During her senior year at Boise High School, Avery Howell, a Boise, Idaho native, became a two-time Gatorade State Player of the Year.  She dominated girl’s high school basketball in her state. Averaging 21.2 points and 10.6 rebounds a game, the McDonald’s All American was ranked no. 16 by ESPN for the Class of 2024. College offers from top schools poured in. Duke wanted her to come to North Carolina. Indiana wanted her, so did Washington and Utah. She passed on them all and came to Los Angeles to play for the USC Trojans. A little over a year later, after her first season at USC came to an end, she entered the NCAA transfer portal to continue her college career at another school.

For years, the press has heavily reported on a growing number of male college basketball student athletes moving on to different schools. However, after the UConn Huskies emerged victorious to win the women’s 2025 NCAA title, 1,523 women basketball student athletes entered the transfer portal. Several stand out players from most every major D1 school are included. Names like MiLaysia Fulwiley of South Carolina, Olivia Miles of Notre Dame, Ta’Niya Latson of Florida State, and Sa’Myah Smith of LSU, all of whom played significant roles on their teams, chose to enter the portal.

Miles, who was projected as a lottery pick in this year’s WNBA draft, opted to stay in the NCAA and play out her last year of eligibility. During the 2024-2025 season, the star point guard averaged 15.4 points and 5.8 assists alongside a 48.3 field goal percentage for the Fighting Irish. After Notre Dame’s tough loss to TCU during the Sweet 16 round of this year’s NCAA tournament, she made public her decision to enter the portal.

During an April 8th interview with Candace Parker on TNT’s Inside the NBA, Miles revealed the rumors of her leaving Notre Dame were true. She was later handed a box from Shaquille O’Neal, which she opened to reveal a TCU jersey, announcing her intent to play for the Horned Frogs. Ironically, they are the team who just beat the Irish, ending their season last month in the tournament.

As a photographer for Getty Images, Leon Bennett has come across many athletes who end up wearing different uniforms. 

“The transfer portal gives student athletes the power to control their own destiny,” said Bennett. “The opportunity for more playing time plays a big part in their decision to transfer.”

In October of 2018 the NCAA made headlines when it created a new pathway for student athletes who wanted to switch schools. In previous years, athletes could transfer but doing so came with major restrictions and obstacles. Students had to receive permissions from their present coaches to begin any transfer processes to another school. There was a massive amount of paperwork to be completed and processed. Once that was all done, they were then subjected to a mandatory one-year sit-out period.

The new rules made changing schools far easier. If a student athlete wants to take their talents to another school, they now simply have to inform their school’s compliance office of their intention to leave. From there, their academic and contact information is entered into the portal, and the process begins. They can choose to restrict and initiate contact with potential coaches themselves with immediate eligibility.

“It’s a pretty easy process,” said Khaleel Childs, who entered the transfer portal after his junior year at Lane College in Jackson, TN, where he played baseball.

“Our coach got fired, and a lot of changes came to the program. I felt it was best for me to move on,” Childs added.

Despite the massive movement of players, there were a number of schools that saw no women players enter the Air Force, Oregon, Washington, Harvard, and Marquette University. Harvard women’s Crimson team is coming off a 24-4 season record that saw them win their first-ever Ivy League title, earning a no. 10 seed in the postseason tournament. The only player not returning is senior Harmoni Turner, who was drafted 10th in the 3rd round of the WNBA draft.

“I also believe NIL money is one of the biggest factors for athletes changing schools,” added Bennett.

After seven years of existence, views on the effect and impact of the transfer portal are mixed. Several big-name NCAA coaches and sports media personalities have made it clear they don’t like how it has affected the game. The reasons often stated are roster instability affecting team chemistry, and a move away from high school recruiting which historically has been used to build and develop a program.

Many also say the lure of NIL (name, image, and likeness) money available in big market areas are motivating factors as well. Several college players have become extremely wealthy as student-athletes. With limited professional opportunities for women after college and far lower contract amounts than men, the ability to make money now is a huge motivator.

In contrast others feel it helps them build strong teams by filling roster needs with experienced players, improving their chances of success. In the “win now” environment of NCAA sports, which puts an enormous level of pressure on coaches and their job stability, those reasons are hard to argue against.

Howell came to USC hoping to continue her high school success and notoriety at the college level. She averaged 7.5 points in 20 minutes played per game in her freshman season. Unfortunately, she was under the shadow of JuJu Watkins, the women’s 2025 player of the year. Anyone who has watched the Trojans team play, will quickly say it is JuJu’s team.

In a statement announcing her entrance to the portal, after thanking her teammates and USC for the opportunity, she wrote, “I have decided to enter the transfer portal in search of the best fit for my future.”

A week later, Howell released another statement announcing her commitment to the University of Washington. After Watkins went down with an injury in the tournament, she stepped up in a big way, showcasing her skills on a national level with back-to-back 18-point games before the Trojans fell to the eventual champion Huskies. At Washington, she joins a team that saw no players enter the portal, and has several solid guards on the roster. Being closer to home with a fresh opportunity may provide her the fit she is looking for.