The 2025 NCAA transfer portal window has been marked by significant player movements, with high-profile commitments reshaping the landscape of women's college basketball. Among the most notable moves are MiLaysia Fulwiley's transfer from South Carolina to LSU women's basketball, and the strategic additions made by both LSU and South Carolina women's basketball to bolster their rosters.

MiLaysia Fulwiley's decision to transfer from South Carolina to LSU has been one of the most talked-about moves in the 2025 transfer portal. A dynamic guard known for her playmaking and athleticism, Fulwiley played a pivotal role in South Carolina's 2024 SEC Tournament victory, earning MVP honors.

Despite her contributions, her development appeared to stagnate during her sophomore year under Coach Dawn Staley, leading to speculation about a potential transfer.

The return of Raven Johnson further complicated Fulwiley's role within the team, which led her to enter the transfer portal with a “do not contact” tag. Fulwiley was rumored to only visit LSU, where she now joins returning stars like  Flau'jae Johnson and Mikaylah Williams, forming a formidable potential starting trio.

This move is significant not only because of Fulwiley's talent but also due to the rivalry between LSU and South Carolina. Her decision to join LSU intensifies the competition between the two SEC powerhouses and adds an intriguing storyline to the upcoming season.

Dawn Staley acquiring Ta'Niya Latson as a response to Fulwiley's transfer was a brilliantly experienced decision from the legendary head coach. Latson's arrival certainly softens the blow of Fulwiley's departure — as good as the Gamecocks have been under Staley, they have never had a backcourt scorer of Latson's caliber.

During this past season's runner-up finish, no Gamecock averaged more than 12.7 points per game. Now, Staley has a guard who averaged nearly twice that in Latson, whose 25.2 PPG led the nation in 2024-25. Her move from the Seminoles to the Gamecocks gives South Carolina a whole new look and altered the races in the ACC, SEC, and for the national championship.

Madina Okot's decision to choose the Gamecocks was more of an open secret by the time it was officially announced, but that doesn't make it any less of a big get for Staley and her coaching staff. The 6-foot-6 center showed great growth in her one year at Mississippi State and could be the kind of defensive disruptor that all of Staley's best teams have had.

Okot nearly averaged a double-double in her freshman season, proving that Staley has all the talent she needs to keep the Gamecocks in contention for another national title.

Not only did Miles turn down a chance to potentially join the Seattle Storm as the second pick, but she is also moving on from Notre Dame women's basketball, who she helped to three Sweet 16 appearances, and Hannah Hidalgo, who she clearly hasn't been on good terms with lately.

TCU head coach Mark Campbell needed to reconstruct his roster after losing most of his starters, and Miles is the biggest building block to a lineup that now also includes Marta Suarez, Clara Silva, and Taliyah Parker. Miles is still bouncing back from an ankle injury, but her first year back from an ACL tear resulted in a career-high average of 15.4 points as well as 5.8 assists per game, which ranked 15th in the country.

Williams transferring to UConn will have plenty of influence on next season's top-five rankings. Williams leaves Madison as one of the best players in Badgers' history.

She was a unanimous first-team All-Big Ten selection this season, averaging 16.4 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks, but Wisconsin finished 14th in the Big Ten. The Badgers never finished above 10th in league play in her three seasons.

The Bruins lost their entire freshman class and two upperclassmen to the portal, which was brutal enough. But Jones' choice was the biggest surprise and possibly the most damaging to the UCLA women's basketball team's hopes of making a return trip to the Final Four.

What sucks even more for the Bruins is the fact that Jones is going just down the street to their cross-town rival. Jones was the Bruins' fourth-leading scorer at 11.8 points per game and their leader in 3-pointers made and attempted.

Janiah Barker is the second upperclassman who chose to depart from UCLA, and she's leaving to return to her SEC roots. Barker spent two years at Texas A&M before joining the Bruins, and she should add a physical presence to her new Tennessee team.

Barker was a top scoring option with the Aggies but learned to be a role player with the UCLA, averaging just 17.5 minutes and 7.4 points. The sacrifice allowed her to make the Final Four on a dominant Bruins squad, but she's clearly ready to be a leader in her senior year.

The power and physicality of McMahon's game might be built for the SEC, and she should fit well into coach Yolette McPhee-McCuin's system. The All-Big Ten player is the leading talent on a roster that has already been rebuilt after losing four starters.

All of the Rebels' acquisitions will play key roles in their effort to stay in the top half of the SEC, but none is more important than McMahon, whose game got a big boost from improved 3-point shooting (38.6%) this season with the Buckeyes.

