NC State's Chase For Two Forwards

NC State first-year head coach Will Wade is on a mission to turn things around for Wolfpack men's basketball. While the coach loaded up the 2025-26 roster with talented transfer portal additions, the process for recruiting for the future is already well underway.

The Wolfpack circled a pair of exciting forwards who are part of the class of 2026. Whether or not Wade and his staff can secure Cole Cloer and Miika Muurinen as recruits to Raleigh remains to be seen, but both players could be huge in the program's mission to recruit more aggressively than in prior seasons.

Looking at Cloer

Cole Cloer is a 247Sports composite four-star recruit out of IMG Academy in Florida. He transferred to IMG for his senior year after attending Caldwell Academy in Greensboro, North Carolina, for his junior year. He's been described as a strong shooter and his size (6-foot-7, 190 pounds) could have him ready to contribute for a college team right away.

The competition for the forward is fierce. He has 20 offers and has begun scheduling his visits for the fall of 2025. He's scheduled to visit Wade's program at the end of August, where the Wolfpack staff will pitch him on all the reasons the program is right for him.

NC State will have to fend off rival North Carolina and coach Hubert Davis, as the Tar Heels will also be strong in their pursuit of Cloer.

Looking at Muurinen

Muurinen is an intriguing international prospect. The Finnish forward is 6-foot-10 and 203 pounds at just 18 years old.

The Finnish forward is a composite five-star recruit per 247Sports and is currently ranked No. 2 in the state of Arizona. He'll finish his high school career with AZ Compass Prep in Chandler, Arizona.

He already holds an offer from NC State but has yet to schedule a visit. Duke and North Carolina are the only other ACC teams to extend offers to Muurinen so far.

An interesting wrinkle and potential advantage in NC State's pursuit of Muurinen is Jayme Kontuniemi, another Finnish player who joined the NC State program for the 2025-26 season. Kontuniemi officially arrived in Raleigh over the weekend and should be joining the team this week.