Wake Forest Lands Big-Time Guard to Go Along with New Center

We’re about a week into the college basketball transfer portal being open, and the Demon Deacons have already made a splash, with more definitely on the horizon. Earlier today, Merrimack guard Kevair Kennedy announced his intention to transfer to Wake Forest. This goes along with the commitment the Deacs got from Virginia Tech big Antonio Dorn on Friday.

We obviously still have more spots to fill, but let’s go through what these Deacs can add to the fold this upcoming season.

Kevair Kennedy

This was a great pickup for a team known for developing guards. Kennedy played just his freshman season at Merrimack. He averaged 18.4 points per game to go along with 1.9 steals, 4.6 rebounds, and 4.2 assists. He did this while shooting 45.1% from the field and 32.5% from deep.

He led Merrimack to the MAAC regular-season crown, along with picking up MAAC Freshman of the Year and Player of the Year honors. He became the only player in the conference ever to win both in the same season. He led the MAAC in scoring and was fourth in both assists and steals.

Kennedy is a speedy guard who can get downhill and has a great touch around the rim. He is slightly undersized at 6’2, 165, but has a decent frame. We know he can put up big numbers; the only question is how this will translate from the MAAC to being an ACC point guard.

Antonio Dorn

Dorn is a powerful 7-foot center from Germany. Last season was his first season in college basketball for the Hokies; before that, he played some professional ball in Europe. His stats aren’t anything that’s going to jump off the page. He averaged 2.6 points and 1.8 rebounds per game.

However, a lot of this was due to experienced bigs playing in front of him and some tough injury luck in the middle of the year. Dorn showed plenty of flashes. One thing that is sure to grab the attention of Deacs fans is his 15.2% offensive rebounding rate, putting him in the 97th percentile nationally. This aggressiveness on the boards is something all Wake fans were hoping for and are sure to see from Dorn. He is also very efficient finishing around the basket.

One of his best games was actually against Wake in the ACC Tournament. He finished with eight points, seven rebounds, three assists, and two blocks in just 13 minutes of action. A good sign for Deac fans, considering he’s now on our side.

We now wait over the upcoming days to see what other players the coaches can bring in as the team continues to develop. We’ll be sure to keep you updated all offseason long.