NC State guard set to enter transfer portal after two years with program
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Paul McNeil expected to enter transfer portal after breakout sophomore season.
- NBA scouts evaluated McNeil; he led ACC 3-pt% and tied school single-season 3s.
- Teammate Matt Able and signee Cole Cloer entered portal; all open to return.
N.C. State men’s basketball could lose one of its key pieces next season.
After playing for two different head coaches in two seasons, Paul McNeil is expected to enter the transfer portal ahead of his junior season, according to ESPN. He recently underwent evaluation from NBA scouts.
McNeil joins teammates Matt Able and Class of 2026 signee Cole Cloer in entering the portal. All three have signified their openness to return to N.C. State, if they deem that the best option.
McNeil joined the program during the 2024-25 season under head coach Kevin Keatts and was buried on the depth chart behind players such as Jayden Taylor, Marcus Hill and Trey Parker.
He remained with the program after Keatts’ termination last March and developed into a starter and key scoring threat.
McNeil’s statistics jumped drastically from Year 1 to Year 2. He averaged 4.2 points and 1.3 rebounds per game in 24 appearances as a freshman. This season, he scored 13.8 points and 3.6 rebounds in 34 games played. His 3-point efficiency increased from 35.6% to 42.7%, which led the ACC and ranked top 20 in the nation. McNeil finished with 105 made 3s, tying DJ Horne’s single-season program record.
“Shout out to DJ Horne for setting the standard. He set the standard,” McNeil said at the time. “It’s a blessing to even have a chance to tie it.”
Prior to the game, McNeil noted the significance of not only being in position to break the record but doing so as a local player.
“That means a lot, especially being from here,” said McNeil, from Rockingham. “There’s a lot of basketball. I think we’re the hoops state. … That’s one of the reasons I stayed here, to do that.”
The sophomore scored a career-high 47 points against Texas Southern in the program’s annual heritage game at Reynolds Coliseum, making a record 11 3s. McNeil opened the game with a 5-for-5 start and scored 26 points in the first half. He set a new personal best 2 ½ minutes into the second half.
McNeil’s scoring output ranks No. 5 in program history, tying Sammy Ranzino (1951) for the most points in a single game. His 11 3s were a single-game program record and tied the ACC record. The sophomore added 10 rebounds.
According to the Field of 68, McNeil was the first player since the 2004-05 season to have at least 45 points, 10 rebounds and 11 or more 3s in a single game.
McNeil was a four-star recruit coming out of high school. He had offers from LSU, Missouri, Miami, Tennessee and Alabama. The sophomore is expected to be one of the most sought-after shooters in the portal this cycle.
