CFB51 College Football Fan Community
The Power Five => Big Ten => Topic started by: medinabuckeye1 on March 15, 2024, 08:53:09 PM
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For the first time in years I am actually excited about the upcoming Basketball 🏀 season because my school isn't handicapped by bad coaching. I say that not knowing who the Ohio State coach will be but thrilled to know that it will not be Chris Holtmann!
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A month too early for this thread.
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A month too early for this thread.
Particularly now that we have next to zero idea what rosters look like year to year. Hell, a month from now is probably too early
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Particularly now that we have next to zero idea what rosters look like year to year. Hell, a month from now is probably too early
I know. Ohio State could be returning the best roster in the conference or starting a bunch of transfers from the MAC.
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Sounds like OSU will announce Diebler as the coach today. I don't hate it - "Holtmann's program but they play defense" is a really good team, as we saw down the stretch this year. Plus hopefully they will retain most of the roster - they only have to lose Battle and Bonner, everyone else could come back. Battle is tough to replace, though Scotty Middleton is probably the starter there.
A starting five of Thornton, Gayle, Middleton, Royal, and Okpara is pretty good. Mahaffey and Key coming off the bench. Chatman would be great for guard depth, but there have been some rumors he may transfer unrelated to who the coach is. So we shall see.
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Official.
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My annual schedule rant:
There were two major problems with Ohio State's schedule in 2023/24: First, it was too weak. The Buckeyes ended up with the #43 SoS per KenPom. By comparison, UW was #3, PU was #4, MSU was #12, IA was #16. Second, attendance particularly at the buy games was pathetic.
The 2023/24 Ohio State schedule consisted of:
- 1 home game as part of a MTE (vs WMU)
- 1 1/2 of a H&H (vs aTm, tOSU goes to aTm in 2024/25)
- 2 neutral site MTE games (vs Bama, vs Santa Clara)
- 2 neutral site games (vs UCLA in ATL, vs WVU in CLE)
- 5 home buy games (Oakland, Merrimak, CMU, Miami-OH, NOLA)
A not totally unreasonable proposal:
- 3 games for MTE (this is no change)
- 3 halves of H&H (alternating between 1&2 at home, this is up by 2)
- 1 neutral site game (this is down by 1)
- 4 "Ohio" games. (these replace the 5 buy games)
The Ohio Games would be against the six Ohio MAC teams plus Cleveland State and Dayton. The offer to them would be simply that Ohio State will play four of them per year with every eighth game being on the road. Thus, over a period of 16 years tOSU would host each of the eight teams seven times and visit each of the eight teams once.
In a two year cycle the Buckeyes would play:
- 20 B1G home games - 10 per year
- 20 B1G road games - 10 per year
- 7 Ohio home games - alternates between 3 and 4 per year*
- 6 MTE games - 3 per year
- 3 home halves of H&H series - alternates between 1 and 2 per year*
- 3 road halves of H&H series - alternates between 1 and 2 per year*
- 2 neutral site games - 1 per year
- 1 Ohio road game - alternates between 0 and 1 per year*
*The alternating series would be arranged such that:
- In years when tOSU had 2 home and 1 road from the H&H's, they would play 3 home and 1 road "Ohio" games
- In years when tOSU had 1 home and 2 road from the H&H's, they would play 4 home "Ohio" games
Thus, Ohio State would always have 15 home games consisting of:
- 10 league games
- 1 home half of an H&H
- 4 consisting either of 1 additional home half of an H2H and 3 "Ohio" games or 4 "Ohio" games
Then they would always play 12 road games consisting of:
- 10 league games
- 1 road half of an H&H
- 1 either an additional road half of an H&H or an "Ohio" road game
Then they would have four neutral site games:
- 3 MTE games (these might sometimes (as in 2023) include a home game)
- 1 one-off neutral site game
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IU will be unwatchable. They may be at or about .500 but the basketball itself will be awful.
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When I first started watching NCAA hoops, IU was right there with Kansas, Dook, UNC, Kentucky and UCLA among CBB royalty.
Now there are only blue teams in that royalty, and UCLA is slipping.
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My annual schedule rant:
There were two major problems with Ohio State's schedule in 2023/24: First, it was too weak. The Buckeyes ended up with the #43 SoS per KenPom. By comparison, UW was #3, PU was #4, MSU was #12, IA was #16. Second, attendance particularly at the buy games was pathetic.
The 2023/24 Ohio State schedule consisted of:
- 1 home game as part of a MTE (vs WMU)
- 1 1/2 of a H&H (vs aTm, tOSU goes to aTm in 2024/25)
- 2 neutral site MTE games (vs Bama, vs Santa Clara)
- 2 neutral site games (vs UCLA in ATL, vs WVU in CLE)
- 5 home buy games (Oakland, Merrimak, CMU, Miami-OH, NOLA)
In fairness, this schedule would have looked alot better if UCLA had lived up to their preseason hype (started as a top 25 team) and WVU was at least not utterly putrid.
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When I first started watching NCAA hoops, IU was right there with Kansas, Dook, UNC, Kentucky and UCLA among CBB royalty.
Now there are only blue teams in that royalty, and UCLA is slipping.
In the era of NIL, UCLA is toast. Creighton and Butler have more robust NIL programs
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IU's NIL is great but the coach is awful. It's beyond inexplicable to have one of the best NIL's in the country and not be able to sign a single freshman in a recruiting cycle.
