Report: Colgate transfer Braeden Smith to visit Gonzaga

Colgate transfer Braeden Smith, a 6-foot-tall guard and reigning Patriot League Player of the Year, will take an official visit to Gonzaga “in the next week,” according to reports.

Smith, who entered the transfer portal on April 29, will also visit Washington and Cal after taking a trip to Davidson this past weekend, per college basketball insider Jon Rothstein. 

Smith, the No. 8 available transfer in the portal according to Evan Miya, averaged 12.5 points, 5.6 assists and 5.5 rebounds for the Raiders. The Seattle Prep (WA) product started all 70 games he played in over the past two years. As a freshman in 2022-23, he was named a finalist for the National Freshman of the Year after averaging 11.6 points, 3.9 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game.

As the team’s leading scorer, Smith guided Colgate (25-10, 16-2 PL) to the program’s fourth straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament this past season. Smith scored 10 points and grabbed four rebounds in a first-round loss to Baylor. In 2023, he scored six points, snatched four boards and had two steals in an opening-round defeat to Texas.

Gonzaga added to its backcourt in the form of Arkansas grad transfer Khalif Battle, a 6-foot-5 guard who committed to the Zags earlier this month. Ryan Nembhard and Nolan Hickman, the No. 1 and No. 2 players for most minutes played in the West Coast Conference last season, are expected to start in year two together with Battle potentially playing big minutes off the bench. Mark Few’s bench also features returners Braden Huff, Dusty Stromer, Jun Seok Yeo and Steele Venters, the latter of whom missed all last season with an ACL injury.

The Bulldogs, who have three open scholarships, also landed Pepperdine transfer Michael Ajayi, a 6-foot-7 wing, in March. Cade Orness, a 6-foot-5 walk-on from North Kitsap, is also set to join the ranks next fall. 

Coming out of Seattle Prep in 2022, Smith fielded offers from Eastern Washington, Air Force, Portland, UC Davis and Colgate, according to 247Sports. Smith set the Panthers boys basketball program's record in assists and steals while surpassing the 1,000-point benchmark in his career.