The transfer portal has been a fascinating development over the last few weeks, with players announcing where they will be playing next and programs adding key pieces for next year’s team. NC State has had an up and down kind of offseason, with playing transferring and others possibly entering their name into the NBA Draft. But one thing is for sure, the Wolfpack needed talent.
On Wednesday, NC State added a key piece in forward DJ Burns Jr. who comes from Winthrop. The 6’9, 275-pound forward from Rock Hill, South Carolina will be looking to make his mark now in the ACC after three strong seasons for the Eagles.
Remember, Burns first started his career at Tennessee where he redshirted a year. He then transferred to Winthrop where he had a strong start to his career, winning Big South Conference Freshman of the Year and averaging 11.9 points and 4.1 rebounds in just 17.5 minutes of action (33 games). He then had another solid season as a sophomore before ultimately winning Big South Player of the Year as a junior last year, averaging an impressive 15.0 points and 4.5 rebounds per game in 21 minutes of action (32 total games).
Now, Burns looks to make his presence known on an even bigger stage, as NC State needed a presence down low in the paint after some key losses. Burns has nice touch and feel down low in the paint, never shooting under 58 percent from the floor in all three seasons. Burns brings a big body down low that can carve out space, but he will have to be better and stronger on the boards, as his highest production on the boards was last year at 4.5 rebounds per game. He will also have to learn and adjust to the athleticism in the ACC on a daily basis.
Burns will now have two years of eligibility remaining.
Importance of Burns to NC State (James Henderson from Inside Pack Sports):
“DJ Burns is a strong pickup for NC State. Very few low-post players are productive scorers in college basketball right now, but Burns has even one of them. He was as efficient a scorer there was in the country last year and did it against high-major programs as well. NC State often lost the frontcourt battle frequently last season, and they’ve addressed that issue by adding Burns and Dusan Mahorcic.”