Belmont starting guard Adam Kunkel announced he will enter the transfer portal, beginning a new chapter of his college career after two years with the program.
With his decision, Kunkel is now the third player this offseason who decided to leave Belmont after a championship season.
“Belmont will always have a special place in my heart,” wrote Kunkel in an Instagram post. “But I’ve been faced with a difficult decision to make. After lots of thought and prayer, I’ve decided to enter the transfer portal. Knowing my goals and aspirations, this feels like the best decision for me and I am excited about this new chapter in my life.”
Kunkel began his journey at Belmont as a freshman in 2018. Although he did have 25 game appearances, he spent most of the season under the shadows of upperclassmen like Dylan Windler and Kevin McClain.
After most of Belmont’s shooting power graduated in 2019, Kunkel was finally able to show Belmont the value of his shot.
Before his sophomore year, he averaged 2.3 points per game over eight minutes of playing time. At the start of the 2019-2020 season, Kunkel — who quickly earned the nickname Kunk — went from part-time benchwarmer to full-time shooting machine.
In 33 game appearances during the 2019-2020 season, Kunkel averaged 16.5 points per game, while shooting at almost 45 percent in 30 minutes of playing time. Where he was most comfortable, behind the arc, Kunkel contributed tremendously with 83 made threes on the year shooting at almost 40 percent; up from 27.5 percent in the 2018-2019 season.
The arguably most iconic game of his career at Belmont was in early November when the Bruins traveled north to take on power five team Boston College. In just the third game of his sophomore season, Kunkel put up a career high — 35 points shooting at 50 percent from the field.
His performance caught the attention of Belmont, the Ohio Valley Conference, and even college basketball analyst Andy Katz, who featured Kunkel on an Instagram post highlighting top moments in NCAA Division I basketball.
Kunkel has already been contacted by other Division I schools like Xavier, Arkansas, and Iowa State. It is unknown exactly where Kunkel will take his talents next, with two more years of eligibility under his belt anything is possible. However it is certain he could be a big loss for the Bruins this season.
“Kunk acknowledged he had two great years at Belmont and we appreciate his contribution to the program,” said coach Casey Alexander in a statement to the Vision. ”We’re certainly disappointed to lose him, but he believes he has to prove himself elsewhere so we will wish him well and look forward to following him.”
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This article written by Julieann Challacombe.