer portal after the season due to head coach Tad Boyle’s over-signing–the first time in his 13 seasons at Colorado–it was not necessarily surprising to see two of the three names in the portal. With ESPN’s No. 6 recruit in the nation, Cody Williams, set to arrive at Colorado this fall, wing players Clifford and Allen may have seen the writing on the wall.

Lovering’s decision, on the other hand, came as quite the surprise.

“It was a shock and surprise and I’m still scratching my head a little bit,” Tad Boyle told BuffZone. “But we’re moving forward. For 24 hours, I was down in the dumps. I was disappointed. I was shocked. Name the emotion, I had it. But today I’m fine. We’re going to be fine.”

Of the three, only Lovering has found a new home. The 7-foot-1 sophomore center committed to Pac-12 rival Utah, another decision that caught Colorado off guard.

Lovering, a former four-star recruit out of Wyoming, started 34 games for Colorado this season, playing just under 23 minutes a game. In his first season as a starter, Lovering averaged 4.9 points, 4.7 rebounds, 0.9 assists, and one block on 55.4% shooting. 

That stat line may not be eye-popping, but it does not tell the whole story. At 7-foot-1, Lovering was one of the conference’s better rim protectors (11th in total blocks and blocks per game in the Pac-12) and offensive rebounders (11th in total offensive rebounds in the Pac-12). 

With a lack of height on the Colorado roster, Lovering functioned as the Buffs’ defensive anchor, and for good reason. While he only had eight games with two or more blocks this season, it was evident that opposing ball handlers wanted to avoid the paint. If they dared to enter, they often created a tough shot for themselves as they had to navigate around Lovering’s lanky frame. 

Still, Lovering had room to improve. 

Offensively, Lovering’s only consistent production came off of offensive rebounds. When he received the ball at the high post, where he often did in Boyle’s offense, his lack of a jump shot, average passing ability, and inability to put the ball on the deck limited him as well as the Colorado offense as a whole. 

When functioning as the primary screen setter in the pick-and-roll, Lovering found a bit more success. Unfortunately, “more” doesn’t mean the struggles went away. Being on the receiving end of many passes, Lovering fumbled a few more than hoped for. When he did catch the ball, he often failed to go up with it right away. Knowing that he is capable of rim-rocking dunks, any hesitancy to shoot the ball resulted in groans and yelling from the crowd to shoot the ball!

But, Lovering did show improvement from his freshman year, especially in the low post. Once or twice a game, he would back down his defender before turning to his post-hook, a shot he has improved. Even if the shot didn’t go in, it was great to see him using his size to his advantage.

Occasionally, Lovering would get the crowd on their feet with a thunderous two-handed slam after receiving a drop-off pass.

With these flashes of offensive success, it makes sense why many Colorado fans became impatient with his offensive game. However, those flashes also made the towering center’s departure sting just a tad bit more.

For Utes fans, Lovering’s commitment comes with a great welcome. However, Lovering will have big shoes to fill as Utah’s Branden Carlson declared for this year’s NBA draft. Carlson was the Utes’ leading scorer (16.4 PPG), rebounder (7.5 RPG), and shot-blocker (2.0 BPG) in his All-Pac-12 campaign last season. 

With a huge opportunity at hand, Lovering is hoping to make the best of his new situation.

In a phone call with Utah’s Deseret News, Lovering explained his decision to leave Colorado. 

“I just thought that it wasn’t a good fit for me at Colorado anymore,” Lovering said. “Just, personally, and also on the basketball court, it was no longer the right fit and I wanted to move on and have a fresh start and play in a system like Utah that would fit me. Their system fits me better.”

Nique Clifford, on the other hand, will likely be the most interesting Buff to enter the portal. 

While his decision to enter the transfer portal was not necessarily surprising, many will wonder if the Colorado native’s choice will pay off.

After playing in only 14 games his freshman year, Clifford had better success finding a role in his sophomore season. While starting 17 of 33 games, Clifford averaged 6.7 points, 4.6 boards, and 1.3 assists per game while shooting 45.3% from the field. He also shot 40% from deep on almost two attempts a game while averaging over half a block and half a steal a game.

With these numbers, as well as Clifford’s defensive upsides as a tall, athletic wing, Colorado fans expected Clifford to take on a bigger role this past season.

Unfortunately, this was not the case.

Despite his integration into the starting lineup (started 33 of 35 games), Clifford’s averages stayed the same while his shooting splits worsened. In 21.7 minutes (compared to 23.1 minutes his sophomore year), Clifford averaged 5.9 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 1.5 assists on 37/29/53 shooting splits. 

Over the course of the year, Clifford just never found his footing. He knew this would not cut it if he wants to fulfill his NBA aspirations.

