Joson Sanon (Arizona State)
Shortly after the St. John’s season ended, it quickly got to work in the transfer portal and landed Arizona State guard Joson Sanon. Sanon bring a ton of potential to Queens after a productive season with the Sun Devils.
Originally committed to Arizona, Sanon was thought of as a potential one-and-done entering college and went through the NBA Draft process but always intended to return to college and play for St. John’s this season.
His 3-point shooting was impressive at the beginning of the year, but an ankle injury limited him in the middle of the season and a roster devasted by injuries for the Sun Devils put a lot on his plate with not much help surrounding him.
He averaged 11.9 points on 42.2-percent shooting, 36.9-percent from 3-point range.
Sanon projects to be a starter for St. John’s and could be viewed as one of the best pickups in the transfer portal if he is able to fulfill that potential under Rick Pitino.
Bryce Hopkins (Providence)
As St. John’s saw some of its outgoing players remain in the Big East, the Johnnies also kept a conference transfer in the league with Providence’s Bryce Hopkins.
Following the 2022-23 season, Hopkins was viewed as one of the best players in the Big East but opted to remain with the Friars after Ed Cooley left for Georgetown. Already having transferred once and with questions surrounding if two-time transfers would be immediately eligible at the time, Hopkins elected to play for Kim English in Friartown and was proving again why he was one of the best players in the league.
However, he tore his ACL after just 14 games in his junior season and his recovery carried over to the beginning of his senior year. The All-Big East forward played in just three games before suffering a setback that sidelined him for the remainder of the year.
Since his transfer to St. John’s there have been no concerns about his knee and he’s getting into the best shape of his life, dropping to under 10-percent body fat.
A combination of Bryce Hopkins and Zuby Ejiofor on the glass could be a nightmare for other teams and gives St. John’s perhaps the best starting backcourt in the conference.
Oziyah Sellers (Stanford)
One of the biggest problems regarding St. John’s last season was its inefficiency shooting the ball from 3-point range and the emphasis on adding shooters was clear this offseason.
Perhaps its best addition in trying to elevate its shooting numbers was landing Stanford’s Oziyah Sellers. After spending his first two seasons at USC, Sellers joined the Cardinal last season and got a chance to be a full-time starter for the first time and delivered in a major way.
He averaged 13.7 points per game on 40.1-percent shooting from 3-point range while starting 35 games and was nearly perfect from the free throw line, making 78-of-87 attempts.
Whether he is a starter for the Johnnies still remains to be seen, but Oziyah Sellers will be a major factor in the success of St. John’s this season.
Ian Jackson (North Carolina)
There might have been no bigger addition to St. John’s roster in terms of popularity this offseason than Ian Jackson from North Carolina.
The ex-New York City high school basketball superstar returns home with major shoes to fill after the Red Storm continued to search for a lead point guard in the portal and opted to tab Jackson with the responsibility.
Jackson wasn’t necessarily used properly with the Tar Heels, starting just 12 games and logging 23.8 minutes, but averaged 11.9 points and shot 39.5-percent from 3-point range. Still, it’s a major gamble to entrust him with the point guard duties for a team that has Final Four hopes this season.
It’ll be a challenge for Rick Pitino to try and teach Ian Jackson everything he needs to know about being a point guard this offseason but if there is one coach to be able to accomplish it, it’s the Hall of Famer.
Dillon Mitchell (Cincinnati)
Dillon Mitchell is like the embarrassment of riches that St. John’s got this offseason. It’s transfer portal haul was already impressive and then Mitchell is like the cherry on top.
For all of the emphasis on shooting and scoring, Mitchell is the old-school type of player who thrives on the defensive end of the court and is a freak athlete. There had been connections between St. John’s and Mitchell last offseason after he decided to leave Texas after two seasons but landed with the Bearcats.
He started all 35 games last season and averaged a career-high 9.9 points per game while still putting up impressive rebounding numbers of 6.9 per contest.
It feels like Dillon Mitchell could be best served coming off the bench for St. John’s this season and it would showcase the improved depth of the Johnnies by using a player who has started 106-of-107 games in his career as a sub.
Dylan Darling (Idaho State)
Dylan Darling might serve as the backup point guard to begin the season for St. John’s, but he could be a very important player by the time the season is over.
Darling began his career at the power conference level with Washington State but after two seasons, his sophomore year cut short due to injury, he landed at Idaho State where he thrived.
Winning the Big Sky Player of the Year, he showed he has what it takes to return to high major college basketball and should give the Johnnies a calming presence at point guard with stability if things do not go according to plan with Ian Jackson.
Dylan Darling went for 19.8 points and 5.7 assists per game last season
Handje Tamba (Milligan College)
St. John’s added a depth frontcourt piece to its roster in Handje Tamba from the NAIA ranks.
He was named as the Appalachian Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Year and started his career with one season at Tennessee before playing at Weber State for two years.
Expect him to fill the role vacated by Khaman Maker.
Kelvin Odih (Freshman)
St. John’s had no high school recruits committed until this spring and the addition of 4-star recruit Kelvin Odih could prove major dividends quickly for the Red Storm.
Previously committed to West Virginia, Odih opened his recruiting process again following the head coaching change with the Mountaineers. He was ranked as the No. 66 player in the 247Sports recruiting rankings and shines on the defensive end of the floor with his strength and versatility.
Freshmen usually have a tough time playing immediately for Rick Pitino but it will be interesting to follow the development of Odih throughout the summer and fall to see if he can be part of the Red Storm’s rotation.
Imran Suljanovic (Freshman)
Imran Suljanovic was the first high school player to commit to St. John’s this offseason and it continues a trend for the Red Storm, who now have three international players on its roster.
Suljanovic joins Ruben Prey and Lefteris Liotopoulos as the rookie from Austria brings a decorated international basketball resume to Queens, which boasts him as an elite shooter.
Rick Pitino announced earlier this month that Suljanovic is not expected to be at St. John’s offseason workouts, specifically early in the summer, as he works through international visa issues.
However, there could be a small window for playing time this season – similar to what Liotopoulos experienced late last year.
Casper Pohto (Freshman)
Casper Pohto announced his commitment to St. John's two weeks ago and he caps the offseason moves for the Johnnies.
Pohto last played for Sunrise Christian Academy (Kansas) but also spent some time at St. Benedict's Prep in New Jersey. The guard is not expected to play much this season for the Red Storm and be a valued depth piece.
It'll be a lot of new faces in Queens this season but St. John's has the expectations of not only repeating its success from a season ago but taking the next step in terms of NCAA Tournament success.