UCLA transfer guard Donovan Dent commits to LSU

UCLA transfer guard Donovan Dent, one of the top players in the portal, has committed to LSU, he told On3.

The 6-foot-2 senior averaged 13.3 points and 7.6 assists per game this past season for the Bruins. He was among the 73 players in California granted a temporary restraining order against the NCAA, effectively giving Dent a fifth year of eligibility.

Dent is arguably Will Wade‘s biggest recruiting win since returning to Baton Rouge, as he’s now landed his starting point guard for the 2026-27 season.

According to the LSU website, the Tigers have officially signed just four players: Michigan State guard Divine Ugochukwu, Kansas State guard Abdi Bashir Jr., UTSA guard Austin Nunez, and Kentucky forward Mouhamed Dioubate.

However, Wade has landed several other commitments, including Dent’s former UCLA teammate Skyy Clark.

Another major addition is RJ Luis Jr., the 2025 Big East Player of the Year at St. John’s, who signed with LSU in May after a brief professional career. Luis originally agreed to a two-way contract with the Utah Jazz in 2025 before being traded to the Boston Celtics and later waived. He never appeared in an NBA regular season game due to injuries and is also awaiting NCAA clearance on his eligibility.

The Tigers have also received commitments from four international forwards, though they’re still awaiting NCAA clearance on their eligibility: Saliou Niang, Brice Dessert, Michael Ruzic, and Marcio Santos.

Following his senior season at UCLA, Dent announced he would be retiring from basketball. However, with lawsuits around the country granting players a fifth year of eligibility, he reversed course and is now set to suit up for LSU.

Dent transferred to UCLA for the 2025-26 season after spending three years at New Mexico.

As a junior with the Lobos, he was named the Mountain West Player of the Year after averaging 20.6 points and 6.4 assists per game.