BYU Forward Gideon George Withdraws from the Transfer Portal

Gideon George is likely coming back to BYU after all.

Three days after the news broke and two days after Gideon made the announcement that he would be entering the transfer portal, Gideon has officially removed his name from the transfer portal and plans to return to BYU, multiple sources confirmed to me Wednesday. He is going through the NBA Draft process, but it is likely he returns to BYU for his last season. Gideon later confirmed the news Thursday afternoon with the message, “finishing what we started.”

Whatever the reasons for Gideon’s reversal, he will be a valuable piece for next year’s team. The Nigeria native played the last two seasons for BYU after transferring from the JUCO ranks. Gideon was BYU’s fourth leading scorer this year, averaging 8.8 points and 5 rebounds while shooting 44% from the field and 35% from three. His three point shooting turned around the second half of the season, and peaked in a career high 27-point performance on 5-9 three-point shooting versus Northern Iowa in the NIT second round.

One source told me that Gideon has workouts with at least three different NBA teams, so he will be getting valuable feedback the next weeks and months. With BYU likely to bring in more big guys, the opportunity to play exclusively at the three and not occasionally at the four is a big draw for Gideon as he prepares for the next level. Players have until June 1 to withdraw from the Draft in order to return to college.

With Gideon back, BYU now officially has three open scholarships. I could see one more player transferring, and we should find out before May 1 — that is the deadline for players enter the portal in order to be immediately eligible.