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In the era of NIL, UCLA is toast. Creighton and Butler have more robust NIL programs
Any UCLA fan who thinks UCLA is going to compete in the B1G in CFB and CBB is delirious.
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In fairness, this schedule would have looked alot better if UCLA had lived up to their preseason hype (started as a top 25 team) and WVU was at least not utterly putrid.
True and I'll add that aTm dropped from top-25 when played to barely making the tournament. That said, the buy games were mostly atrocious. NET, opponent, KenPom:
- 126 Oakland 137
- 213 Merrimack 215
- 238 Miami-OH 256
- 265 CMU 279
- 340 NOLA 340
Miami-OH is obviously one of the "Ohio" teams but they were the worst one. A random group of the "Ohio" teams would have been superior to the ridiculously bad buy game opponents that tOSU actually played.
- 23 Dayton 32
- 108 Akron 116
- 130 Toledo 139
- 139 OhioU 143
- 171 Kent 172
- 196 Cleveland State 189
- 228 BGSU 241
- 238 Miami-OH 256
Dayton might turn that offer down, they could be replaced by:
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True and I'll add that aTm dropped from top-25 when played to barely making the tournament. That said, the buy games were mostly atrocious. NET, opponent, KenPom:
- 126 Oakland 137
- 213 Merrimack 215
- 238 Miami-OH 256
- 265 CMU 279
- 340 NOLA 340
Miami-OH is obviously one of the "Ohio" teams but they were the worst one. A random group of the "Ohio" teams would have been superior to the ridiculously bad buy game opponents that tOSU actually played.
- 23 Dayton 32
- 108 Akron 116
- 130 Toledo 139
- 139 OhioU 143
- 171 Kent 172
- 196 Cleveland State 189
- 228 BGSU 241
- 238 Miami-OH 256
Dayton might turn that offer down, they could be replaced by:
I’d assume Dayton would want that? Right?
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UW stopped playing Milwaukee and Green Bay in favor of schools from other states.
They always play Market. Don't see that one ever going away.
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Next year they are doing this one.
(https://i.imgur.com/QTaNlK4.png)
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I hear Team 4 has a heck of recruiting class lined up.
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UW stopped playing Milwaukee and Green Bay in favor of schools from other states.
They always play Market. Don't see that one ever going away.
I think Milwaukee had something to do with issues with a former AD (and the treatment of Rob Jeter).
Not sure about GB, but they played through last year.
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I think Milwaukee had something to do with issues with a former AD (and the treatment of Rob Jeter).
Not sure about GB, but they played through last year.
Some bad blood with GB and UWM for sure.
No need to play them. It's a no-win for the flagship.
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I hear Team 4 has a heck of recruiting class lined up.
Fear the 4!
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Next year they are doing this one.
(https://i.imgur.com/QTaNlK4.png)
Went to a conference there. It remains very 1930 fancy. I can't imagine paying those prices on my own dime. The golf courses are legit, but the hotel itself is EXTREMELY outdated
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Both of Michigan's PGs are in the portal, and their top recruit decommitted.
Granted whoever they hire could bring in a legit top 25 roster next year.
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I’d assume Dayton would want that? Right?
To be clear on what I'd be offering if I were the tOSU AD, it would eight games over 16 years with seven of them in Columbus. I would offer to pay for the seven home games but I don't know that Dayton would accept a 7:1 A:H ratio. I think the MAC schools, CSU, and WSU would because their choice would be that or nothing.
Some bad blood with GB and UWM for sure.
No need to play them. It's a no-win for the flagship.
From a competitive standpoint I understand this sentiment but I was trying to look at this through the eyes of an AD, specifically an AD at Ohio State with a ~20k arena to sell BB tickets in. From that standpoint, I'd much rather host an Ohio School than Merrimak (Massachusetts) NOLA (Louisiana) simply because I assume that a local school would bring some spectators along. Actually, if I were tOSU's AD, I would probably force that issue by making part of the payment (from tOSU) payable in tickets to the game.
Specifically, according to the Dispatch, tOSU paid $455k for their 2023 OOC games:
- $undisclosed to NOLA - 11,749 on Thu, Dec 21
- $90k to WMU - 9,505 listed attendance on Sun, Nov 19
- $undisclosed to Oakland - 9,244 listed attendance on Mon, Nov 6
- $90k to Miami-OH - 9,098 listed attendance on Wed, Dec 6
- $90k to CMU - 8,223 listed attendance on Wed, Nov 29
- $95k to Merrimak - 7,929 listed attendance on Wed, Nov 15
I would guess that NOLA had decent attendance because it was within the Christmas Break but I don't know. I'd have to look at multiple years to figure out the various factors that drive this. I *THINK* that attendance for Merrimak and CMU were bad for three reasons:
- It was still football season and Ohio State was very much in the NC race so a lot of football-first fans hadn't even looked into BB yet.
- The games were on weekdays which generally limits your market to people living and working in the Columbus area because a guy like me (roughly 2 hours from Columbus) can't make it to a weekday BB game without taking a significant amount of time off work.
- The opponents SUCKED.
WMU had better attendance probably because the game was on a weekend.
Oakland had the decent attendance probably because it was the opener and I'm guessing that a certain number of people just go to the opener each year.
Miami-OH is in the middle I would guess because it was a weekday, FB season was winding down, etc.
