"What’s happening to Miami ": Fans react as Hurricanes freshman Isaiah Johnson-Arigu enters transfer portal after coach Jim Larrañaga's retirement

Two weeks ago, Jim Larrañaga shocked the college basketball world when he announced his retirement after 53 years of coaching. He had been with the Miami Hurricanes since 2019 and led them to an Elite Eight appearance in 2022 and the Final Four in 2023.

On Monday, freshman Isaiah Johnson-Arigu entered the transfer portal. "TiptonEdits" on Instagram shared the news and wrote:

"Miami freshman wing Isaiah Johnson-Arigu, a former 4⭐️ recruit, is entering the @transferportal, he told @on3 👀. All Miami basketball players were given a 30-day transfer window once head coach Jim Larrañaga stepped down."

Fans reacted to the announcement in the comments, as one fan wrote:

"What's happening to Miami👀."

While some fans gave suggestions for Johnson-Arigu's potential new team, others found this move to be in bad faith.

"Ultimate teammate leaving his team mid season!!!" a fan posted.

"Nebraska or Michigan will take him," another wrote.

Check out more reactions below:

Fans react to Isaiah Johnson-Arigu transfer news (Credits: Instagram/@tiptonedits)

Isaiah Johnson-Arigu played eight games this season with 5.4 minutes on the court per game. He averaged 1.0 points, 0.8 rebounds and 0.3 assists.

While the freshman has yet to explain the reason behind this move, he did share a post on Instagram on Monday. It included photos of his time with the Hurricanes, and he wrote in the caption:

"Grateful 🤞🏽🤞🏽."

Jim Larrañaga points at NIL as one of his reasons for retiring

The Miami Hurricanes had one of the worst starts to the season as they endured a seven-game losing streak after winning the first three. They had a break with the 94-75 win over Presbyterian before losing 78-74 in overtime to Mount St. Mary's before Christmas break.

On Dec. 26, Jim Larrañaga announced his retirement and in a press conference explained his reasons behind it.

"What shocked me was after we made it to the Final Four, just 18 months ago, the very first time I met with the players, eight of them decided they were going to put their name in the portal and leave," Larrañaga said.

"I said, 'Don't you like it here?' They said, 'No, I like it here, it's great.' But the opportunity to make money someplace else created a situation that you have to begin to ask yourself, as a coach, what is this all about? The answer is that it's become professional."

The Hurricanes have lost both games since returning from Christmas break. They face in-state rivals Florida State next on Wednesday.