Mikey Williams entering transfer portal shows the difficulty of navigating early stardom

Mikey Williams is hitting the transfer portal again and it shouldn’t be a shock. Williams never materialized after a high school career that catapulted him to being one of the top players in the Class of 2023. 

He was ranked the No. 51 player in the country and a four-star prospect. He spent his freshman and senior years of high school at San Ysidro and his sophomore and junior years at Lake Norman Christian in North Carolina. 

Williams committed to Memphis, but legal trouble halted his collegiate career. He ended up transferring from the Tigers to UCF and was just a fraction of the prospect he was in high school. This past season he averaged just over five points per game. 

Not sure what school will be desperate enough to sign Williams, but his glory days are behind him. UCF was supposed to be the school that gave him a chance when it seemed like no one else would. Instead, it became a mistake for the Knights in which they were ready to move on from. 

Mikey Williams fractured career takes yet another detour with latest report of entering the transfer portal

Williams garnered so much attention throughout his high school career. He would pack out gyms when he traveled across the country to play. Kids would bombard Williams after the game for autographs and pictures. 

He was the show, everywhere he went. His rapid decline from high school stardom to now being a role player goes to show how hard it is to live up to the hype. Sure the legal troubles Williams faced played a massive role in his exposure. But he transferred to UCF because he wanted to start. Despite his wishes, his play never elevated. He never became the start everyone thought he would be. And in the age of NIL, Williams probably got a bigger head than he needed considering his circumstances. 

Williams is just the latest player to not meet the overarching expectations thrown on him as a high school phenom. Unfortunately, not even the transfer portal will be able to revive his career. 

He’ll ultimately end up being the biggest what if when it comes to high school stars. What if he would have stayed at Memphis instead of leaving at the first sign of adversity? Or what if he never got into legal trouble? 

Those questions will always arise when you talk about Williams and transferring won’t even begin to decipher those answers.