Since the school is paying close to $100k for these games my offer to the "Ohio Schools" would be "going rate" (to adjust for inflation because this would be a 16 year deal) but with at least ~20% of that paid in tickets. Ie, tOSU would give each Ohio school hosted ~$80k and ~$20k worth of tickets. This would serve two functions for Ohio State:
- It would reduce the price to Ohio State, and
- It would reduce the inventory of available tickets thus making the remaining tickets more scarce.
To the extent possible, I would also look to schedule the games against "Ohio Schools" on weekends to facilitate travel to Columbus for the games. Within Ohio there are LOTS of friendships and couples where one attended tOSU and the other attended Akron/Kent/BGSU/Toledo/Miami/CSU/Dayton/Ohio. My dad went to OhioU. If he were still around I might take him to a tOSU/OU BB game. My wife attended Akron, I might take her to a tOSU/Akron BB game. Etc.
The H&H series like aTm this year could be during the week because those are enough of a draw that you don't need so many people from outlying areas in Ohio. You *SHOULD* be able to sell out bigger name games simply by selling in the Columbus area. Texas A&M this year only drew 12,704 but that was on a weekday during FB season (Friday, Nov 10, the home FB game the next day against MSU had LOTS more interest), and the fanbase was fed up with the coach's ongoing failure). Two years ago (Tue, Nov 30) the home game against Dook was a sellout. Also, aTm is near the bottom of the list of schools that I'd try to get for H&H's. They are decent, I don't mean to knock on aTm but they aren't particularly great in BB nor FB. TOPS on my list would be those schools that, like tOSU, are near the top of the AP's lists of all-time best in BOTH FB and BB. That may sound stupid but Columbus is a FB first town so people are going to be MUCH more interested in a BB game against say Bama or Clemson than they would against a BB team similar to Bama/Clemson but from a school with no FB history. Thus, the top of my list for H&H's (aside from any BB blueblood* willing to sign up) would be:
- Florida, 15FB, 45BB - Only school to win both in the same academic year, also has history with tOSU in the postseason in both.
- Oklahoma, 3FB, 23BB - One of three schools along with tOSU and UF to make the NC game in both in the same academic year.
- Notre Dame, 5FB, 16BB - also local so they'll bring some fans.
- Bama, 1FB, T33BB
- Tennessee, 10FB, T42BB
- Texas, 7FB, 44BB
- Arkansas, 20FB, T24BB
- Mizzou, 33FB, 39BB
- Pitt, 30FB, 41BB - also local so they'll bring some fans.
- WVU, 42FB, T31BB - also local so they'll bring some fans.
Ohio State is the only school in the top-10 of both at #2FB, #10BB.
For reference, aTm is #22FB, #T100BB. That isn't quite what I am looking for. I'd also lean toward localish schools like ND, Pitt, and WVU above and also including Louisville and any others I'm not thinking of at the moment.
*BB Bluebloods to me are Carolina, Dook, Kansas, and Kentucky. There is some argument as to whether or not UCLA and Indiana should be on that list but that is irrelevant since they will regularly visit Columbus as conference-mates.
The next best BB schools according to the AP list that are not bluebloods, conference-mates, nor already mentioned above are:
- #6 Louisville - kinda mentioned above and somewhat local so a definite target.
- #7 Zona
- #11 Cuse
- #12 Cincy - NO, for the same reason that @847badgerfan (https://www.cfb51.com/index.php?action=profile;u=5) doesn't like playing "Market".
- #15 Villanova
- #18 Marquette
- #20 Gonzaga
- #21 UCONN - They either are or are close to something of a "modern blueblood". I'd sign them in a heartbeat.
- #22 G'Town - This would be great because there are a lot of alums and recruits in the DC area.
- #T24 Utah
- #26 NCST
- #27 UVA
- #28 KSU
- #30 UNLV
- #T31 OkSU
- #T33 St. Johns
- #35 Memphis
That is 30 schools to choose from:
- 4 Bluebloods
- 10 listed as high in both FB and BB
- 16 (not incl Cincy) "next best BB schools".
That is at least enough to be a good start on signing games.
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Both of Michigan's PGs are in the portal, and their top recruit decommitted.
Granted whoever they hire could bring in a legit top 25 roster next year.
Definitely the plight of not having a coach on portal day. With OSU quickly hiring Diebs, I guess I'll just move all my coach thoughts over to Michigan. Niko Medved of CSU has been mentioned - they play tomorrow night.
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Definitely the plight of not having a coach on portal day. With OSU quickly hiring Diebs, I guess I'll just move all my coach thoughts over to Michigan. Niko Medved of CSU has been mentioned - they play tomorrow night.
Iowa State's coach as well as Beilein has also been mentioned. If Beilein left 5 years ago because he was sick of the system I can't imagine he has enjoyed the developments since.
If they can poach TJ, that would be a slam dunk IMO
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Iowa State's coach as well as Beilein has also been mentioned. If Beilein left 5 years ago because he was sick of the system I can't imagine he has enjoyed the developments since.
If they can poach TJ, that would be a slam dunk IMO
That would be a great hire, though I've heard his buyout is pretty large. Plus he and his wife are pretty connected to Iowa State, and honestly what can he do at Michigan that he isn't doing already?
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That would be a great hire, though I've heard his buyout is pretty large. Plus he and his wife are pretty connected to Iowa State, and honestly what can he do at Michigan that he isn't doing already?
