By SAM LANCE
Rick Pitino hasn’t wasted any time rebuilding the St. John’s roster for next season. The latest addition? Providence transfer forward Bryce Hopkins.
Hopkins — the 6-foot-7, 220-pound forward from Oak Park (IL) — is the second portal commitment for Pitino this offseason, joining former Arizona State wing Joson Sanon. Hopkins, who began his college career at Kentucky, will provide the Johnnies with a solid one-two punch in the paint with big man Zuby Ejiofor set to make his return.
Now he comes to a St. John’s team that is expected to lose Deivon Smith, Kadary Richmond and Aaron Scott to graduation and RJ Luis and Brady Dunlap to the NBA and/or the portal
Last season at Providence, Hopkins played just three games due to a knee injury. He had surgery on a torn ACL in January 2024 and reaggravated the injury this season. When he was healthy, Hopkins averaged 17.7 points, 7.7 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game while shooting 40% from the field.
His last full season was in 2022-23. That year, Hopkins averaged 15.8 points and 8.5 rebounds for the Friars. He also shot 45.2% from the field and 36.4% from 3-point range. Hopkins played his freshman season at Kentucky before transferring to Providence. He’s played in just 17 games the past two years.
Assuming he stays healthy, this is a huge get for St. John’s with several of its pieces from last year’s Big East championship team out of eligibility. Hopkins is ranked the No. 6 overall transfer by 247Sports and No. 80 by Evan Miya.
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