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St. John’s basketball: LJ Figueroa shockingly enters transfer portal

By Kevin Connelly

NEW YORK , NY - MARCH 11: LJ Figueroa #30 of the St. John's basketball team looks on during the Big East Conference Men's Basketball Tournament First Round game against the Georgetown Hoyas at Madison Square Garden on March 11, 2020 in New York City. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
NEW YORK , NY - MARCH 11: LJ Figueroa #30 of the St. John's basketball team looks on during the Big East Conference Men's Basketball Tournament First Round game against the Georgetown Hoyas at Madison Square Garden on March 11, 2020 in New York City. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /
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The St. John’s basketball program received the shocking news that LJ Figueroa has entered the transfer portal.

St. John’s fans went to bed on Monday night with truly nothing to worry about regarding their team and once they woke up on Tuesday morning, everything changed.

Arguably the best player on the team, LJ Figueroa, entered the transfer portal for the second time in two seasons with the program, according to multiple reports.

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Figueroa was the team’s leading scorer and second team All-Big East selection in 2019-20, who entered his name in the 2020 NBA Draft on March 28, while maintaining his eligibility.

The 6-foot-6 wing also entered the transfer portal days after St. John’s announced his hiring of Mike Anderson, who had players such as Mustapha Heron, Eli Wright, and Figueroa stand behind him at his introductory press conference.

Heron is no longer with the program because of graduation while Wright transferred before the regular season started.

Ultimately, Figueroa made the decision to return to St. John’s for his junior season and that was the expectation again for his senior campaign until the news broke early Tuesday morning.

The Lawrence, Massachusetts could still ultimately return to Queens but that seems unlikely considering the team was holding the final available scholarship for him and missed out on a plethora of transfers, including Queens native Ray Salnave, who opted for Big East rival DePaul.

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With Figueroa in the fold, St. John’s ceiling would have been the third best team in the Big East, but now the Red Storm could be looking at a middle of the pack finish in the conference, for a team that’s finished in the bottom four in the league since the 2014-15 season.

LJ Figueroa averaged 14.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.9 steals per game in his first year under Mike Anderson while shooting 37.9 percent from the floor and 36.5 percent from 3-point range.

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Zach Braziller of New York Post reported that schools have been telling Figueroa, who does not appear to be a graduate transfer, that he could get a waiver to be immediately eligible in 2020-21 because of how the coronavirus impacted the New York area.