Stanford MBB sophomore Harrison Ingram enters transfer portal
On Tuesday, Stanford sophomore forward Harrison Ingram announced on social media that he is entering the transfer portal. Ingram posted the following statement:
Stanford is a wonderful place and my experience here has been amazing. The relationships I have developed will be lifelong, and I will always remember my time here.
Thanks to Coach Haase and staff for providing me the opportunity to become a Cardinal. The many life lessons learned on and off the court will serve me well in all aspects of life.
I have devoted many hours to being the best academic student and best basketball player possible, and I will continue on this path. Although there is more work required to reach my goals, through much thought, and discussion with my family, I have decided to enter the transfer portal. Thank you to everyone who has supported me during this process.
-Harrison Ingram
Ingram was Pac-12 Freshman of the Year and averaged 10.5 points, 6.2 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 0.8 steals per game during his two years on The Farm. He also shot 39.8% from the field, 31.6% from 3-point range, and 62.9% from the foul line. His field goal percentage improved from 38.8% as a freshman to 40.8% as a sophomore while his 3-point percentage improved from 31.3% to 31.9%. His foul shooting however dipped from 66.3% as a freshman to 59.8% as a sophomore.
Given that he came to The Farm as a McDonald’s All-American, losing Ingram would be a big loss for the Cardinal. No way around that. He’s a guy who they were hoping would be a key piece of them finally making the NCAA tournament next season. If he does indeed leave after exploring his transfer portal options, Stanford will be losing a guy who rebounds at an elite level, can create plays for others, and also is getting more confident as a scorer. Whoever gets him will be getting a guy who can help them out in a variety of ways.
That all being said, Ingram wasn’t very consistent with his scoring even as a sophomore. He did score in double figures for the final 10 games of the season including the Pac-12 tournament, so he did get more consistent there. But of those 10 games, three of them were 11 points and the high was 15 points (twice). Of the first 22 games he played, 12 were single digit performances.
As a whole, Ingram’s lack of scoring consistency hurt the team at times as did his lack of assertiveness. So, if he does indeed leave, this will create an opportunity for others to be more assertive and get their own shot. Especially incoming freshman Andrej Stojakovic and sophomore Ryan Agarwal, two guys who can really shoot the leather off the ball. And then guys like Brandon Angel, Maxime Raynaud, and Max Murrell will also get more of a chance to showcase their scoring abilities as well. All while having a really talented point guard getting them the ball in 4-star Kanaan Carlyle.
Touching quickly on his defense, Ingram’s main strength is his rebounding. If he leaves, Stanford is going to need others to step up on the defensive glass. In regard to perimeter defense, he wasn’t that great and he wasn’t much of a shot blocker, so in a lot of ways, he’s not much of a loss defensively aside from the rebounding.
If Ingram does end up leaving, this will sting for Stanford. It would be a major loss. But at the same time, him leaving would be an opportunity for others to step up and grab the scoring bull by the horns, which he failed to do a lot of the time.
Finally, there is a chance Ingram withdraws from the portal and comes back to Stanford. Last year he did something similar by declaring for the NBA draft only to return to The Farm for his sophomore season. While his announcement does seem pretty final, his announcement last year seemed pretty final as well.
So, it’ll be interesting to see if he does end up leaving and whether or not Jerod Haase will be able to convince him that Stanford is the best fit for him. There are some reasons why coming back might be in his best interest, but there are of course reasons why it might be best for him to get a fresh start elsewhere. Time will tell.
Note: Ingram is the fourth Stanford player to enter the transfer portal this cycle, joining Jarvis Moss, Neal Begovich, and Isa Silva.
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