Make more money
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Some bad blood with GB and UWM for sure.
No need to play them. It's a no-win for the flagship.
Is there a root to the issue with GB?
I don't totally mind it. It makes some goodwill. If UW is bad enough to lose to most GB squads, that's on them. If GB is good enough to upset UW, good for them, I suppose. I think the last win GB had against UW got their coach the Toledo job.
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Went to a conference there. It remains very 1930 fancy. I can't imagine paying those prices on my own dime. The golf courses are legit, but the hotel itself is EXTREMELY outdated
This is a very concise and accurate review.
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Now I want to book a tee time there
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Cincy - NO, for the same reason that
@847badgerfan (https://www.cfb51.com/index.php?action=profile;u=5) doesn't like playing "Market". [/list]
I love UW playing, and beating, Market.
I wouldn't say no to Cincy were I an OSU fan. Same with Xavier. Don't be a wuss. Play 'em.
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Is there a root to the issue with GB?
I don't totally mind it. It makes some goodwill. If UW is bad enough to lose to most GB squads, that's on them. If GB is good enough to upset UW, good for them, I suppose. I think the last win GB had against UW got their coach the Toledo job.
Gard does not like the GB head coach at all.
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According to one of the tOSU sites, Ohio State Head Coach Jake Diebler's contract is five years at a base salary of $2.5M with the following bonuses:
- $25k for B1G Championship or co
- $50k for B1G Tournament Championship
- $25k for NCAA Appearance as an at-large (I assume this means that if they win the B1G Tournament, he doesn't get an extra $25k because they'd be an auto-bid.)
- $50k for S16
- $75k for E8
- $100k for F4
- $250k for NC but this one is explicitly NOT cumulative with the $100k F4 bonus
- $50k for B1G or national COTY (total for either or both)
So as I read it, the maximum bonus is:
- $75k for B1G regular season and Tournament Championships plus
- $50k for S16, $125k total
- $75k for E8, $200k total
- $250k for NC, $450k total
- $50k for COTY, $500k total
Honestly, it feels like tOSU is being unnecessarily cheap here with the bonuses. Realistically, if Diebler wins a NC they are going to give him raise MUCH bigger than $500k so why not make it official within the contract? IIRC, they were paying Holtmann about $4.5M and that was on the higher end in the B1G but not the highest.
I think it is smart to load up the bonuses anyway for two reasons:
- Success brings money to the program so the bonuses pay for themselves.
- In the event that it goes sideways and you end up having to fire a guy the bonuses aren't guaranteed so you don't have to pay them as a buyout.
If Ohio State wins B1G regular season and Tournament Championships, Diebler wins COTY, and the Buckeyes win the NC, the University will have LOTS of cash from all the tickets they'll have sold to a packed arena for a contender and all the merch they'll sell. In that case, the half a Million in bonuses will be pocket change. Why not double or triple all the bonuses? If they were tripled and he got all of them it will still only be $1.5M and bring his total to $4M which is still less than they were paying Holtmann.
To clarify, this post isn't meant to be too specific to Diebler and I'm not really advocating for higher salaries for coaches. My point is more about the structures of contracts because it makes a LOT of sense to me to lean more toward bonuses. If the team sucks and/or you have to fire a coach you don't have to pay the bonuses and if the team has a lot of success you don't mind paying them because you've got plenty of money laying around anyway. If I were AD, I'd be all in for increasing the bonuses by an order of magnitude in exchange for a slight reduction in base.
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Nebraska men’s basketball coach Fred Hoiberg receives a contract extension through the 2028-29 season.
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To clarify, this post isn't meant to be too specific to Diebler and I'm not really advocating for higher salaries for coaches. My point is more about the structures of contracts because it makes a LOT of sense to me to lean more toward bonuses. If the team sucks and/or you have to fire a coach you don't have to pay the bonuses and if the team has a lot of success you don't mind paying them because you've got plenty of money laying around anyway. If I were AD, I'd be all in for increasing the bonuses by an order of magnitude in exchange for a slight reduction in base.
Pretty sure every AD in the country would like to keep coaching compensation performance-driven by offering lower base salary and higher bonuses. But coaches typically have the negotiating upper hand. The coaches and agents have largely (by their behavior) made those sorts of contracts impossible--they won't accept those contracts. They want the guaranteed money, and they'll walk away if they don't get it. In fact, I think the unspoken assumption is that if they're not offered the larger salary and guarantee, it's almost an affront by the school calling the coach not worth it.
The Diebler situation is uncommon, especially for a big school like OSU, because he's being given a chance despite being unproven. He doesn't have any real negotiation power here--he wants the job and nobody else is going to offer him $2.5M. If he's gotta get a HC job at some school in an auto-bid league they're not going to be paying him $2.5M.
Rest assured that if he has 2-3 years of success leading to a contract extension, it's going to be more coach-friendly with guaranteed salary. Because if he is successful at OSU but underpaid, he'd be someone that any power conference school in the country would be looking at poaching him in a coaching search.
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Exactly.
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Pretty sure every AD in the country would like to keep coaching compensation performance-driven by offering lower base salary and higher bonuses. But coaches typically have the negotiating upper hand. The coaches and agents have largely (by their behavior) made those sorts of contracts impossible--they won't accept those contracts. They want the guaranteed money, and they'll walk away if they don't get it. In fact, I think the unspoken assumption is that if they're not offered the larger salary and guarantee, it's almost an affront by the school calling the coach not worth it.
