Monmouth’s Abdi Bashir Jr., coming off one of the best seasons in program history, announced on social media Monday that he will transfer to Kansas State next season.
Bashir, the 6-7 guard who led the nation with 127 three-pointers last season, entered the transfer portal last week, after finishing as the CAA’s top scorer at 20.1 points-per-game as a sophomore.
Bashir’s brother, Abdul, who spent the last two seasons starring at Casper Junior College in Wyoming, has committed to play at Auburn next season. It’s unclear how much NIL money Bashir will get at Kansas State
After the native of Omaha, Nebraska flashed his potential coming off the bench as a freshman, he reached the next level this past season. He introduced himself to much of the country by hitting a program-record 10 triples in a 38-point outburst against Rutgers, and scored 28 points at Seton Hall in a win over the Pirates.
For the season, Bashir shot 38.3% from long range, and hit on 86.8% of his free throws. He scored 30 points or more four times.
Had Bashir stayed four seasons at Monmouth, he likely would have challenged Justin Robinson’s all-time Division 1 scoring mark at Monmouth. But the reality is that in the era of NIL and the transfer portal, mid-major programs simply can’t afford to keep the talent they develop anymore.
Monmouth head coach King Rice had indicated since the preseason that he expected this to be Bashir’s final season at Monmouth given the money that would be on the table for him, estimating it at $800,00 to $900,000 in a press conference after Monmouth was eliminated in the CAA Tournament quarterfinals. He also implored teams to stop contacting Bashir during the season after their win over Seton Hall.
Kansas State went 16-17 last season, and was 9-11 in the Big 12. It was reported that Kansas was interested in getting Bashir as well.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Monmouth basketball star Abdi Bashir Jr. transferring to Kansas State
