Report: Blue bloods hounding Gophers' Elijah Hawkins

Hawkins has entered the transfer portal after announcing he was staying at the U of M.

Jan 12, 2024; Bloomington, Indiana, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers guard Elijah Hawkins (0) dribbles / Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

Monday's shocking news that Minnesota Gophers point guard Elijah Hawkins entered the transfer portal has been met with more news Tuesday that a bunch of college basketball blue bloods are lined up to recruit him.

According Travis Banham of 247Sports, who cites "sources," the following teams are showing interest in Hawkins: Kentucky, Creighton, Texas Tech, Villanova, Florida State, South Carolina, Wake Forest, West Virginia, Seton Hall, Oklahoma State, Pittsburgh, Tennessee, Georgia, Vanderbilt and Washington State.

Hawkins announced that he was "definitely" returning to the U of M for a second season after the Gophers were eliminated from the NIT tournament in mid-March. And less than two weeks ago the Gophers posted a graphic to social media, which has since been deleted, saying Hawkins was back.

This graphic was posted on @GopherMBB 12 days ago.................................................. pic.twitter.com/YeqrYhqfWv

— Tony Liebert (@TonyLiebert) April 22, 2024

Hawkins was tied second in the nation with 7.5 assists per game this past season. He set Minnesota's single-season assists record with 247 and the school's single-game record when he dished out 17 assists in the Gophers' win over IUPUI. He had eight games with double-digit assists, including 15 in Minnesota's win over Butler in the NIT.

With Hawkins on the way out, only two scholarship guards are on the roster: Mike Mitchell Jr. and incoming freshman Isaac Asuma.