A pair of transfer portal players committed to the UAB men's basketball program. Former UNA standout Daniel Ortiz, who also signed with the Blazers, and Ole Miss transfer James White are the new additions to Andy Kennedy's UAB program.
Ortiz, a 6-foot, 187-pound Shreveport, Louisiana native, told 1819 News on Monday that he had not yet made a decision on his basketball future. He visited UAB last weekend and said he was still considering Tulane, Boston College and FIU. He did say that if he found a program that checked all the boxes, he would shut down his recruitment.
Apparently, UAB checked all the boxes for Ortiz, who had 105 3-pointers this past season and 166 in his two seasons at UNA. Ortiz announced his commitment late Tuesday morning.
"We are excited to have Daniel join our Blazer basketball family." Kennedy said, "He is a legit shooter who can make plays with the ball, which will allow him the opportunity to make an immediate impact in our backcourt. He helped lead UNA to their most wins in program history since transitioning to Division I, and we are all about winning at UAB basketball."
White announced his commitment on Tuesday afternoon. The 6-foot-5, 190-pound Conyers, Georgia native should have two years remaining. He played in 47 games over the past two seasons at Ole Miss, with seven starts this past season. As a sophomore, he scored 14 points at Missouri and 13 points at Auburn.
White came into this past season with expectations after contributing 23.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game in a three-game offseason visit to the Bahamas. He played 13.7 minutes per game as a sophomore.
Kennedy still has at least four open spots on his roster. The Blazers are slated to retain guards Eric Gaines, Tony Toney and Efrem Johnson and center Javian Davis. Junior college transfers Alejandro Vasquez, who was recently selected as a first-team All-American, and Christian Coleman and high school point guard KJ Satterfield signed in the early period.
Transfer portal players who have been mentioned as potential UAB targets include Oak Mountain product Will Shaver of North Carolina, former UTSA guard John Buggs and former Missouri State forward Jonathan Mogbo.
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email steve.irvine@1819News.com.
Don't miss out! Subscribe to our newsletter and get our top stories every weekday morning.
