Gophers' offseason departures flourishing, how different would things look if they stayed?

While Gophers men's basketball is battling for a birth in their own conference tournament, their top transfer portal departures from the offseason are flourishing on some of the best teams in the country.

Elijah Hawkins, Texas Tech

• 2024-25 stats (29.6 MPG): 9.6 PPG, 6.3 APG, 2.9 RPG on 34.3/33.0/90.4 shooting splits

Hawkins was known for his playmaking at Minnesota and he's doing the same in Lubbock. His 6.3 assists per game rank 11th-best in the country, but his scoring is coming along. He is averaging 13.3 points per game over the last four games, as Texas Tech ranks 12th in the country.

Pharrel Payne, Texas A&M

• 2024-25 stats (19.4 MPG): 9.4 PPG, 4.8 RPG, 0.5 APG on 65.8/-/57.3 shooting splits

Much like Hawkins, Payne is playing his best basketball of the season on one of the hottest teams in the country. He averaged 11.8 points per game in January and he's coming off a 20-point performance on the road against Missouri. He has only started nine out of 23 games for the No. 8 Aggies, which raises the question of how different his role could've been if he remained at Minnesota.

Cam Christie, G-League (Clippers)

• 2024-25 G-League stats (31.7 MPG): 16.4 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 2.2 APG on 41.0/29.8/83.0 shooting splits
• 2024-25 NBA stats (5.8 MPG): 1.2 PPG, 1.2 RPG, 0.4 APG on 22.2/16.7/50.0 shooting splits

Christie opted to enter the NBA Draft instead of return to college and he has spent much of this season in the G-League. He is still only 19 years old and one of the youngest players in the league. He has showcased his potential in the G-League, but he's still likely a few years away from being a serious rotational player at the pro level.

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