Young NC State guard entering portal, NBA Draft to explore options
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- Freshman Matt Able enters transfer portal and tests NBA Draft waters
- Guard averaged 8.8 points, 3.4 rebounds and 35.5% from three this season
- Able and teammate Cole Cloer say returning to NC State remains possible
One N.C. State guard is testing the waters with other programs and the NBA.
Freshman Matt Able will enter the transfer portal and enter the NBA Draft while maintaining his eligibility. Like teammate Cole Cloer, who also announced his decision to enter the portal, Able said returning to N.C. State is still an option.
Able can undergo evaluations with NBA scouts. He has until 11:59 p.m. on May 28 to determine whether he will remain in the draft or return to school.
“Being a member of N.C. State men’s basketball has been an experience I’ll always be grateful for,” Able said in a statement. “Thank you to my coaches, staff and the program for their guidance and support. My teammates, especially, have meant a lot to me. Wolfpack Nation, I appreciate all the energy and love you’ve shown. Playing in front of you has been an honor and a privilege.”
Able said he’s exploring the best option and environment for his ongoing growth as a player and person.
He averaged 8.8 points and 3.4 rebounds per game this season, hitting 35.5% of his 3-pointers. Able finished the season scoring double figures in three of the last four games. He also scored a career-high 19 points on 5 of 7 3-point shooting during the Wolfpack’s 82-58 win over North Carolina.
Able, however, only scored four points in the 68-66 season-ending loss against Texas in the First Four round of the NCAA Tournament. He went 1 for 3 on field goals and missed clutch free throws down the stretch.
“You don’t really know what to expect coming in as a freshman until you experience it,” Able said after the game. “The one thing I can say is, I have lots of mental strength. There’s gonna be ups and downs. I mean, we had lots of ups and downs. We had great moments. We had not-so-great moments. I feel like being able to stay consistent throughout it all is a big thing, and I learned, as a team, being able to stay together, I feel like we did a pretty good job at that. It’s unfortunate we lost like this, because we did give it everything we had.”
Senior guard Quadir Copeland praised Able’s growth earlier this season, calling the rookie a spark off the bench.
“I think his development has been amazing, but I think it’s all been on him,” Copeland said in February. “We’re hard on him, but he’s grown himself. He understood his own mistakes and fixed them himself. He ain’t really need us doing too much talking to him … Matt is strong-minded. He gets a lot of things done himself, so I don’t want to take credit for his growth. He did that on his own.”
Able committed to N.C. State last April, shortly after Will Wade was introduced as the Wolfpack’s head coach. He signed with the program roughly two weeks later and enrolled last summer. He was a four-star prospect and remains a four-star transfer, according to 247Sports.
Prior to joining the Wolfpack, Able made official visits to Texas, Stanford, Baylor, Alabama and Tennessee. New head coach Justin Gainey coached with the Volunteers for five years before N.C. State hired him to replace Wade.
Able was originally committed to Miami but decommitted after Jim Larrañaga’s unexpected retirement in December 2024.
This story was originally published April 6, 2026 at 1:40 PM with the headline "Young NC State guard entering portal, NBA Draft to explore options."
