Checking Up on MSU Basketball Players Who Transferred Out

Let's see how some former Spartans are doing at each of their new schools.

Nov 7, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins center Xavier Booker (1) runs to the court prior to the game against the Pepperdine Waves at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

The transfer portal is a part of life in college basketball now. Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo definitely has his reservations about it, but it's a tool that even he has begun to use more frequently.

This past offseason, MSU added Kaleb Glenn (Florida Atlantic), Trey Fort (Samford), Divine Ugochukwu (Miami), and Denham Wojcik (Harvard) from the portal.

Michigan State's Divine Ugochukwu moves the ball against Arkansas during the first half on Saturday, Nov. 8, 2025, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing. | Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

But the portal is a two-way street. Michigan State loses players to the portal, too. Since the end of the last season, the Spartans have seen Tre Holloman, Xavier Booker, and Gehrig Normand join new schools.

In the early portion of the season, a quick check-up could be useful to see how they are doing.

Tre Holloman (N.C. State)

Michigan State's Tre Holloman looks to pass during the second half in the game against Maryland on Saturday, Feb. 3, 2024, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing. | Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK

Holloman's announcement of his entry into the portal was the most surprising of the three players who decided to leave. He was a crucial part of last season's Big Ten title-winning team as the team's sixth man and finishing third in scoring. Holloman played nearly twice as many minutes (853) as Booker and Normand combined (450).

Now at N.C. State, Holloman is off to a great start during his first and only season in Raleigh. He's scored 15 and 14 points during the Wolfpack's first two games against N.C. Central and UAB, respectively. He's also made five of his first 10 three-point attempts, including four makes in seven tries during the season opener.

Xavier Booker (UCLA)

Nov 3, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins center Xavier Booker (1) dunks the ball over Eastern Washington Eagles guard Jojo Anderson (22) during the second half at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

Booker, a former five-star recruit, is still a player filled with potential who just seemed to need a change of scenery after receiving limited minutes for two years in East Lansing. He was a part of MSU's 10-man rotation last season, but was taken out of it when the NCAA Tournament rolled around.

Now at UCLA, that change of scenery has appeared to have helped early on. Booker has started all three of the Bruins' games and has averaged 11 points and six rebounds per game.

Two of his three highest-scoring games in his career are already from this season (15 vs. Pepperdine, 14 vs. Eastern Washington). Booker has also played at least 26 minutes in each game so far; the most he ever played at MSU was 25.

Booker and UCLA will also travel to East Lansing for a Big Ten game on Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026.

Gehrig Normand (Santa Clara)

Dec 4, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Michigan State Spartans guard Gehrig Normand (7) celebrates his three-point basket against the Minnesota Golden Gophers during the second half at Williams Arena. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images | Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

Normand's start at Santa Clara hasn't gone as well as Holloman's or Booker's at their new schools. According to college basketball analyst Rocco Miller, Normand is going to be out until "at least" mid-December with an undisclosed injury.

Santa Clara has gotten off to a good start this season in Normand's early-season absence, though. The Broncos are 3-0 and beat Xavier by 19 while playing on the road back on Monday.

Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo speaks to the media on Nov. 11, 2025, about an upcoming game against San Jose State. | Jacob Cotsonika, Michigan State Spartans on SI

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