The Diebler situation is uncommon, especially for a big school like OSU, because he's being given a chance despite being unproven. He doesn't have any real negotiation power here--he wants the job and nobody else is going to offer him $2.5M. If he's gotta get a HC job at some school in an auto-bid league they're not going to be paying him $2.5M.
Rest assured that if he has 2-3 years of success leading to a contract extension, it's going to be more coach-friendly with guaranteed salary. Because if he is successful at OSU but underpaid, he'd be someone that any power conference school in the country would be looking at poaching him in a coaching search.
I realize the negotiating power issue and you can see it in Diebler's salary which is quite low by B1G standards. This is from an IU fan site published in August, B1G BB HC salaries:
- $6.2M, Tom Izzo - MSU
- $4.6M, Brad Underwood - Illinois
- $4.2M, Mike Woodson - Indiana
- $3.9M, Kevin Willard - Maryland
- $3.55M, Matt Painter - Purdue
- $3.55M, Greg Gard - Wisconsin
- $3.5M, Chris Holtmann - Ohio State
- $3.5M, Fred Hoiberg - Nebraska
- $3.4M, Mike Rhoades - PSU
- $3.31M, Juwan Howard - Michigan
- $3.25M, Steve Pikiell - Rutgers
- $3.4M, Fran McCaffery - Iowa
- $2.893M, Chris Collins - Northwestern
- $1.95M, Ben Johnson - Minnesota
Assuming this site is right (and I think even a Purdue alum will trust an IU site for salary info), Diebler will be the second lowest paid B1G coach ahead of only Ben Johnson.
I guess the whole thing just seems like a bit of a farce to me. Diebler's maximum bonus is $500k but realistically, if he wins an NC, he'll get a LOT more than that.
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Assuming this site is right (and I think even a Purdue alum will trust an IU site for salary info), Diebler will be the second lowest paid B1G coach ahead of only Ben Johnson.
I guess the whole thing just seems like a bit of a farce to me. Diebler's maximum bonus is $500k but realistically, if he wins an NC, he'll get a LOT more than that.
Yes, he'll be the second-lowest paid. So what? Everyone on both sides knows that if he performs, he'll rocket up that list quickly. It's not like OSU is known for being stingy.
Honestly if I were his agent, I might have argued to make those performance bonuses short of the NC a little bigger, because they only get paid out IF he's successful. And realistically they're not going to pay out that NC bonus anyway, so might as well make it $1M. It'd be worth it but it's not going to happen.
But if he's successful, it'll be a moot point in 2-3 years anyway. If he wins an NC, it'll be reflected in his extension, not his bonus.
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Yes, he'll be the second-lowest paid. So what? Everyone on both sides knows that if he performs, he'll rocket up that list quickly. It's not like OSU is known for being stingy.
Honestly if I were his agent, I might have argued to make those performance bonuses short of the NC a little bigger, because they only get paid out IF he's successful. And realistically they're not going to pay out that NC bonus anyway, so might as well make it $1M. It'd be worth it but it's not going to happen.
But if he's successful, it'll be a moot point in 2-3 years anyway. If he wins an NC, it'll be reflected in his extension, not his bonus.
This is all true. It just seems kinda funny because the only figure in the contract that is even conditionally relevant is the $2.5M base for five years.
If Diebler flames out and gets fired tOSU will be on the hook for $12.5M. Presumably there is an offset for future employment so that $12.5M is the cap on tOSU's exposure if this doesn't go well.
If he is even reasonably successful he'll be given a raise commensurate with that level of performance. The more successful, the bigger the raise which makes the bonuses superfluous. The $250K for winning the NC is pocket change compared to the raise he'd get if he won tOSU's first BB NC in 65 years. At that point he'd get Izzo money and $250K would be a rounding error.
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Gard does not like the GB head coach at all.
I forgot there was a recruit thing last year too.
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I forgot there was a recruit thing last year too.
Yep. Kid was supposed to transfer to UW and ended up at GB. Can't remember his name but I think he was a guard?
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Yep. Kid was supposed to transfer to UW and ended up at GB. Can't remember his name but I think he was a guard?
Point guard. Would have been like a better version of McGee. I understand why the kid did it. He probably committed to Wisconsin too quickly, and his older brother is on staff at Green Bay. But it didn’t sound like the kid handled it well.
he ended up having quite a nice season for the Phoenix. Would have been such a bonus for the Wisconsin lineup that I honestly just understand the choice.
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I'm fine with it.
UW doesn't need guards right now. McGee is fine to give Chucky some rest.
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Wisconsin's Connor Essegian hit the portal. Not surprised. He had a nice freshman year, with defensive issues and then got buried by two new additions and some struggles with weight and conditioning that were a precursor to an underwhelming offensive season.
It's wild that last offseason, there was a ton of angst about needing to keep him. Now, him leaving mostly doesn't concern me. I get it. He played the good soldier when they first recruited someone to take his starting spot. It didn't work out. Hope the next stop does (maybe IU?).
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He just simply can't play defense. He'll find a good spot though. They kid can shoot.
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There's no way that's true. I mean if Ole Miss is offering $800k, good on them, but I would imagine every serious school is at least near the $2 million range
UW is strong in football NIL. Not so much in hoops. The $750K number is real, based on a number of solid sources.
