Gophers men’s basketball signs Bobby Durkin from Davidson through the transfer portal

Davidson transfer Bobby Durkin is the latest player to join new Gophers men’s basketball coach Niko Medved’s program, but he didn’t even need a visit to make his decision.

The 6-7, 220-pound sophomore forward scheduled his official visit with the Gophers for Friday, but he couldn’t wait to commit after being blown away during a Zoom call over the weekend. He signed to play for the program on Monday.

“If an opportunity felt right for me, it just made the most sense to take it right away,” Durkin told the Minnesota Star Tribune. “I really got to know the staff a little bit more. Their vision for me. Their vision for what the team’s going to look like. It just made sense.”

Durkin, from Darien, Ill., averaged 13.5 points, 5.9 rebounds and 2.4 assists while shooting 35.5% from three-point range and 85.0% from the free-throw line at Davidson this season.

Durkin visited DePaul, Ohio State and Clemson, but Medved and assistant coach Brian Cooley already recruited him at Colorado State in high school. Durkin learned more recently about Medved and the culture he’s ready to build with the Gophers.

“I got to talk to Coach Medved and really see his values and the type of people he wants to recruit,” Durkin said. “How he goes about things on a daily basis is perfectly aligned with what I was looking for. It really felt like it would be a great fit.”

Durkin had 48 starts in 65 games in two seasons with the Wildcats and scored in double figures 23 times in 2024-25. He had seven 20-point games, including a career-high 28 points on 6-for-10 shooting from beyond the arc against Rhode Island.

As a freshman in 2023-24, Durkin scored 16 points in his second college game, which included the go-ahead three-pointer to win the Asheville (N.C.) Championship against Maryland.

“Bobby is a phenomenal shooter with great size and length,” Medved said in a statement. “He’s a versatile player who can create space and has good floor vision. In addition, his defensive play and rebounding ability really stands out.”

In high school, Durkin won the 2022 Illinois state championship with a loaded Glenbard West squad that included Gonzaga’s Braden Huff. Durkin originally committed to Army but reopened his recruitment and played a postgraduate season with IMG Academy in Florida in 2022-23.

“You’re going to be very hard pressed to find another kid who is as skilled and has Bobby’s great feel at 6-7,” said Breakaway Basketball AAU founder Greg Ktistou, who had Durkin in his program “The way he dribbles, passes, shoots and understands how to play. He makes others better and he’s a great teammate.”

Davidson developed Durkin into a Division I starter, but he’s excited to play in the Big Ten.

“It’s honestly something I’ve dreamed of since I was a little kid,” said Durkin, who grew up about an hour from Northwestern. “The Big Ten is such an awesome conference.”

The Gophers now have landed three transfers under Medved, including Colorado State’s Jaylen Crocker-Johnson and California’s BJ Omot, a former Mankato East standout.

Medved has six players on his Gophers roster for next season. Freshmen Isaac Asuma and Grayson Grove are the only returnees from 2024-25. And high school senior Kai Shinholster is the lone member of former coach Ben Johnson’s 2025 recruiting class still signed.