The transfer portal has completely altered college athletics, and it crafted one of the 2024 Final Four teams.
NC State’s magical run in the NCAA Tournament would not have been possible without the efforts of head coach Kevin Keatts and his staff in college basketball’s version of free agency.
The transfer portal has allowed teams to seek out and address specific needs on their roster. Even if it didn’t seem like it in the moment, the Wolfpack, retroactively, were as impactful as any team in the country in adding to their depth chart.
As NC State looks to keep its momentum rolling against Purdue in the Final Four, take a look at how its roster was constructed through the transfer portal.
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How NC State’s Final Four roster was built through transfer portal
NC State head coach Keatts has relied on a seven-man rotation during the NCAA Tournament. All seven players were brought in via the transfer portal.
Three of the Wolfpack’s starting five — DJ Horne, Michael O’Connell and Mohamed Diarra — are in their first season at NC State after hitting the portal last offseason. The same goes for key reserves Ben Middlebrooks and Jayden Taylor.
The two remaining rotation players are Casey Morsell and DJ Burns Jr., who transferred to NC State in 2021 and 2022, respectively.
With all that in perspective, the Wolfpack’s improbable run to the Final Four is even more impressive with the lack of experience this core group has together.
You can find each player’s journey to NC State below.
| Player | School 1 | School 2 | School 3 |
| DJ Burns Jr. | Tennessee | Winthrop | NC State |
| DJ Horne | Illinois State | Arizona State | NC State |
| Casey Morsell | Virginia | NC State | — |
| Michael O’Connell | Stanford | NC State | — |
| Mohamed Diarra | Garden City CC | Missouri | NC State |
| Ben Middlebrooks | Clemson | NC State | — |
| Jayden Taylor | Butler | NC State | — |
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DJ Burns Jr.
Burns began his college career at Tennessee but redshirted his freshman year. After one season, he elected to enter the transfer portal and landed at Winthrop in his hometown of Rock Hill, S.C.
Burns played three seasons at Winthrop from 2019-22, averaging 12.5 points and 4.0 rebounds per game. He was named Big South Freshman of the Year in 2020, earned two All-Big South Team honors and took home Big South Player of the Year in 2022.
Following his redshirt junior season in 2021-22, Burns transferred to NC State, where he will finish his college career at the end of the Wolfpack’s NCAA Tournament run.
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DJ Horne
Like Burns, Horne has also bounced around to multiple schools.
He began his college career at Illinois State where he played from 2019-21. He earned Missouri Valley Conference Third Team honors and then entered the transfer portal. He landed at Arizona State, playing two seasons in the Pac-12.
Horne entered the transfer portal again last offseason, finding a home at NC State this year, where he will finish his college career.
Casey Morsell
Morsell began his college career in 2019-20 at a different ACC school — Virginia.
Morsell averaged 4.2 points over two seasons with the Cavaliers, then entered the transfer portal in 2021. He landed with NC State, spending his final three NCAA-eligible seasons in Raleigh.
Michael O’Connell
O’Connell spent his first three collegiate seasons with Stanford from 2020-23. He was a consistent starter for the Cardinal, averaging 6.3 points, 3.2 assists and 2.7 rebounds per game.
O’Connell entered the transfer portal last offseason, and he is another key contributor who latched on to NC State this year. He still has one year of eligibility remaining, leaving the door open to return to NC State or hit the portal again.
Mohamed Diarra
Diarra began his college basketball career playing for Garden City Community College in Kansas from 2020-22.
After averaging 17.8 points per game in his second season, he took his talents to a high-major Division-I school and transferred to Missouri. Diarra didn’t play much at Missouri, entering the transfer portal again this past offseason.
The 2023-24 season was his first at NC State, and he still has one year of college eligibility remaining after this impressive NCAA Tournament run.
Ben Middlebrooks
Middlebrooks is another player who jumped ACC schools. He began at Clemson, where he played from 2021-23.
After playing just 11.2 minutes per game for the Tigers last season, he entered the transfer portal and committed to NC State.
Middlebrooks has played a key role off the bench during this run. He still has one season of college eligibility remaining after this season.
Jayden Taylor
Taylor also latched on to NC State this season.
The junior guard began his college career at Butler, where he averaged 12.9 points per game as a sophomore. Looking for a change of scenery, Taylor entered the transfer portal and landed with the Wolfpack.
He has one year of college eligibility remaining after this season.
