How Houston's Transfer Class Will Help Reshape the Program
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After a disappointing 65-55 loss to Illinois in the Sweet 16, Houston basketball has turned the page and is solely focused on the transfer portal.
In the past week, Houston has signed four players from the transfer portal, and the Cougars have almost completely reloaded for the upcoming season.
With the new talent coming in from the portal, Houston will look a little different in several areas next season.
Houston’s 2026 Transfer Portal Class
Last year, there was a clear problem that caused Houston to lose several big games, and that was suffering multiple scoring droughts in tight games.
To combat that, head coach Kelvin Sampson and staff have added 66.2 points per game between the four transfers, and offense should be more of a strong suit for this year.
Houston’s first addition was former LSU guard Dedan Thomas Jr., who is a dynamic point guard that was stellar throughout SEC play.
He averaged 15.3 points and 6.5 assists per game, and the staff was drawn even more so to his 4:1 assist to turnover ratio.
Replacing senior guard Milos Uzan and freshman guard Kingston Flemings is no easy task; however, the lefty point guard has a ton of valuable experience amongst top teams, and he will be ready to lead Houston next season.
The next player to make it official that he was coming to UH was former Kent State forward Delrecco Gillespie, who was one of the best players in the MAC last season.
Through 34 games played, he averaged 17.7 points and 11.3 points per game. He also is very athletic for standing at 6-foot-8, and he will pair very well with junior forward Joseph Tugler.
Although he was solid defensively last season, averaging 1.2 blocks and a steal per game, he has a lot of untapped potential on that side of the ball and that will be a major focus in the offseason.
To continue the trend on landing players who can straight up score the ball, former Purdue Fort Wayne guard Corey Hadnot Jr. announced his commitment to UH, and he averaged 20.4 points per game his junior season.
Hadnot will arguably be Houston’s most athletic player next season, and his ability to get to the rim is very similar to Flemings.
While the scoring won’t be an issue for the Horizon League standout, he will also have to continue to work on refining his defense because the Big 12 Conference is a much deeper conference.
He has shown that he can cause problems for opposing guards, averaging 1.8 steals per game last year.
The final addition so far came when former Lamar forward Braden East made it official that he was joining the Cougars, and he will be an interesting project for the coaching staff.
Most of his damage offensively is done around the rim, and standing at 6-foot-9, he has great touch on hooks shots.
He proved that he can score as a sophomore, averaging 12.8 points per game; however, his rebounding ability is what makes him so valuable for Houston.
Last season, he averaged 9.1 rebounds per game, which will be needed with the loss of freshman forward Chris Cenac Jr.
It seems overwhelming clear that the focus this offseason was finding guys who were elite scorers and had potential to become a force defensively after an offseason with the Cougars’ staff.
Hadnot and Thomas will be two dynamic scorers that can take over games on offense.
While East and Gillespie will get their fair share of buckets, they combined for over 20 rebounds per game last season and that is what they will contribute most to this team.
Overall, it seems like Sampson’s plan in the portal has worked, and the 2026-2027 team is looking like they will once again be a problem in the Big 12.
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Ashton Grissom is a staff writer for Houston Cougars on SI. He is currently a senior at the University of Houston and majoring in Sports Media Production with a minor in Marketing and Spanish. He also works for two student organizations: The Cougar and CoogTV. You can find Grissom on his Instagram (@ashtonagrissom8) or Twitter (@ashtongrissom8).