Friday marked exactly one week since Tad Boyle said he didn’t expect further transfer portal departures. At least beyond Courtney Anderson and Harrison Carrington, two sparsely used reserves who opted for the portal not long after it opened last week.

If that truly was the case, week two of transfer portal season has been full of surprises for the Buffaloes and their head coach.

Not long after sophomore forward Assane Diop announced his intention to transfer on Thursday evening, third-year guard RJ Smith did the same, leaving the Buffs without a player projected to be the most experienced guard in the backcourt in 2025-26.

Smith’s final numbers this season — 6.2 points per game, a 1.40 assist-to-turnover rate and .386 3-point percentage — were encouraging, particularly since Smith played a full season (34 of 35 games) for the first time since his senior year of high school in 2021-22.

However, Smith endured a wildly dramatic series of ups and downs to get there. After playing only the first seven games of last season before getting sidelined by a blood clot issue in his leg, Smith began this season on fire, compiling a .590 3-point percentage (23-for-39) through the first 12 games. Smith capped that run by going 3-for-6 from the arc with a career-high 14 points in the Big 12 Conference opener against then-No. 3 Iowa State.

Smith also went 4-for-7 on 3-pointers with eight assists against just one turnover in CU’s three games against top-tier competition (Michigan State, UConn, Iowa State) in November at the Maui Invitational.

Yet after the big game against Iowa State in the league opener, Smith spent the bulk of the winter mired in a frigid slump. Over his next 15 games, Smith went just 4-for-33 (.121) on 3-pointers, going scoreless in four games and scoring just two points in five others. Smith was able to rebound somewhat as the Buffs played improved ball down the stretch and won two games at the Big 12 tournament, going 10-for-29 from the arc (.345) over the final seven games.

Smith scored 10 points earlier this week during CU’s season-ending loss against Villanova in the first round of the College Basketball Crown in Las Vegas, going 4-for-9 overall and 2-for-7 on 3-pointers while recording three assists, three turnovers and two rebounds.

Last week, prior to leaving for Vegas, Boyle told BuffZone:

“It’s all I’m expecting. It’s all I’m expecting right now, that’s for sure,” when asked about possible portal departures beyond Anderson and Carrington. “I had my meetings with these guys. One thing about being a college basketball coach in the spring is you can’t be surprised about anything. But I’ve talked to every player and feel I have a feel for where they are and where we are.”

With the portal departures of Smith, Diop, Anderson and Carrington, in addition to the previously expected transfer of fourth-year guard Javon Ruffin, Boyle now has three roster spots to fill this spring, assuming the Buffs stick to Boyle’s previously stated plan of maintaining 13 scholarship players even as NCAA basketball moves to a new roster limit of 15.

Players still can opt for the portal until its closing date of April 22.