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Meechie Johnson is in the portal with some rumors he will come back to OSU. A bit weird, since they could still return their starting guards.
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Meechie Johnson is in the portal with some rumors he will come back to OSU. A bit weird, since they could still return their starting guards.
I don't really get it. I watched a couple of their games this year, and he seems like the same guy he was here, just with more volume. He averaged about 14 PPG, but had a low FG% and still seemed fairly erratic to my eye test.
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Point guard. Would have been like a better version of McGee. I understand why the kid did it. He probably committed to Wisconsin too quickly, and his older brother is on staff at Green Bay. But it didn’t sound like the kid handled it well.
he ended up having quite a nice season for the Phoenix. Would have been such a bonus for the Wisconsin lineup that I honestly just understand the choice.
He's in the portal again. I hate this.
UW-Green Bay basketball star Noah Reynolds enters NCAA transfer portal (msn.com) (https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/other/uw-green-bay-basketball-star-noah-reynolds-enters-ncaa-transfer-portal/ar-BB1kvFyO)
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I don't really get it. I watched a couple of their games this year, and he seems like the same guy he was here, just with more volume. He averaged about 14 PPG, but had a low FG% and still seemed fairly erratic to my eye test.
OTOH, he was the leading scorer on a very good USCe team so maybe?
I don't know.
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IU's ware to the draft. Likely mid to late first rounder.
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I don't really get it. I watched a couple of their games this year, and he seems like the same guy he was here, just with more volume. He averaged about 14 PPG, but had a low FG% and still seemed fairly erratic to my eye test.
I don’t think that’s wrong. They had two other pretty good gardens, including a Minnesota transfer who took a leap. Nice stable of Big‘s, OK enough wings. Basically, he could do a lot of the things he was good at and had a lot of support for the stuff he wasn’t good at.
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Sounds like Louisville looking hard at Josh Schertz of Indiana State. Relevant to me because I'm currently in Louisville, and he's the guy I wanted OSU to hire.
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Sounds like Louisville looking hard at Josh Schertz of Indiana State. Relevant to me because I'm currently in Louisville, and he's the guy I wanted OSU to hire.
Would be quite a thing if the two biggest job openings went to an alum, and an in state mid major coach, while Indiana decoded to ride it out with Mike Woodson
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UGA somehow edged Ohio State in the "NIT", which of course is, well, whatever. This was at times a decent UGA squad, certainly not great, but "OK", maybe they rely on 3s too much at times, I watched them rarely. You'd think UGA should be more competitive at the sport.
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AJ Storr to the draft, to maintain college eligibility. Not in the portal.
He needs another year to work on his handle and defense, IMO.
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UGA somehow edged Ohio State in the "NIT", which of course is, well, whatever. This was at times a decent UGA squad, certainly not great, but "OK", maybe they rely on 3s too much at times, I watched them rarely. You'd think UGA should be more competitive at the sport.
It was a fun game to watch, even streakier than most BB games. It seemed like each time one team seemed to be firmly in control either they would get cold or the other team would get hot to the point that the team firmly in control switched. Rinse and repeat until the 79-77 final.
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I just read about it, and the article did note both teams went on long streaks at times. I'm sort of fascinated we still have the NIT. I guess the winner gets a nice looking trophy and probably feels fairly good about it.
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Polzin: AD hasn't lost faith in Wisconsin coach Greg Gard (badgerextra.com) (https://badgerextra.com/commentary/columns/polzin/wisconsin-basketball-coach-greg-gard-chris-mcintosh/article_737b6bf6-ec7c-11ee-9cc5-43748c77bdeb.html?utm_campaign=snd-autopilot&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter_BadgerExtra)
“I think Greg puts us in the best position to be successful into the future,” McIntosh said. “I think Greg has a great understanding of what’s needed in the continued evaluation of our program to get there. It’s a program that’s been evolving with the times that we live in, and I’m excited about some of the things that he and I talked about for the future and the evolution of our program.”
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Polzin: AD hasn't lost faith in Wisconsin coach Greg Gard (badgerextra.com) (https://badgerextra.com/commentary/columns/polzin/wisconsin-basketball-coach-greg-gard-chris-mcintosh/article_737b6bf6-ec7c-11ee-9cc5-43748c77bdeb.html?utm_campaign=snd-autopilot&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter_BadgerExtra)
“I think Greg puts us in the best position to be successful into the future,” McIntosh said. “I think Greg has a great understanding of what’s needed in the continued evaluation of our program to get there. It’s a program that’s been evolving with the times that we live in, and I’m excited about some of the things that he and I talked about for the future and the evolution of our program.”
Just saw that Gus Yalden announced to the portal as well. Was Wahl using his extra covid year or is he gone?
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Wahl is done. This was his Covid year. He did not redshirt.
No surprise on Yalden. Kid had all sorts of issues, from scooter crashes while stoned, alcohol arrests, wrecking a hotel room (after which was not allowed to travel with the team).
Don't let the door...
Good news? Opens up another 'ship for a transfer who will actually contribute. Gard has been very good at that.
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Next year looked so promising. So, he declares for the draft, and then enters the portal.
Went to 4 high schools and 2 colleges so far. That's a lot of one and done.
(https://i.imgur.com/5psFRNf.png)
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Yeah, F off.
