Clara Silva transfer portal: Top 5 landing spots as Kentucky forward leaves following Second Round exit ft. UConn

Kentucky and new coach Kenny Brooks had a solid 2024-25 campaign but have already had a significant transfer portal entrant in Clara Silva. The 6-foot-7 forward, a freshman at UK, has reportedly entered the transfer portal, even more mysteriously with a "do not contact" tag. This suggests a few distinct possibilities for Silva.

She is a native of Portugal and had committed to Brooks at Virginia Tech. When he moved to Kentucky, so did Silva. She averaged 4.0 points and 2.6 rebounds per contest in 12.5 minutes per game of playing time.

Here are five potential portal destinations for Silva.

Top 5 Portal Destinations for Clara Silva

Could UConn and Geno Auriemma have an interest in Clara Silva? (Photo Credit: IMAGN)

#5. Kentucky

Yes, that's not a typo. Given the "do not contact" and the surprising nature of her entry, it's far from impossible that Silva put her name into the portal just to sweeten the NIL pot moving into next season. While there's no indication that female players are benefitting from the outright bidding wars of some of their male counterparts, Silva may just want to test the financial waters.

#4. Virginia Tech

Maybe Clara Silva really did like the school as much as the former coach. Tech won 19 games this season and returns a pair of sophomores as its top two scorers. More interestingly, the only two players over 6-foot-2 were the last players off the bench. Silva could want to go to Tech and face the possibility of more immediate action.

#3. UConn

Internet rumors have suggested that the Huskies, who recruited Silva the first time around, could be interested. Sarah Strong is a sophomore and Jana El Alfy is a freshman, but there's no reason Silva couldn't be essentially a rotation player at UConn. Other than the crowded frontcourt, there's no guarantee that Silva would see more clock at UConn than at UK. But that may not matter.

#2. Tennessee

Other than the returning to UK scenario, the most likely other possibility is that Clara Silva has already picked a school from a group that is pretty familiar with her. Tennessee might make sense. The Vols recruited her the first time, and aside from Lazaria Spearman, they don't return a ton of post players. UT led the SEC in scoring offense but was not good on the class. Silva could help.

#1. Maryland

The Terps were another school that recruited Silva when she first decided to come to America. While the Sweet 16-bound Terrapins do stand to lose some seniors, they will return their top scorer and have a solid team next year. They don't have anyone returning who has played major minutes and is taller than 6-foot-2, so there's a clear vacancy here.

What do you think of Clara Silva's portal possibilities? Share your take below in our comments section!