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Vanderbilt

Vanderbilt guard MJ Collins plans to enter NCAA transfer portal

FaceProfileby: Thomas Goldkamp03/31/25
Chaz Lanier, Tennessee Basketball | Denny Simmons / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
(Denny Simmons / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images) Vanderbilt Commodores guard MJ Collins Jr. (2) guards Tennessee Volunteers guard Chaz Lanier (2) during their game at Memorial Gym in Nashville, Tenn., Saturday, Jan. 18, 2025.

Vanderbilt guard MJ Collins plans to enter the NCAA transfer portal, On3 has learned. He will do so after just one season with the ‘Dores.

Collins previously spent two years playing for Virginia Tech. He transferred to Vanderbilt ahead of the 2024-25 campaign.

During his lone season with the Commodores, MJ Collins averaged 7.4 points and 2.3 rebounds per game. He was a key contributor off the bench, starting in only one of the 32 games he appeared in this season.

Collins is an athletic 6-foot-4 guard who thrives going to the rim. He wasn’t an elite shooter by any stretch of the imagination, going 29.3% from behind the 3-point arc this season.

He had similar production at Virginia Tech, where he was used a little bit differently. The most notable difference was his assist numbers. He averaged a career-high 2.7 assists per game as a sophomore with the Hokies, compared to just 0.5 while with the Commodores.

During his sophomore season, MJ Collins averaged 7.4 points and 2.8 rebounds (also a career high). He even chipped in 0.9 steals per game.

As he heads to the transfer portal and eventually a new program, Collins will be looking to improve his all-around game. But at the very least, he can offer a team a solid option on the perimeter.

Vanderbilt loses another guard

MJ Collins isn’t the only guard from Vanderbilt to hit the portal. Guard Jordan Williams has entered, 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 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.

On3’s Grant Grubbs also contributed to this report.