© Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Key FSU Basketball Starter Is Entering NCAA Transfer Portal
The Seminoles have had six players move on from the program since the conclusion of the season.
Florida State guard Jalen Warley plans to enter the transfer portal, per Jake Weingarten of Stockrisers.com. Warley is a rising senior who has started 58 games of 96 played in his three seasons in Tallahassee and played really well down the stretch of last season. For his career, the former 5-star averaged 6.0 PPG, 2.9 APG, 2.5 RPG, and 1.3 SPG, but averaged 8.2/3.2/2.6/1.2 while shooting 80% from the free throw line in the final 18 games of the season, including a career-high 23 points at Louisville.
This is a big loss for Florida State and comes as unexpected. Warley emerged as an experienced leader and a tough defender for the Seminoles as someone the rest of the team looked up to and was set to become the first true senior that FSU has had in a few seasons. The 'Noles already don't have a lot of returning talent on the roster and now have to find a way to replace that talent and experience.
READ MORE: FSU Football To Be Without Two Scholarship Quarterbacks For Spring Showcase
Warley was seen as someone likely to return to the team but things have changed. Coach Hamilton and the rest of the coaching staff will have their hands full to replace this kind of seniority, and have already struck out on a few transfer targets that visited then committed elsewhere.
Jalen Warley was a part of the 2021 recruiting class that finished as a top-10 class with two five-stars (Warley and Matthew Cleveland), as well as John Butler, Alaa-Eddine Boutayeb, and Naheem McLeod. None of those players remain on the roster anymore.
Jamir Watkins, Chandler Jackson, Cam'Ron Fletcher, and Taylor Bol Bowen are the only players who could return to the roster next season but haven't announced anything as of this moment. Watkins has the option to turn pro, return, or transfer. FSU also has three high schoolers signed onto the roster: AJ Swinton, Daquan Davis, and Christian Nitu.
READ MORE: Former FSU Football DL Enters NCAA Transfer Portal After Four Months At Georgia Tech
Stick with NoleGameday for more coverage of Florida State basketball throughout the offseason.
Follow NoleGameday on and Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok
