8 Wildcats Enter Transfer Portal, Ditch Northwestern Men's Basketball

Northwestern head coach Chris Collins has just four incumbents slated to return in 2026-27.

Mar 11, 2026; Chicago, IL, USA; Northwestern Wildcats forward Tre Singleton (8) grabs a rebound against the Indiana Hoosiers during the first half at United Center. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images | David Banks-Imagn Images

Following a fun run to the NCAA Tournament in 2024-25, our Northwestern Wildcats men's basketball team had an utterly disastrous encore in 2025-26.

Loaded with freshmen and transfers, no one outside of Nick Martinelli could make a consistent offensive impact. Chris Collins was fielding a roster full of raw, athletic forwards, undersized, offense-first guards, and disappointing bigs.

Northwestern enjoyed a better-than-expected run through the Big Ten Tournament to cap the season, ultimately getting knocked out by the Purdue Boilermakers 81-68 in the third round. The Wildcats finished with a middling 15-19 record.

Now, with one of the most prolific scorers in program history setting out for an opportunity in the pros (Martinelli is generally mocked outside of the 2026 NBA Draft, but certainly could latch on as a two-way or G League affiliate player), the Wildcats are destined for a retool.

Or maybe an all-out rebuild.

A whopping eight players from this season's team have declared for the NCAA transfer portal so far. The full tally: freshman forwards Tyler Kropp and Tre Singleton, junior guard Jordan Clayton, junior guard Jayden Reid, junior forward/center Arrinten Page, sophomore guard K.J. Windham, freshman center Cade Bennerman, and senior guard Blake Smith (who has another year of college eligibility).

That leaves just four incumbent Wildcats on the team's expected 2026-27 roster.

💜😼 pic.twitter.com/3D1FYmALlT

— Jordan Clayton (@Jclayton_13) April 7, 2026

"Northwestern will always hold a special place in my heart," Clayton wrote in his farewell message. "I'm proud to say I was able to graduate in three years, while competing at the highest level of college basketball. After a lot of thought, I've decided to enter the transfer portal."

Reid, a highly-touted transfer out of USF this past season, was the club's leading scorer — but defensive question marks saw Collins toggling him between a starting and bench role.

“It’s one family,” Reid said at the start of the season, per The Daily Northwestern. “The culture is what really stuck out to me in the transfer process. That’s one of the reasons why I came here. Even past the basketball staff, the nutritionist, the weight room staff — everybody is just good people, it’s just a family.”

Kropp's departure is particularly concerning. Seen as the future of the team and the heir apparent to Martinelli, Kropp was the third-leading rebounder on the team despite only starting 10 of the 31 games he played last year for the 'Cats.

Collins will have his recruiting work cut out for him, as he looks to bring in prospects and use the transfer portal to refurbish the team.

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