One Key Area Raises Concern About USC's Transfer Portal Signings

The USC Trojans are having an active offseason with a handful of transfer portals and the return of key players, but there is one major flaw in their recruiting strategy that could be problematic.

Feb 21, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Southern California Trojans head coach Eric Musselman reacts against the Oregon Ducks in the second half at Galen Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

After a rough 18-14 season in which the USC Trojans failed to make the NCAA tournament, coach Eric Musselman has been back at the drawing board, trying to rebuild his roster once again. With five players electing to leave in the transfer portal and senior forward Ezra Ausar entering the NBA Draft, Musselman finds himself doing a major roster overhaul for the second straight season. Thankfully for him, USC has had real success in the transfer portal with seven new signees to add to the roster.

They also get a few key contributors back with the return of point guard Rodney Rice, forward Jacob Cofie and former five-star Alijah Arenas. But in his search for new talent, it seems that coach Musselman has forgotten to take one major thing into consideration: 3-point shooting. The Trojans were one of the worst three-point shooting teams in the country last season, and unfortunately, that glaring hole has seemingly been forgotten when signing players in the transfer portal.

USC's Transfer Portal Class Desperately Lacks Shooting

Jan 31, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Southern California Trojans head coach Eric Musselman reacts against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights in the second half at Galen Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The USC Trojans have done a great job of bringing in talent that is multi-versatile. In their transfer class, they have brought in Georgetown transfer guard KJ Lewis, Colgate transfer guard Jalen Cox, UConn transfer center Eric Reibe, Evansville transfer forward Joshua Hughes, Hawaii transfer guard Aaron Hunkin-Claytor, Lindenwood transfer guard Jadis Jones and most recently South Dakota transfer guard Isaac Bruns.

Within the group is a lot of guard play, a multitude of different scoring options and players with major defensive upside. But one common theme amongst the group is that none of these seven join the Trojans as a reliable 3-point shooter. The average 3-point percentage in college basketball last season was 34 to 35 percent, meaning players who shoot north of 36 percent would be considered reliable shooters, given that they're better than the average.

Jan 24, 2026; Providence, Rhode Island, USA; Georgetown Hoyas guard KJ Lewis (5) makes a three point basket over Providence Friars forward Duncan Powell (31) during the second half at Amica Mutual Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images | Eric Canha-Imagn Images

Here are the 3-point shooting averages for all seven USC transfers:

• KJ Lewis: 27.4 percent
• Jalen Cox: 34 percent
• Eric Reibe: 30.8 percent
• Joshua Hughes: 31.6 percent
• Aaron Hunkin-Claytor: 34.6 percent
• Jadis Jones: 12.5 percent
• Isaac Bruns: 34.2 percent

Cox notably is coming off shooting 36.5 percent from three last year, along with Hughes (36.4 percent) and Bruns (39.2 percent), who also had strong shooting seasons from distance. But all three did so on volume lower than four attempts per game, with no trend that signals a potential uptick. Coach Musselman essentially is banking on one or all of them to at least continue on their success from last season, if not improve.

USC's Returners Aren't That Much Better

Nov 14, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Southern California Trojans guard Rodney Rice (1) shoots a jump shot during the first half of the Hall of Fame Series game against the Illinois State Redbirds at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

Unfortunately, the issue of 3-point shooting isn't just with the transfers but also the returners. Of the trio of Rodney Rice, Alijah Arenas and Jacob Cofie, only Rice shot better than 34 percent. But even with Rice, who shot 38.5 percent from distance last season, he did that in only six games. He did shoot 37.4 percent the previous year at Maryland, but following his major injury, it will be interesting to see if he can regain that momentum.

Arenas and Cofie, on the other hand, were horrendous from beyond the arc, shooting 21 percent and 31 percent, respectively. As three of the team's most important pieces going into next season, the lack of floor spacing throughout the roster creates major questions about lineup combinations. This is a team that has a lot of depth now, and they addressed their shot creation issue in a real way by adding four guards who averaged 15 or more points last season.

Feb 11, 2026; Columbus, Ohio, USA; USC Trojans head coach Eric Musselman reacts during the second half against the Ohio State Buckeyes at Value City Arena. Mandatory Credit: Joseph Maiorana-Imagn Images | Joseph Maiorana-Imagn Images

But this was a team that shot 31.4 percent from downtown, which was dead last in the Big Ten last season. The top three shooting teams in the conference were the Purdue Boilermakers, UCLA Bruins and the Michigan Wolverines. The Boilermakers went on to reach the Final Four of the NCAA tournament. The Bruins were eliminated in the second round by the national champion runner-ups. And the Wolverines went on to win the whole thing.

There are other factors to those teams' success, but three-point shooting is a great equalizer in a tough conference like the Big Ten. The Trojans have some capable talent and intriguing stars. But their glaring issue in the shooting department could be a make-or-break stat that determines whether this is a redemption season or another rough year for USC.

Sign up to our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook, and X for the latest news.