Georgia Tech

Georgia Tech’s Tristan Maxwell goes into transfer portal

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets guard Tristan Maxwell (11) attempts a shot against Northern Illinois Huskies forward Harvin Ibarguen (23) during the first half in a NCAA men’s basketball game at McCamish Pavilion, Thursday, November 17, 2022, in Atlanta. Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com)
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets guard Tristan Maxwell (11) attempts a shot against Northern Illinois Huskies forward Harvin Ibarguen (23) during the first half in a NCAA men’s basketball game at McCamish Pavilion, Thursday, November 17, 2022, in Atlanta. Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com)
April 12, 2023

Georgia Tech guard Tristan Maxwell became the fifth scholarship player to leave the team via the transfer portal since the end of the season. His entry was reported by Rivals on Tuesday and confirmed by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Wednesday.

Maxwell, who came to Tech as the North Carolina high school player of the year in 2020, had difficulty earning playing time for former coach Josh Pastner. He was limited to one game as a freshman because of injury, followed by five games in 2021-22 and 17 this past season, including two starts. He scored a total of 93 points in those 23 games.

His most notable game was a 22-point outburst in a win at Boston College in January 2022 when he shot 7-for-11 from 3-point range. He became only the 16th player in Tech history to make seven 3-pointers in a game. That was seen as a potential breakthrough moment for Maxwell, but he played in only two games the remainder of the season because of an injury and a family situation. He continued to have difficulty getting into the rotation this past season.

With five scholarship players in the portal – center Rodney Howard and forwards Jordan Meka, Cyril Martynov and Freds Pauls Bagatskis along with Maxwell – new coach Damon Stoudamire has six scholarship players on the roster and commitments from two transfers, guard Kowacie Reeves (Florida) and forward Ebenezer Dowuona (N.C. State). That leaves him five open scholarships for the 2023-24 season.

About the Author

Ken Sugiura is a sports columnist at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Formerly the Georgia Tech beat reporter, Sugiura started at the AJC in 1998 and has covered a variety of beats, mostly within sports.

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