Did Villanova basketball get the most ‘Poplar’ player in the portal?
Villanova fans have yet to get their hopes up after they did the last two seasons just to be met with disappointment.
With the recent addition of Enoch Boayke and the return of Eric Dixon, it is hard not to get some hope that a good season is on the horizon.
To up it even more Kyle Neptune pulled out all the stops and pulled in University of Miami transfer Wooga Poplar. The guard is a Philadelphia native who spent three seasons in Miami. For his final year of eligibility, it is a fitting homecoming.
With the addition of Poplar, Villanova basketball on paper is a promising team. The Wildcats are promising enough that anything less than a spot in March Madness would be a fail or disappointing season.
Is it possible that Poplar was the steal of the entire transfer portal? It would be good to dive in and see if that is true.
First, the most important thing about Poplar is what he brings to the table statistically. Last season at Miami, Poplar averaged 13.1 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 2.1 assists. Poplar would have been Villanova’s second-leading scorer last season only behind Eric Dixon (16.6 points).
That automatically sets up Villanova basketball for success if Poplar can be worked into the team correctly.
Poplar was a part of the 2022-23 Miami team and made a run to the final four as a five-seed. The guard has the experience to know what it takes to make a run deep into March and possibly see April.
Poplar needs to improve his ability to shoot the ball consistently from deep to the main line Poplar is known for his three-point shot. It is reliable. It relieves a program that struggled to knock down open shots from behind the arc. Poplar shot 39% from the three-point line last season and 38% the season before that. His ability to score from deep fills a hole Villanova struggled with and lost in Brendan Hausen.
Not that many players have the abilities Poplar has. He comes in at 6-foot-5 and has a true talent at deep-range shooting. That helps the Wildcat.
Poplar has been viewed as a possible NBA talent. He entered his name in the 2024 draft but withdrew it before transferring to Villanova.
Villanova almost has completed their 2024-25 roster. It has one spot remaining on the roster to fill. With the recent addition of freshman Bulgarian native Alexsandar Gavalyugov, they have a 12-man team. The Wildcats also picked up a staff member in Le Moyne assistant men’s basketball coach Jamie Young.