A Kentucky native plans to enter the transfer portal. Could he be a fit at UK?
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Liberty University guard Brett Decker Jr. is planning to enter the NCAA transfer portal.
- Decker spent his first two seasons of college basketball playing for the Flames.
- Decker is from Elizabethtown and played prep basketball at Central Hardin High School.
A former prep basketball standout in Kentucky is planning to hit the NCAA transfer portal this offseason.
He’s expected to get plenty of high-major interest after doing so.
Liberty sophomore guard Brett Decker Jr. intends to enter the portal to find a new school once it officially opens April 7, DraftExpress reported. Decker — who is from Elizabethtown and played high school basketball at Central Hardin — spent his first two college seasons at Liberty.
As a freshman, the 6-foot-3 Decker saw limited action off the bench. He appeared in 27 games, averaging 4.3 points per contest and shooting 44.2% on 3-pointers for a Liberty team that went 28-7 overall and played in the NCAA Tournament after winning the Conference USA Tournament.
Decker’s inidividual play exploded this past season, though.
He started each of Liberty’s 34 games as the Flames went 26-8 overall. Decker averaged 16.9 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game. He attempted more than 11 shots per game and more than seven 3-pointers per contest. Decker made 49.9% of his attempts from the field and 47.1% of his 3-point tries.
Decker also proved durable, playing an average of more than 33 minutes per game for the Flames.
That 47.1% success rate on 3-pointers was the second-best mark in NCAA Division I men’s college basketball this season, trailing only Iowa State junior forward Milan Momcilovic (48.6%). Decker ranked 10th in the nation with 114 3-pointers made.
Liberty won the outright CUSA regular season championship this season, but lost in the quarterfinals of the conference tournament. The Flames reached the second round of the NIT.
Decker’s sophomore campaign was punctuated by high-scoring performances. He scored at least 20 points in 11 games, including a career-best 30 points in a home loss to Louisiana Tech in early March.
As a high school star at Central Hardin, Decker was the 5th Region’s player of the year in both 2023 and 2024. Decker was ranked by 247Sports as a three-star recruit and as the No. 50 point guard prospect in the 2024 high school class.
That same service has Decker ranked as the No. 59 player who intends to transfer this offseason.
Point guard is a position of need for Mark Pope’s Kentucky program as the Cats begin their offseason roster rebuild.
UK will be losing junior guard Jaland Lowe. He was projected to be the starting point guard this season, but only played in nine games due to right shoulder injuries. Lowe — who had season-ending surgery in January and is expected to receive a medical redshirt waiver from the NCAA — has announced his intention to enter the transfer portal.
Kentucky is also losing its top two scorers from this season’s team in senior guards Denzel Aberdeen (13.5 points per game) and Otega Oweh (18.6). Both players are out of college eligibility.
The Cats will also be looking to boost their 3-point shooting this offseason. UK shot 34.2% from distance and averaged 8.2 made 3-pointers per game during the 2025-26 season. That was down from 37.5% shooting from deep and 9.5 made 3-pointers per game in Pope’s first season as coach.
Pope has already made one roster move this offseason. Last week, the Cats got a high school recruiting commitment from Mason Williams, a four-star point guard prospect. Williams — whose father is former NBA All-Star Mo Williams — is the first class of 2026 recruit to commit to UK.
Still, there projects to be plenty of space on UK’s roster this offseason for transfer portal additions.
Aside from Aberdeen, Lowe, Oweh and sophomore forward Jayden Quaintance, who is expected to enter the 2026 NBA draft, there are 10 other Kentucky players with college eligibility for next season. Not all of those players will be back in Lexington, though.
The transfer portal opens the day after the national championship game, and will close for new entrants April 21. If a player wants to transfer schools without penalty for next season, they must enter their name in the portal between those dates.
