Vanderbilt guard Jordan Williams enters NCAA Transfer Portal

Vanderbilt guard Jordan Williams has entered the NCAA Transfer Portal, per On3’s Jamie Shaw. He spent two seasons at Vanderbilt after redshirting his freshman year at Texas A&M. Williams only played in 10 games for the Commodores this season. He averaged 1.2 points and 0.6 rebounds in 3.6 minutes per game.

Williams saw far more action at Vanderbilt during the 2023-24 season when he made 27 appearances, including 10 starts. He averaged 1.5 points and 1.3 rebounds in 10.5 minutes per game while shooting 30.4% from the field and 25% from beyond the arc.

Williams had the best showing of his career at Vanderbilt during his redshirt freshman year. He tallied a career-high seven points and three rebounds in the Commodores’ 77-64 loss to Florida. Now, Williams will look to reach new heights elsewhere.

Williams played high school basketball at Second Baptist (TX), where he was an unranked prospect, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. Williams missed his senior year at Second Baptist due to injury.

As a junior in high school, he averaged 32.2 points, 11.3 rebounds, 8.1 assists and 3.3 steals per game while leading Second Baptist to the Area Championship and a 22-9 record. For his efforts, he was named the TAPPS Class 5A state player of the year and received first-team all-state honors.

Williams is the fifth Vanderbilt player to enter the transfer portal this offseason. He is joined by Karris Bilal, JaQualon Roberts, Alex Hemenway and Jaylen Carey.

Vanderbilt head coach Mark Byington is no stranger to dealing with the transfer portal. After being hired by Vanderbilt last offseason, Byington essentially started from scratch, bringing in 10 players via the portal.

Byington made it work, leading the Commodores to their first appearance in the NCAA Tournament since 2016-17 season. Vanderbilt finished this season with a 20-13 record and an 8-10 mark in conference play. Byington will look to help the Commodores take another step forward next season.

“I hope the Vanderbilt fans understand what a special group to get our program going and get us in the right direction. We’re going to build on this,” Byington said after Vanderbilt’s loss to St. Mary’s in the NCAA Tournament. “This is a setback. This isn’t permanent. A setback for a game.

“But to get different guys in this situation, to get Vanderbilt used to being in the NCAA Tournament, that’s definitely the future goal, and this was a first step. We didn’t get the win today, but there could be something down the road that really does help us.”