RJ Luis was the St. John’s Red Storm’s best player this season, but a disastrous performance in the team’s NCAA Tournament loss to the Arkansas Razorbacks changed things significantly for the wing.
Luis went just 3-for-17 against Arkansas and was benched down the stretch, resulting in the leading scorer deciding to enter the transfer portal.
While Luis clearly wants nothing to do with St. John’s any longer, he also really doesn’t want to play anywhere else on the collegiate level, as he is eyeing the NBA Draft.
The 22-year-old went on to call a potential return to college a “burden” during a recent appearance on the Stephen A. Smith Show, although there is very little doubt that his stock took a hit thanks to his shoddy showing in the Big Dance.
Luis was not a highly-touted potential draft pick to begin with, as he was largely viewed as a second-round selection—at best—even before March Madness.
The 6-foot-7 swingman averaged 18.2 points and 7.2 rebounds over 31.8 minutes per game on 43.9/33.6/74.7 shooting splits this past season. He is a terrific defender, which means he could probably find a home on an NBA team somewhere, but his inconsistent perimeter shot could prevent him from becoming a three-and-D guy on the professional level.
Luis began his collegiate career at Massachusetts in 2022-23 and spent one year with the Minutemen before transferring to St. John’s.
We’ll see if the youngster decides to go pro within the next couple of months. The early entry deadline is April 26, but even if Luis chooses to enter the draft, he has until June 15 to withdraw.
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