Arizona State received a double dose of bad news Wednesday morning. Not only did 5-star freshman big Jayden Quaintance tear his ACL, but he is now set to enter the transfer portal after just one season in Tempe.
NEWS: Arizona State's Jayden Quaintance, a projected top-5 pick in the 2026 Draft, underwent surgery to repair a torn ACL, his father Haminn told ESPN.
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) April 2, 2025
He'll be cleared for contact by September, and will explore entering the transfer portal.
STORY: https://t.co/s7FK4zfnBo pic.twitter.com/VfcHI4l0kN
Quaintance made waves when he committed to Arizona State just a year ago. The 5-star was the ninth-ranked player in the nation, and the program's highest-rated recruit since James Harden. His commitment was tied to an influx of NIL money from a developing documentary series featuring head coach Bobby Hurley, which ultimately never materialized.
The big man quickly became a star for the Sun Devils, especially on the defensive end. He finished the season averaging 9.4 points, 7.9 rebounds, and a whopping 2.6 blocks per game. For his efforts, Quaintance was named to the Big 12 All-Freshman team and Big 12 All-Defensive team.
However, Quaintance didn't get to finish out his freshman season. He missed the final four games of the regular season with what was described at the time as an ankle injury. Quaintance would go on to miss the Big 12 tournament, as well as Arizona State's lone game in the College Basketball Crown tournament earlier this week.
Hurley had refused to elaborate on the injury or its severity, and now we know why. Quaintance apparently tore his ACL, requiring surgery, which presents a troublesome timeline for the big man going into next season.
As reported, Quaintance is going to "explore entering the transfer portal," which isn't the most explicit language ever. It's unclear what his transfer market will look like, given the injury and the likelihood that Quaintance isn't able to play at the start of next season, but it sounds as if he's willing to test the market.
Such a move would deal another costly blow to Hurley's case, which was initially buoyed by the belief that he could bring back Quaintance alongside Joson Sanon and land 5-star local product Koa Peat. Sanon entered the portal almost immediately, and Peat committed to rival Arizona last week.
Now, Quaintance appears to be leaving as well.
It appears that Hurley is about to go 0/3 on his roster building plans, and how he makes up for this loss will go a long way towards determining what - if any - success the Sun Devils can have next season.