Penn State sees another basketball player enter transfer portal

With a search continuing to find a new head coach to take charge of the men’s basketball program, the transfer portal saw another Nittany Lion player enter his name into the database on Monday. Freshman Evan Mahaffey is the latest Penn State player to enter the transfer portal since the end of the season and the departure of former head coach Micah Shrewsberry.

Mahaffey was a three-star recruit in Penn State’s Class of 2022 out of Ohio. He appeared in 34 games for the Nittany Lions off the bench. Mahaffey averaged just 2.8 points per game in his bench role but figured to be a player that could see a significantly increased role next season with the changes coming naturally to the roster.

Instead, it appears Mahaffey could very well be on the move to another school with plenty of eligibility at his disposal. While the majority of players who enter the transfer portal likely end up at a new school, Mahaffey is always free to withdraw his name from the portal if he decides to stay at Penn State. Such a sequence is not unprecedented.

A year ago saw Seth Lundy enter his name in the transfer portal, following Shrewsberry’s first season in State College. Lundy ultimately;y opted to stay at Penn State and was a key player in the first NCAA Tournament team for the program since 2011.

Mahaffey is the third player from Penn State to enter the transfer portal. He joins Caleb Dorsey and Dallion Johnson at the moment, with all three still undecided on their next school of choice, be it elsewhere or to stick with the Nittany Lions.

As a result of expected departures and current transfer activity, Penn State’s scholarship picture is nearly as shallow as it can get right now. Hiring a new head coach soon is a pressing need to allow whoever the next coach time to get building the roster as quickly as possible to salvage much hope for the first year on the job. As it stands at the moment, Penn State has six players currently on the scholarship chart, and that includes Shrewsberry’s son, Braeden Shrewsberry.