Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Report says touted ’Canes freshman plans to transfer
Highly touted Miami Hurricanes freshman guard/forward and former star recruit Earl Timberlake intends to transfer from UM, according to an ESPN report on Sunday morning.
Timberlake, once a fivestar recruit and regarded as a potential 2021 NBA draft pick, figures to be one of the top talents available in a college basketball offseason expected to see a lot of player movement.
The 6-foot-6 wing arrived at Coral Gables from DeMatha Catholic in Maryland with high expectations, but ankle and shoulder injuries allowed him to only play seven games this season. He averaged 9.3 points, five rebounds and 2.4 assists per game.
“I’ve been dealing with a whole lot this season as far as being away from home and ankle and shoulder injuries,” Timberlake told ESPN.
“I wanted to be there for my teammates, but unfortunately I wasn’t able to. After some thought, I came to the conclusion that putting my name in the transfer portal is
the best move for my future. There’s nothing negative that happened. There’s no bad blood with Miami. I just want a fresh start. I love Coach L [Jim Larrañaga] and the rest of the coaching staff. I just want to start over and get a fresh start somewhere else.”
Miami will no longer have either of its two high school signees in the 2020 recruiting class after the Hurricanes and freshman forward Matt Cross parted ways in January. Cross ended up deciding on a
transfer to Louisville.
Timberlake is the first domino to fall in the UM basketball offseason after the season ended with an ACC Tournament quarterfinal loss to eventual conference champion Georgia Tech.
Several seniors also have decisions to make on whether to return to college basketball next season, using an extra year of eligibility being granted to them by the NCAA because the 2020-21 season was played during the COVID-19 pandemic.