5 Reasons Gophers Fans Should Be Fired Up About Nolan Groves' Commitment

The Gophers landed their first transfer portal commitment of the offseason on Wednesday night with Texas Tech guard Nolan Groves. Here are five reasons why fans should be thrilled about his decision to come back home and play for Minnesota.

1. Positional versatility

Texas Tech's Nolan Groves tries to make a move against BYU during a Big 12 Conference men's basketball game, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026, in United Supermarkets Arena. | Nathan Giese/Avalanche-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

At 6-foot-5, 205 pounds, Groves has the physical profile of a true shooting guard, but he plays much bigger than his frame indicates. Injuries made depth a serious weakness for Minnesota in 2025-26, and Groves has shown he can play multiple different roles. He was a true No. 1, high-usage option at the high school level for Orono, and played as an undersized three or four at times with Texas Tech. He can wear many different hats for the Gophers next season.

2. Defensive effort

Groves was a scoring machine at the high school level with 34.1 points per game as a senior. It's easy for players like that to build an ego, but time spent with JSizzles 3SSB on the AAU circuit made him more than comfortable being a role player at Texas Tech.

If you want any reason to know about the effort he shows on both ends of the floor, watch a replay of his 13 minutes played against No. 3 Duke last December. Texas Tech had a few players foul out early, which forced Groves to play out of position down the stretch, and he defended Duke's front line of Cameron Boozer and Patrick Ngongba II at an incredible high level. It was a level of effort that you cannot teach, and it sparked an upset victory for the Red Raiders.

3. Role with Gophers in 2026-27

Isaac Asuma currently seems to have only a defined role in Minnesota's backcourt. He returns as a potential lead guard following 33 starts in 2025-26, but everything else seems to be up in the air. Kai Shinholster is expected to return alongside walk-on Max Lorenson, and they will add incoming freshman Cedric Tomes.

The Gophers will add more players from the portal, so it's probably too soon to predict where Groves fits in. But it's probably most likely that he fills in the spot that was left behind by B.J. Omot as a top option off the bench, who didn't play in a single regular-season game last season due to injury. In a perfect world, Groves might be playing 15-22 minutes per game as a sophomore. He has the traits to be a great sixth man in the Big Ten as soon as next season, with the potential to slide into the starting lineup when needed.

4. Long-term potential

Despite the constant roster movement in the modern era of college basketball, fit still matters in order to build a strong program. I don't think you can find a player who fits Medved's system and the Gophers program more than Groves. He won't be an All-Conference player in year one, but if I were building a college basketball team, I would want 15 players like Groves.

5. Minnesota connection

Everyone is going to have their opinions on how important in-state recruiting still is in the modern era of college basketball, but it still holds a lot of value. Groves will be the first Minnesota Gatorade Player of the Year to play for the Gophers since Joe Coleman won the award in 2011. That might not be something that's felt on the 2026-27 roster, but it's something that will have a long-term impact as Medved looks to rebuild the program.

Joe Coleman (2011) was the last Minnesota Gatorade Player of the Year to play for the Gophers.

Adding Nolan Groves is incredibly significant for Niko Medved and the state of the program, beyond 2026-27.

Huge get. https://t.co/SmIuqhH1uE pic.twitter.com/FmasEJ9uYt
— Tony Liebert (@TonyLiebert) April 16, 2026

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