Steele Venters becomes fourth Gonzaga player to enter transfer portal

Mark Few and the Gonzaga Bulldogs will have a very new look roster in 2026-27. Not only will they be without five graduating seniors - Graham Ike, Tyon Grant-Foster, Jalen Warley, Adam Miller, and Noah Haaland - but at least four players will be testing out the transfer portal this spring.

The latest Zag to go portaling is Steele Venters, who joins Emmanuel Innocenti, Braeden Smith, and walk-on guard Cade Orness in making their decision public - one day before the portal officially opens on April 7.

Venters is a 6'7 wing from Ellensburg, WA who finally made his debut with Gonzaga this season after missing the previous two seasons due to injury. After transferring to Gonzaga from Eastern Washington - where he won Big Sky Player of the Year in 2022-23 - Venters was set to start for the Zags in 2023-24 before suffering a torn ACL just two days before the season opener, costing him the entire campaign. Then, while rehabbing his knee, Venters suffered an Achilles injury on his other leg which cost him all of 2024-25.

Despite multiple setbacks, Venters worked hard to return to the floor and make his Gonzaga debut on Nov. 3, 2025 against Texas Southern - 960 days after he last played in the NIT for EWU.

He got off to a bit of a slow start - understandably - but was very good for Gonzaga against Alabama and Maryland in the Players Era Festival, recording two of his five double digit scoring performances of the year. That pushed him into the starting lineup for a nine game spell in December and early January, but his playing time gradually diminished after that, eventually resulting in Venters not even appearing in eight of Gonzaga's games down the stretch.

His last start, and last appearance, came on senior night against Portland on Feb. 25, where he hit a three to score his first points since Feb. 4.

Gonzaga's Steele Venters has entered the portal, the portal told @TheFieldOf68.

The 6-7 senior averaged 5 points per game this past season.
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) April 6, 2026

All told Venters finished the year averaging 5.0 points and 1.0 assists in 15.1 minutes. He shot 36.7% from three on 3.6 attempts per game, with his 36 made threes ranking third on the team behind Mario Saint-Supery (48) and Adam Miller (39).

Venters will now look for a new home in his final season of eligibility...if the NCAA grants it to him.

In theory, Venters should have another year of eligibility, having played just two non-COVID seasons at Eastern Washington and one at Gonzaga. However, because he redshirted his first year at EWU in 2019-20, Venters will be entering his seventh year of college basketball - far past the five-year clock the NCAA (attempts) to strictly enforce.

His decision to enter the portal is evidence he plans to apply for a waiver, and will be a significant factor for teams targeting him in the portal - who will have to account for a potential legal battle with the NCAA the way Gonzaga did with Tyon Grant-Foster last fall.

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