Top 5 reasons Rick Pitino's St. John's can be championship contenders following transfer portal changes

Off an encouraging 2024-25 season that was fraught with a disappointing ending, St. John's and coach Rick Pitino have had an up and down portal cycle. Pitino has added some genuine talent, but has also seen contributors like RJ Luis and Simeon Wilcher enter the portal. Still, the overall prognosis is a good one for the Red Storm.

Rick Pitino's teams have tended to improve in year three and year four of his tenures. Even with a fair amount of turnover, Pitino will boast an impressive amoutn of both returning talent and new additions for the Red Storm. Here are five reasons that Pitino and the Red Storm are championship contenders in 2025-26.

Top 5 reasons that St. John's and Pitino could be title contenders in 2025-26

Big man Zuby Ejiofor's return gives the Red Storm a strong post presence for next season. (Photo Credit: IMAGN)

5. Pitino is still a great coach.

It's hard to overstate the importance of Rick Pitino's coaching in St. John's rise. The once-proud St. John's program had been in a downward spiral for the last three decades or so and in 2024-25, Pitino not only stopped the slide, but reversed gains, making the Red Storm a top ten team and must-watch basketball. There's no reason to think that Pitino forgot how to coach, and with him, St. John's is good.

4. The return of Zuby

Big man Zuby Ejiofor was one of the most improved college basketball players in the nation in 2024-25. And for St. John's fans, the good news is that he's coming back. Ejiofor averaged 14.7 points and 8.1 rebounds per game last year for the Red Storm. He'll be one of the best big men in the nation next season.

3. Bryce Hopkins

One of Pitino's gambles on incoming players is a fascinating portal question mark. Bryce Hopkins has last played at Providence. Hopkins was an all-Big East pick there in 2022-23 as a sophomore. He averaged 15.8 points and 8.5 rebounds per game that year. Injuries have limited him to just 17 games total in the last two seasons. But if he's well, Hopkins could shock the college hoops world.

2. Portal addition(s) to come

Don't think that St. John's portal days are done. The Red Storm are still being linked to several of the top players in the portal. Among the most notable are North Carolina transfer Ian Jackson. Jackson scored 11.9 points per game as a frosh at UNC, but lost minutes down the season's stretch. Pitino could develop him into the NBA star he's forecast to become. If not Jackson, there'll be another like him.

1. More returning players

Even aside from Ejiofor, there will be more Red Storm players returning than Pitino has had previously. While Pitino has been a good sport about the legion of portal moves that make up modern college hoops, he's at his best as a developer of players. Pitino has betrayed some public excitement about some of this bench players from last year. Wait and see if they're not better in 2025-26, some by far.

What do you think about the Red Storm for next season? Share your take on the squad below in our comments section!