College basketball analyst highlights Big East team who "could surprise anyone" following transfer additions

College basketball insider Jon Rothstein believes one Big East program might be flying under the radar and could be ready to shock a few teams this coming season.

During CBS Sports’ Inside College Basketball on Monday, Rothstein gave props to the Providence Friars for how they have used the transfer portal to quietly reload their roster.

“I don't think Providence is getting the attention that it deserves,” Rothstein said. “Went up and saw them practice last week. Jason Edwards, 17 points per game at Vanderbilt. Quality addition to the backcourt.

He went ahead to list more of the good players Providence added from the transfer portal.

"Daquan Davis from Florida State, seasoned college player with experience," Rothstein added. "Jaylen Sellers last year played for UCF, battled injuries last year. If he was healthy, it would have given UCF maybe a little bit more, you know, air in the tires to be a bubble team. I like the makeup of Providence.

"I think Providence is a team that could really, really surprise anyone in the Big East. I think Providence did an underrated job in that transfer portal.” (Timestamp 21:17 - 22:00)

After a tough 2024-25 season and several key players leaving, including Bryce Hopkins to St. John’s and Jayden Pierre to TCU, Kim English and his staff have turned to the portal to reshape the squad.

The Friars have added experienced players like Jason Edwards (Vanderbilt), Daquan Davis (Florida State) and Jaylin Sellers (UCF), while also bringing in promising young talent like Justin Pippen (Michigan) and Dai Dai Ames (Virginia).

In total, Providence brought in over 10 new faces from across the college basketball landscape, including players from Syracuse, Campbell, Drexel and Loyola Maryland.

With that much fresh talent and a head coach entering his third year, there is real optimism that the Friars can bounce back in a big way.

Big East Conference headquarters moved to Empire State Building

The Big East conference is set to change the location of its headquarters to the East Side of Manhattan, to the Empire State Building. The headquarters has been on the East Side of Manhattan for about 10 years, but it is not set to move to a bigger space.

The new location is 12 blocks away from the old one, and it is now closer to Madison Square Garden, where the conference’s men’s tournament has been held for over four decades.