Wake Forest's New Transfer Portal Guards Set to Drive the Backcourt

Calmese is a 6'2 164 164-pound guard from Gilbert, Arizona. He played last season at Washington State, while playing the year prior at Washington, and starting his college career at Lamar. He will be going into his senior season with the Deacs.

Calmese stands out because of his scoring capabilities. Last season at Washington State, he averaged 15.2 points per game while shooting 47.4% from the field. He had two 27-point outings last season, one against the Big Ten Iowa Hawkeyes. He also scored 22 points in a game to lead his team to victory in a WCC tournament game. In his freshman year at Lamar, Clemese averaged over 17 points per game.

Calmese is a tenacious scorer and loves to drive downhill and get to the rim. His three-point percentage left room for improvement last season at 29.1%; however, that was up to 36.7% his freshman year, so the tools are there. He also averaged 4.4 assists per game this past season with Washington State, showing he can be a floor general for the Deacs.

Overall, Calmese will likely be expected to come in and fill much of the scoring output left by Salis and Hildreth. The Deacs expect his scoring output to continue to rise as they look to revamp their offense from the struggles of the prior season.

Mekhi Mason

Mekhi Mason is a 6'5", 195-pound guard who is also from Gilbert, Arizona. He is also entering his senior season with the Deacs. Mason came to the Deacs from the Washington Huskies, and before that, he played two seasons at Rice.

Mason's biggest asset to this team will be his three-point shooting abilities. Last season with the Huskies, he averaged 9.9 points per game while shooting 40% from three-point range. To put that in perspective, Wake shot 28.5% from three as a team last season. Mason's shooting capabilities should make him an immediate contributor on a roster that was severely lacking in three-point field goal percentage.

Mason's points-per-game statistics do not even tell the full story of his season last year with Washington. In his final seven games of the season, Mason managed to crack double figures six times. Hopefully, this late-season surge carries him into his senior season with the Deacs. Mason also averaged 14 points per game in his second year at Rice, so the scoring output is definitely there. Mason also averaged a steal a game last season at Washington. This means he should also be a defensive impact player for the Deacs, along with his already developed offensive capabilities.

2025-26 Projected Starting Lineup

PG: Nate Calmese
SG: Myles Colvin
SF: Juke Harris
PF: Tre'Von Spillers
C: Cooper Schwieger
Bench: Mekhi Mason, Omaha Biliew, Marquis Marion, Isaac Carr