Oregon State is losing a second starter from its men’s basketball lineup as junior guard Nate Kingz is entering his name in the NCAA transfer portal.
The 6-foot-5 Kingz, who averaged 11.8 points and shot 45% from three-point range this season, joins all-West Coast Conference forward Michael Rataj in the portal. A source confirmed to The Oregonian/OregonLive that Kingz plans to transfer.
Kingz, Rataj and guard Da’John Craig put their names into the portal Tuesday. None of those three are expected to play for OSU in the College Basketball Crown, March 31-April 6 in Las Vegas.
Kingz walked a difficult path to reach Oregon State’s starting lineup. The McNary High of Keizer grad went to Westmont College, an NAIA school in Santa Barbara, then College of Southern Idaho before accepting a scholarship from the Beavers in 2022. Kingz then sat out last season with a torn ACL.
Kingz scored a season-high 22 points against Cal State-Fullerton in November. He played and started in 31 of OSU’s 32 games, and led the Beavers in three-point shots, makes and percentage.
Oregon State is coming off a 20-win season, its first since the 2021-22 season when the Beavers made an Elite Eight run. The Beavers lost seven players to the portal a year ago, but reloaded by going overseas to land several European players.
