Villanova transfer has links to Illinois, Kansas, Houston, Georgia

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One of the newest entrants to the college basketball transfer portal is Malachi Palmer.

He's in the portal from Villanova after beginning his career at Maryland. And now, he's looking for a third home in three seasons.

There's at least some reason to wonder about landing spots at the likes of Illinois, Kansas, Houston and Georgia.

All four of those programs offered Palmer a scholarship when he was a high school recruit.

Palmer hasn't blown anyone away since coming to the college ranks, so maybe it wouldn't be a full-court press by any of those schools to get him. But familiarity can often help in these situations, especially with a guy who has entered the portal 10 days after it opened.

The 6-foot-6 Palmer played just 8.4 minutes per game as a freshman at Maryland, averaging 1.6 points per game.

He followed head coach Kevin Willard to Villanova and did play more this season, getting 18.3 minutes per game and averaging 4.6 points, 1.7 rebounds, 0.6 assists and 0.6 steals.

His numbers would look decent if translated to a starter's workload, but it's not clear whether a high-major would consider him a starting-caliber transfer.

Another encouraging sign for Palmer is that he raised his 3-point shooting this season to 35.9%, close to an asset for a team that can get him open. He also raised his foul shooting to 76.2%, suggesting he's continued to make gains to his shot while he's been in college.

Other schools beyond those already mentioned who offered Palmer in high school include LSU< Nebraska, Oklahoma State, Oregon Penn State, Texas Tech, Virginia Tech, New Mexico State, Creighton, DePaul and Georgetown.

He'll likely have options, although at this point in the portal cycle, he'll have to move with some quickness.

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