*************************************
"To the incredible fans of the Wisconsin Badgers, as I sit down to write this message, I am overwhelmed with gratitude for the University of Wisconsin," Storr wrote. "This journey as a student-athlete has been one of the most profound experiences of my life. The unwavering support, guidance, and opportunities I've received from this community have been truly amazing.
"Joining this program under coach Gard has been a dream come true. It's been my lifelong ambition to play basketball at the highest level. I find myself at a pivotal moment. I have decided to engage and experience the NBA Draft process, all while maintaining my college eligibility.
"To my family, your unwavering support and encouragement helped keep alive my dream of playing in the NBA. As I ponder the next step, I'm reminded of a quote from one of my favorite players, Kobe Bryant, which resonates deeply with me. 'The most important thing is to try and inspire people, so that they can be great in whatever they want to do.'
"My time here has been filled with moments of inspiration, thanks to you all. My aim has always been to inspire and be inspired, to push boundaries, and redefine limits -- just as Kobe did throughout his career.
"The memories, lessons, and friendships I've made here will forever be a part of who I am. Thank you, Badger nation for everything."
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Mgbako back for Hoosiers
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Scotty Middleton to portal for the Buckeyes
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Dain Dainja in the portal.
Mercer wing Jake Davis has committed to Illinois.
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Dain Dainja in the portal.
Mercer wing Jake Davis has committed to Illinois.
That kid can shoot it. He was the second best player on his high school team. The best player is now a WR for Purdue and the third best player was Xavier Booker.
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Meechie Johnson coming back to Columbus
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Bronny James in the portal...Buckeyes?
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https://twitter.com/MattNorlander/status/1775320751995855254?t=bKjNyhJrRoDqbm2oTUer3w&s=19
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Welp, it's offseason city. And UW has some questions, roster quirks and moves to make. Because it calms me, I'll just run through the roster and some random thoughts.
The six guys you'd really liked to have keptkeep
PG Chucky Hepburn - I've been critical of his ceiling before, but on balance,he's a very good player and you'd rather have him than not.
Wing A.J. Storr - Was a not-so-efficient high flying scorer who seemed a bit distractible on defense. He earned all-conference honors but was a mess in the tournament game. Jumped in the draft/portal and is presumed gone.
Wing John Blackwell - Had a very nice freshman season, with a bit of tail off. Showed nice potential, and if Storr leaves, possibly/probably moves on up. Want to keep.
SG Max Klesmit - Overall a rather nice low-usage glue guy. He's got a bit more creative zing than a lot of UW shooting guards. Some folks want to recruit over him, though honestly, seemed fine to me (and if he ends up benched for Blackwell, he'd be a top-flight backup)
C Steve Crowl - Nominally, he's a 11/7/2 guy with good shooting numbers. His rim protection leaves something to be desired and his consistency isn't super. But he's a relatively good center, and I can't imagine they move on from him unless the other option is really good.
C Nolan Winter - He had a very freshman season, but he was still a solid enough rotation player while figuring out the college game at that size. He's considered talented and I'd generally like to see what his year two is.
The freshmen (Notable since these are pretty unlikely to transfer)
PG Daniel Freitag - Athletic recruit who has a lot of fans excited. Saw his ranking drop, but also had a nice senior season. If all goes well, he's the backup PG and can pair with Chucky.
SF Jack Robison - Seems like a potentially nice all-around forward. Might be a wait-and-see type with the wing situation. Unless he can help as a small stretch 4, which would be nice, but also a big ask.
The rest of the roster
SG Connor Essegian - He went from intriguing true freshman starter to barely in the rotation because of defense and a few other factors. Already in the portal. Wish him well.
PG Kamari McGee - Was a nice enough backup. Wasn't the most consistent this season, but had a higher ceiling than I expected. Now he'll have to decide if he wants to compete with Freitag or move elsewhere to play more than 9 minute per game. I'd wish him well with either choice.
PF Markus Ilver - A stretch 4 who has never been good enough to get a real rotation spot. Had one for a second this year, then kind of lost it. He's been around for 3 years. Maybe he wants to come back and compete for backup minutes. If he doesn't, it happens.
PF Carter Gilmore - He's bene a sturdy defensive role player whose offensive limitations had fans perpetually wishing for him to fall out of the rotation. If he loves being a role guy, I assume he'd be welcomed back. If he wants more, he's given the program more in four seasons than you'd expect from a walk-on.
C Chris Hodges - Actually played a few minutes in the Purdue win, but this is a guy who was almost pushed out last year. I guess it just depends if they get enough newcomers that he doesn't have a spot. (He's going into Year 4)
PF Gus Yalden - Took a RS that seemed linked to unseriousness. Had a high, HIGH chance of transfer and is gone.
A few questions
-What does the portal bring? UW seems to be targeting scoring wings, often bigger ones to replace Storr and stretch 4 types to replace Wahl. Need to see how this falls, but getting a 3 who could play backup 4 and reduce reliance on Ilver/Gilmore would be great. They're also talking to some defensive/rim-running centers. I don't see how they fit, but if they want to come, have at.
-How impactful is Freitag? He's a high-ceiling athlete who I presume will be in the rotation. But is he just a nice guy in there, or closer to a Koenig or Trice type guy?
-Where's the improvement? At worst, your starting lineup is probably Hepburn-Klesmit-Blackwell-transfer-Crowl. Can those four returners be better/more impactful. Chucky shows moments. Gard thinks Crowl has all-conference ability. Blackwell showed a lot of promise. Can some of them step up and be more of guys that are needed?
