Why Isaiah Johnson-Arigu Should Be on Minnesota’s Transfer Portal Radar

Former Totino-Grace High School standout Isaiah Johnson-Arigu joined a long list of Minnesota natives set to enter the transfer portal on Wednesday, after one season at St. Thomas. There are plenty of reasons why he'd be a great fit with the Gophers.

If you go back to 2024, Johnson-Arigu was a four-star recruit and a top 150 player in his high school recruiting class. He held a long list of scholarship offers, notably from Minnesota, Niko Meved at Colorado State and Texas Tech, among many other big-time programs. He opted to sign with Miami (FL) and veteran Canes head coach Jim Larrañaga.

Larrañaga announced his retirement midway through the 2024-25 season, which sent Johnson-Arigu and a few other players to the transfer portal. Johnson-Arigu signed with Iowa, and he joined the program midway through the year, but could only practice due to the nature of the situation. The Hawkeyes fired Fran McCaffery after the season, which sent him back to the transfer portal for a second time before his first offseason of college basketball.

Johnson-Arigu signed with St. Thomas for his second season. He came off the bench in all 33 games, and he looked like one of the best reserves in the Summit League with 10.5 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game. At 6-foot-7 with next-level athleticism, it's clear that he can guard 1 through 5, and he's one of the most versatile players on any college basketball floor in the country.

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There aren't many players with Johnson-Arigu's athleticism at the mid-major level. If he had stayed one more year in St. Paul, he might have been able to increase his numbers and potential interest on the transfer portal market, but he didn't. He's still just two years removed from being a four-star high school recruit, and it's clear that he has a lot of traits that would translate to the high-major level.

Minnesota got run out of the College Basketball Crown on Wednesday night against Baylor, due to a major difference in athleticism, strength and versatility. A lot of that might've been because of using just a six-man rotation, but a player like Johnson-Arigu could be exactly what they need on next year's roster.

With Cade Tyson out of eligibility, Bobby Durkin and true freshman Nolen Anderson project as the only two true wings on next year's roster. The Gophers need more 6-foot-6 or 6-foot-7 guys who can guard multiple positions and play multiple roles offensively.

Will the Gophers be interested in Johnson-Arigu? I am not sure, but it would make a lot of sense. He's not going to require the amount of NIL money like a player who averaged 15 or more points per game at a mid-major. The Gophers have already used a lot of their resources to retain Durkin, Jaylen Crocker-Johnson and Asuma.

We've seen enough evidence that fit matters in the modern transfer portal era, and Johnson-Arigu's fit on a potential Gophers roster in 2026-27 is intriguing.