Ranking the Top 5 Big Ten Basketball Offseasons: Illinois, Purdue, Michigan and More

Roster-building, not player development, is the focal point of a college basketball offseason. Here are the five Big Ten squads that did it best.

Mar 5, 2024; Champaign, Illinois, USA; Purdue Boilermakers head coach Matt Painter and Illinois Fighting Illini head coach Brad Underwood chat before the start of the game at State Farm Center. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-Imagn Images | Ron Johnson-Imagn Images

A coaching carousel, roster turnover, NIL and the transfer portal now characterize the ever-changing landscape of the college basketball offseason. The Big Ten as a whole has quickly adjusted, and a few notable squads have adapted far better than all the rest.

With that, we present to you the top five Big Ten basketball offseasons of 2025:

No. 5: USC

In the aftermath of his first season at the helm, Eric Musselman faced massive roster turnover, losing 10 players from last year’s team – yet he has still found a way to flip his program into a fringe conference contender. Adding Chad Baker-Mazara from Auburn and Rodney Rice from Maryland were the eye-catching gets, but Ezra Ausar (Utah) and Jacob Cofie (Virginia) provide depth, while incoming freshman Alijah Arenas can be expected to contribute, too.

Although the Trojans’ transfer class is one of the best in the country, their lack of returning help is a concerning sign and keeps them from climbing higher on this list, as teams facing this much offseason turnover tend to fizzle in postseason play.

No. 4: Illinois

The Illini lost key contributors to the transfer portal in Morez Johnson Jr. and Tre White, among others. Coach Brad Underwood and his club also saw Will Riley and Kasparas Jakucionis depart to the NBA.

Illinois Basketball 2025-26 Projected Lineup and Rotation

Still, the Illini did strong work in the transfer portal, bringing in Cal transfer wing Andrej Stojakovic and Arkansas transfer Zvonimir Ivisic – both of whom are listed as top-50 transfers according to 247 Sports. Toss in a dynamic returning one-two punch in Kylan Boswell and Tomislav Ivisic, and Illinois is well-positioned to challenge Purdue, Michigan and UCLA in the race for a Big Ten title.

Andrej Stojakovic puts up a career-high against Stanford:

37 PTS | 13-22 FG | 4-7 3PT | 5 REB pic.twitter.com/ODtk96csQx

— B/R Hoops (@brhoops) March 13, 2025

No. 3: Purdue

In today’s game, the only thing better than adding experience and talent through the transfer portal is returning your own. Arguably no team in college basketball retains more of its core from last season than Purdue and coach Matt Painter. The best pick-and-roll duo in college basketball in Braden Smith and Trey Kaufman-Renn lead the way, along with veteran sniper Fletcher Loyer, while under-the-radar transfer Oscar Cluff is an intriguing addition to the frontcourt.

With minimal alterations needed, Purdue had a relatively quiet offseason. Only that kept the Boilermakers – who enter next season as potentially the best team in the country – from leapfrogging the two remaining squads on this list. A small price to pay.

No. 2: UCLA

Sticking with the theme of transfer portal additions and retention, UCLA put together a spectacular offseason, bringing back the three-headed monster of Skyy Clark, Eric Dailey and Tyler Bilodeau, while doing excellent work in the portal.

Landing New Mexico transfer Donavan Dent – the fifth-ranked portal entry in the country – was the headliner, but snagging in-conference transfer and former five-star recruit Xavier Booker (Michigan State) may be a game-changer.

No. 1: Michigan

After all our talk about retention being the key to success, we have Michigan – a program that essentially brings back just two 2024-25 contributors in Roddy Gayle Jr. and Nimari Burnett – earning the honors of the best offseason in the conference.

Our justification? The quality of the incoming Michigan transfer class is almost unfathomable. The “worst” addition coach Dusty May and his staff made this offseason was Elliot Cadeau, a proven, high-major lead guard who put up 9.4 points and 6.2 assists at North Carolina last season. 

ELLIOT CADEAU WITH ICE IN HIS VEINS 😳

UNC point guard hits the clutch game-winning 4-point play🔥 pic.twitter.com/PvNgrHUG8D

— B/R Hoops (@brhoops) January 4, 2025

The Wolverines also reloaded in the frontcourt, poaching top talent from the Big Ten to land Morez Johnson Jr. from Illinois and Aday Mara from UCLA – both top-50 transfers. The cherry on top just so happens to be the nation's top transfer: Yaxel Lendeborg. The UAB transfer just announced his decision to withdraw from the NBA Draft, officially cementing Michigan’s offseason as arguably the best of any program in college basketball.

More From Illinois on Sports Illustrated:

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