Big East Player of the Year RJ Luis Jr. is moving on from St. John’s, entering both the transfer portal and declaring for the NBA Draft after his season ended with a late-game benching in the Red Storm’s second-round NCAA Tournament loss.
Luis’ agent, Sam Permut of Roc Nation, told ESPN that the 6-foot-7 small forward would be exploring both college and professional options.
The Miami native has one year of eligibility left and would be one of the top available players in the transfer portal. He averaged 18.2 points and 7.2 rebounds this season, leading St. John’s to both a Big East regular season and tournament championship. He was also the most outstanding player of the conference tournament.
St. John’s recently added one of the nation’s top transfers in former Arizona State guard Joson Sanon.
The Red Storm were a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament, but were upset in the second round by 10th-seeded Arkansas. Luis had his worst game of the season against the Razorbacks, shooting 3-for-17 from the field and did not play the final 4:56 seconds against Arkansas.
“I mean, of course, everybody wants to play when it comes down to it,” Luis said after the game. “So, I mean, just for me not to be able to be on the court the last couple minutes, just help my team win, hurt me.”
Luis started his college career at UMass before transferring to St. John’s in 2023, Rick Pitino’s first season as coach.
(Photo: Maddie Meyer / Getty Images)
