Former Toledo guard RayJ Dennis transfers to Baylor: What he brings to Bears

Former Toledo guard RayJ Dennis is transferring to Baylor, he told The Field of 68 on YouTube on Thursday. Here’s what you need to know:

• Dennis, a 6-foot-2 guard, averaged 19.6 points, 5.8 assists and 4.3 rebounds last season for the Rockets.
• He was the No. 2 player on The Athletic’s list of top available transfer portal prospects and has one year of eligibility remaining.
• Dennis was the 2023 MAC Player of the Year and led the conference in total points scored (706) and assists (209).

The Athletic’s instant analysis:

Scouting report

Dennis piloted the most efficient offense in college hoops and led Toledo to a regular-season MAC title. He has the ball on a string and has sort of an old-man game. He loves turning his back to his defender and is able to spin in either direction. Dennis knows how to get his man off balance and can also knock down a turnaround jumper. 

He also has a good feel for how to play out of ball screens and read secondary defenders. Toledo played fast, and he’s used to pushing the ball up the court. He sees the floor well and can spray it out to shooters — the Rockets were the second-best 3-point shooting team by percentage in the country. 

Dennis’s ability to get defenders’ eyes on him helped create a lot of those good looks. Dennis was never much of a shooter until this season when he knocked down a respectable 36.5 percent of his 3s. That’s not his biggest strength, but it’s at least part of his game now and made him a more well-rounded scorer. — Moore and Vecenie

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Where Dennis fits in Baylors’ offense

Bears coach Scott Drew has talent but a young roster and he needed a floor leader. Dennis fits exactly what he needed and is going to a spot where his strengths should be magnified. Drew gives his guards a lot of freedom and they play out of ball screens. That’s where Dennis excels. It’s going to be an adjustment in levels, but the offense he ran at Toledo has some similarities to how he’ll be asked to play at Baylor. This was a good choice for Dennis to prove he can do the type of things he did at Toledo at the high-major level. — Moore

How this impacts Baylor’s transfer portal plans

Drew has done well with transfer guards in the past, including guards from the low- or mid-major level. Both MaCio Teague and Adam Flagler had an easier time than most transitioning to the high-major level.

Drew’s work in the portal could be finished depending on what Jalen Bridges does. Bridges told ESPN he’s deciding between a return to Baylor or leaving for the NBL in Australia. If he leaves, Baylor could still be looking for a playmaking forward. — Moore

Required reading

(Photo: Scott W. Grau / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)