One of the last high-rated transfers to pick a new home, Kneepkens picking UCLA as her new destination is a game-changer for the Bruins. Players with her ability to score and shoot so efficiently are in limited supply, as she's coming off a near 50-40-90 season. Slotting Kneepkens in next to Lauren Betts and Kiki Rice gives UCLA a fighting chance at staying competitive in 2025-26.

After a broken foot cost her the 2023-24 season, Kneepkens rebounded to have the best year of her career. She averaged 19.3 points and shot 50.4% from the field, 44.8% from 3-point range, and 89.0% at the free throw line. Kneepkens has never shot below 38.4% from 3-point range in her college career.

Kiyomi McMiller's decision to leave Rutgers for conference rival Penn State after an outstanding first year is the most perplexing of all transfer portal moves. Almost no information has been given to the public about McMiller's relationship with head coach Coquese Washington and the Scarlet Knights staff, which started to show signs of strain when McMiller appeared to be randomly benched in January.

After having her campaign unexpectedly cut short in February, McMiller has a great chance to start for the Lady Lions. Her 18.7 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 3.0 assists a game and status as a rising sophomore give her the foundation to slot in as a leader on a team that lost eight players to the portal. Whatever behind-the-scenes issues caused Rutgers' loss could result in Penn State's gain.

Kate Koval's move has question marks because it's not clear that a change of scenery is even what she needed. The top-five high school prospect struggled in her freshman year with the Fighting Irish, averaging just 5.3 points and playing less than 20 minutes in all but two games over the last three months of the season.

Koval is also heading to an LSU program that has admittedly lost a few players to the portal but bounced back with big additions to an already stacked lineup. Head coach Kim Mulkey has many options to choose from, so getting playing time among this elite group should be a concern for Koval.

Kara Dunn's case isn't necessarily questionable for negative reasons, just intriguing ones. Dunn's coming from a Georgia Tech team that she leads in points and playmaking — with 15.5 points and 5.8 boards per game as a guard — to a somewhat rebuilding USC women's basketball lineup.

With JuJu Watkins possibly sidelined for an unknown amount of time, Dunn could be on the court a lot. On the other hand, that could mean she's left to carry the load with little support around her since the Trojans also lost five key players in the offseason.

There's also the question around the areas of her game that need to improve, like her 3-point shooting, and whether she has time to work on that as a rising senior entering a new environment. Dunn definitely has assets, but there's no way to tell how well they'll mesh with an unstable USC roster.

Avery Howell's decision to leave after one productive year at USC is one of the most baffling of anyone's in this year's field. The standout freshman had a solid stretch of games in the NCAA tournament and had the potential to have her role bumped up even more, depending on Watkins' recovery timeline.

Howell is one of many losses for a Trojans squad that's now struggling roster-wise, but she did choose a Washington program that could match her skillset. The Huskies were one of the nation's best 3-point shooting teams last campaign at 37%, and Howell made 39.9% of her shots from beyond the arc in 2024-25.

How much playing time Howell will end up getting or how she'll fit into Washington's scheme remains to be seen, but the rising sophomore still has the time to figure it out.

Janae Jackson, Youngstown State to … 

Janae Jackson spent three seasons in NCAA DI basketball, starting in 26 games during her senior year at Youngstown while averaging 9.3 points, 6.2 rebounds, 1.1 assists, and 1.1 steals on 43.3% shooting. In April, she became one of over 1,550 women's college basketball players to enter the transfer portal.

So, what makes her story so strange? Well, Jackson graduated in May 2016.

Jackson hasn't played NCAA basketball in nearly a decade, but she made the decision to file a request because of the changing rules around eligibility that could result from the House vs. NCAA antitrust settlement.

The potential shifts that the NCAA could be forced to make have led to a drastic increase in players with expired eligibility entering the portal as a security plan. The new landscape around Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) revenue has also encouraged interest from former student-athletes who may not have had access to that opportunity when they were playing.

While Jackson's motivations are unclear, she did only play for three seasons — 2010-11, 2014-15, and 2015-16 — when NCAA guidelines allow athletes to play four. She was forced to miss a year after transferring from Northern Illinois since that was the rule at the time, and an injury kept her out of what would've been her redshirt sophomore season.

There are examples of women's college basketball players using up their four years of eligibility over a longer span than the typically permitted five years, but none of the other 20 women in this year's portal are attempting to do so in their 30s, like Jackson.

Regardless of how the court case or her request turn out, Jackson's definitely left a notable mark on transfer portal history.