West Virginia’s Kerr Kriisa to enter portal after Huggins’ exit

West Virginia point guard Kerr Kriisa, one of the top college basketball transfers this spring, will enter the NCAA transfer portal in the wake of Bob Huggins’ resignation as Mountaineers head coach, he told ESPN.

Huggins elected last week to step down in the wake of being arrested for allegedly driving under the influence, which threw the West Virginia program into turmoil.

“It’s been a crazy and busy week,” Kriisa said Friday. “I’m deeply sorry about the situation, as I was really looking forward to playing for Coach Huggins. Huggs will always be my guy. I’ve only known him for a few months now, but he is the most genuine man I have ever met. He is the man.”

West Virginia players such as Kriisa have a 30-day window to transfer because of the coaching change, according to NCAA rules. Kriisa will not need a waiver as a first-time transfer. He follows Tre Mitchell, who was the first West Virginia player to enter the portal since Huggins’ resignation.

Kriisa says he is open to returning to West Virginia when more clarity is provided about the coaching situation in Morgantown.

“I will still consider coming back when the new coach is announced,” Kriisa said. “For now, I’m entering the portal, and want to get this figured out as soon as possible.”

Schools such as Memphis, Cincinnati and Nebraska were heavily involved in Kriisa’s recruitment before he committed to West Virginia in April and are expected to be prominent options if he indeed elects to leave the program.

Kriisa helped Arizona to a 61-11 record the past two seasons. Last season, he led the Pac-12 in assists and shot 37% from 3-point range as the Wildcats won their second straight conference tournament championship and earned a No. 2 seed in the NCAA tournament.

Kriisa, born in Estonia, garnered significant experience last summer at the FIBA EuroBasket event. His national team competed against the likes of Luka Doncic, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Lauri Markkanen, making him one of the most battle-tested point guards in college basketball. He has two seasons of eligibility remaining.

Jonathan Givony is an NBA draft expert and the founder and co-owner of DraftExpress.com, a private scouting and analytics service utilized by NBA, NCAA and International teams.