“I felt like I had to do what’s best for me and my goals of reaching the NBA,” Clifford told Luke Zahlmann of The Colorado Springs Gazette. “I didn’t feel like I could achieve that from CU.”

On multiple occasions, Clifford would look like the player everyone knew he could be, scoring in double figures, and reeling in five or more rebounds, all while locking down on the defensive end with a steal or block to show for it.

During Colorado’s best stretch of the season, winning seven of eight games from Dec. 8 to Jan. 7, Clifford averaged 7.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 2.0 assists a game on 44.8% shooting from the field. 

On Jan. 12, this all ended. Clifford went scoreless in a 68-61 loss to USC, only scoring in double digits twice across the Buffs’ remaining 17 games. Including the loss to USC, Colorado went 7-11 to finish out the season. 

Overall, Clifford just never could find consistency with the Buffs, an issue he hopes to solve with his decision to enter the portal. 

With such a high ceiling for the young guard, Clifford has been no stranger to attention, gaining interest from a plethora of schools including St. Bonaventure, Xavier, and St. Mary’s according to ThePortalReport.com’s Twitter page.

However, Clifford’s background as a Colorado kid has brought speculation about his endeavors, with many believing he may be sporting the green and gold for the Buffaloes’ rival Colorado State Rams next season. 

To finish off the trio leaving the Buffs, Quincy Allen was the last of the three to enter his name in the portal. This move came as the least surprising of the three.

After redshirting last year despite being ranked a four-star recruit coming out of high school by multiple recruiting platforms, Colorado fans hoped to see more of Allen this season. With his high recruiting profile coming out of high school and his flashy pre-game dunks that drew gasps from the crowd, Allen had become somewhat of a fan favorite.

However, the excitement was never fulfilled as Allen only appeared in 11 games during his time in Boulder, logging an average of 4.1 minutes a game. In such little time, it was hard to grasp what may have been holding Allen back.

With this lack of playing time and the highly-touted Cody Williams arriving in Boulder next year, it makes sense that Allen decided to test his luck in the transfer portal. 

In all honesty, it was quite frustrating that Allen never saw the court. With elite athleticism and a seemingly smooth jump shot, Allen seemed to be a piece the Buffs could have utilized down the stretch.

Even with injuries plaguing the black and gold late in the season, Allen only saw real game action once: Feb. 23 versus the USC Trojans.

In 16 minutes, Allen scored seven points on two-for-eight shooting with an assist and a rebound to his name. Allen had the best shot-blocking performance of any Buff this season, swatting four shots in the 84-65 loss.

This would be the only bit of the 6-foot-8 guard that fans got to see.

In the performance, Allen played decently, having a strong defensive impact on the game. However, his shot selection, reminiscent of Michael Porter Jr., smudged the fine defensive showing.

In the few times Allen caught the ball, it was almost certain that the shot was going up. But with a 29.2% shooting percentage, this may have been the reason Allen never got the opportunity he seemed to deserve.

However, it is rather unfair to speculate on why Allen did not get to see the court.

Allen’s recruitment status is currently unknown. 

With a seemingly high ceiling and a good scouting profile coming out of high school, there is no doubt that Allen will find a home. But with the lack of opportunity these past two seasons, it would not be surprising to see Allen fly under the radar.

Wherever Allen ends up, it will be interesting to see if the Washington D.C. product will show why he was ranked so highly coming out of high school.

In the month since Lovering, Clifford, and Allen entered the portal, Boyle has worked hard to replace the sudden hole of a big man, landing former TCU center Eddie Lampkin Jr. 

Lampkin, a soon to be junior, averaged about six points, six rebounds, and an assist on almost 55% shooting from the field last season for the Horned Frogs.

Despite having a different style of play from Lovering, the 6-foot-11 center’s averages are almost identical to those of Lovering’s. With this change, Colorado fans are rather invested in how Lampkin will perform for the Buffaloes next season.

With one roster spot left, Boyle has some decisions to make.

Speculation about who might fit that role has been the topic of discussion among Colorado basketball fans. With the Ringer’s Tate Frazier tweeting that Bronny James, son of LeBron James, is down to two schools, USC and Colorado, during the McDonald’s All-American game, the topic has been rather exciting. 

However, I wouldn’t get my hopes up about ESPN’s No. 28 recruit in the nation, as the Buffs’ final roster spot will likely go to a transfer.

Former GCU guard Chance McMillian recently took a visit to Colorado while also being rather active on Instagram, following multiple Colorado players since his visit. This past season, McMillian averaged 10.9 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 2.1 assists a game on 48/44/70 shooting splits for the Lopes.

With the last spot becoming more anticipated every day, Colorado fans will have a fun couple of months seeing who will join Williams, Lampkin Jr., Assane Diop, and Courtney Anderson in the Buffs’ 2023 recruiting class.