St. John's transfer portal target Bensley Joseph commits to Providence

Bensley Joseph was one of the first players that the St. John's basketball program targeted in the transfer portal, but instead will see the Red Storm twice per season in Big East play.

The Miami guard announced his commitment to Providence shortly after his visit to the school.

Joseph averaged 9.6 points per game last year as a starter for the Hurricanes, his first season consistently cracking the starting lineup and playing the most minutes (31.4) of his career in South Florida.

He shot 40.8-percent from the field and 36.4-percent from 3-point range, posting 3.4 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 1.5 steals per contest.

The New England native was the first player that Rick Pitino brought to Queens for a visit in late March but nothing formulated any deeper between the two sides.

St. John's and Providence were the only two schools that were seriously considered by Joseph.

The Johnnies are still looking to add its first player from the transfer portal this offseason. More visits will occur after the NCAA in-person recruiting dead period ends on April 11.

Glenn Taylor Jr., Drissa Traore, and Cruz Davis have already entered the portal from this year's roster and there are five open scholarships for the team to fill.

St. John's is also trying to get a waiver passed by the NCAA for Jordan Dingle and Chris Ledlum, two Ivy League transfers, to be eligible for a fifth season after the conference did not play in the 2021 season that was impacted by COVID-19.

There has been no decision on the waiver, but it seems unlikely that it will get approved.

Ideally, St. John's will add a staring center, impact forward, and two guards to its roster in the coming weeks as the program looks to return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2019.