Arkansas Among Teams Expected to Get Visit from One of Portal's Most Coveted Players

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Former Ashdown guard Lamar Wilkerson has made himself one of the most coveted players in the transfer portal this offseason, and Arkansas is among the finalists he is reportedly considering for a visit.

Regarded as maybe “the best shooter in the transfer portal,” Ashdown, Arkansas native and Sam Houston State transfer Lamar Wilkerson ( @kiddlamar_ ) has been contacted by these schools and others. He averaged 20.7 points per game on 45% shooting from three. pic.twitter.com/zWPpao5pl6
— DSE (@dontsleepedits) March 29, 2025

John Calipari's Razorbacks find themselves facing off with a who's-who of college basketball for his services with Duke, Kentucky and Alabama among those looking to land the native Arkansan. The biggest reason for all the buzz is because of his length and sharp-shooting ability.

Wilkerson lists at 6-foot-5 and boasts a 44.5% three-point shooting average from this past season. Of course, each season there are those who have unusually high percentages because they didn't shoot very many shots.

That's not the case for Wilkerson. He is a high volume shooter from the outside. He hit 109-of-245 shots from beyond the arc this past season.

To put that in perspective, Arkansas only made 253 threes all season long, including the SEC and NCAA Tournament. Departing guard Johnell Davis led Arkansas in made threes with 57, almost half as many as Wilkerson.

Of course, all of this production is great, but Sam Houston State doesn't exactly play the most daunting schedule in America, so the question is whether Wilkerson can put up those kinds of numbers against the SEC.

While there were no SEC teams on the Bearkats' schedule this past season, he did put up 19 against Baylor, 18 against Indiana, and 15 against Pitt. In those games, his three-point shooting dropped off to a combined 9-of-25, mostly hindered by a 2-of-9 night against the Panthers.

Even with the off night, that's still four percentage points higher than Arkansas put up all season long.

The biggest positive to Wilkerson's game is how quickly he can set his feet and his ability to create his own spacing on the perimeter. The second his feet are under him, his form and balance take over, allowing Wilkerson to get off a smooth shot that almost looks made in a computer program.

The one area Calipari will have to bring out of him is an aggressive nature when it comes to attacking the basket. It was perhaps the biggest surprise on his film.

Wilkerson had a big size advantage against mid-major opponents, but he rarely used it to bully smaller guards physically. At 206 pounds, he is solidly built, so moving defenders by charging hard at the basket or backing guards down inside in one-on-one situations should have almost been second nature.

Some of this is possibly a product of his confidence around the arc and his ability to use his length to shoot more freely there, but he won't have that advantage as often in the SEC. He will battle guards equal to his size.

Facing Karter Knox each day in practice will go a long way in showing he can't always rely on shooting over opponents at this level. If Calipari can get him going downhill with consistent body control, the step-back Wilkerson uses to create space for threes will continue to do so at this level.

However, if he doesn't develop a powerful drive to the hoop, that space will no longer be there in SEC play. There's a lot of upside if Arkansas can land him.

With most of the teams in contention for Wilkerson still in the NCAA Tournament, this is one will force Hogs fans to be patient. It could be a while before he is able to complete his visits and make a final decision.

Arkansas Among Teams Expected to Get Visit from One of Portal's Most Coveted Players

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