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For Ohio State, I think the biggest question mark leading into the 2024-2025 campaign is where the three point shots are going to come from. Here are Ohio State's highest percentage three point shooters from the 2023-2024 campaign:
- 45.2% Scotty Middleton 28-62, transferring
- 43.3% Jamison Battle 91-210, exhausted eligibility
- 42.9% Bowen Hardman 9-21, transferring
- 33.3% Bruce Thornton 58-174, returning
- 29.0% Dale Bonner 27-93, returning
- 28.4% Roddy Gayle Jr. 29-102, returning
- 26.7% Taison Chatman 4-15, returning
- 25.0% Zed Key 3-12, returning
- 15.0% Devin Royal 3-20, returning
- 11.8% Evan Mahaffey 2-17, returning
- 0.0% Kalen Etzler, 0-4, returning
- 0.0% Felix Okpara, 0-6, returning
Meechie Johnson who is returning from South Carolina shot 32.1% last year for the Gamecocks at 60-187.
Between them, Battle, Middleton, and Hardman accounted for 40% of the team's three point attempts and 50% of the team's made three pointers.
The two freshman additions for next season include 6'6" 3* Forward Colin White who will likely contribute nothing from long range and 6'2" 4* Point Guard Juni Mobley who might.
In the modern game I think it is a near necessity to have a couple guys who can reliably hit better than a third of their threes. There is a non-remote possibility that some two of Thornton, Johnson, Mobley, Bonner, Gale, and Chatman could become those guys.
The next question I'd be concerned about is depth at the 5. For next year I think that the combination of Okpara and Key should be fine. Okpara was the B1G's second leading shot blocker last year behind only some no-name from Purdue (LoL). My concern here is two things:
- Depth: If Okpara and Key both get in foul trouble, is Austin Parks a serviceable Center at this level?
- Beyond 2024-2025: Key will use up his eligibility this year and Okpara could play his way into the NBA so . . . Then what? Can Parks be the starter in 2025-2026? Even if he can, we'll need a backup for him.
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Detroit Mercy hires MSU assistant Mark Montgomery as their new HC
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Bronny James in the portal...Buckeyes?
https://x.com/BronnyJamesJr/status/1775337991440900324?s=20 (https://x.com/BronnyJamesJr/status/1775337991440900324?s=20)
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29.0% Dale Bonner 27-93, returning
I thought he was out of eligibility?
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From what I've heard, this is all we know for sure for the Buckeye roster:
Felix Okpara - returning
Bruce Thornton - returning
Devin Royal - returning
Meechie Johnson - transferring in
Scottie Middleton - portal
Bowen Hardman - portal
Jamison Battle - out of eligibility
Dale Bonner - out of eligibility
Still waiting for confirmation on whether the other guys are returning or portaling. Also, some chance that portal guy may re-join the roster, but not counting on it.
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https://x.com/BronnyJamesJr/status/1775337991440900324?s=20 (https://x.com/BronnyJamesJr/status/1775337991440900324?s=20)
Kind of a fun idea, but he barely played on a bad USC team. Not sure he would add much beyond hype. Buckeyes are in good shape at guard and need to add a frontcourt piece.
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I thought he was out of eligibility?
From what I've heard, this is all we know for sure for the Buckeye roster:
Dale Bonner - out of eligibility
Still waiting for confirmation on whether the other guys are returning or portaling. Also, some chance that portal guy may re-join the roster, but not counting on it.
According to the Worldwide Leader he has played in four seasons:
- 1 game in 19-20
- 31 games in 21-22
- 29 games in 22-23
- 36 games in 23-24
So now I'm lost. Does the one game played in 19-20 count as a year or do they have the same new rule as football where you can play a few games and not lose a year?
Then there is the COVID year question because the guys who played in 20-21 get an extra year, right?
Maybe I'm reading something wrong.
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I haven't really tried to understand the COVID eligibility rules. I just knew he had 1 year remaining at the start of the year. Just googling around, it looks like he and Battle are the only ones that are out of eligibility.
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According to the Worldwide Leader he has played in four seasons:
- 1 game in 19-20
- 31 games in 21-22
- 29 games in 22-23
- 36 games in 23-24
So now I'm lost. Does the one game played in 19-20 count as a year or do they have the same new rule as football where you can play a few games and not lose a year?
Then there is the COVID year question because the guys who played in 20-21 get an extra year, right?
Maybe I'm reading something wrong.
I think you are. He was a D-II transfer.
So he’s been in college six years, played five. He is definitely out of eligibility.
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I think you are. He was a D-II transfer.
So he’s been in college six years, played five. He is definitely out of eligibility.
That is it. I forgot about the D-II. Otherwise he's been in college five years and played four which ordinarily would be the end but I *THINK* the COVID year would give him one more.
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For Ohio State, I think the biggest question mark leading into the 2024-2025 campaign is where the three point shots are going to come from. Here are Ohio State's highest percentage three point shooters from the 2023-2024 campaign:
- 45.2% Scotty Middleton 28-62, transferring
- 43.3% Jamison Battle 91-210, exhausted eligibility
- 42.9% Bowen Hardman 9-21, transferring
- 33.3% Bruce Thornton 58-174, returning
- 29.0% Dale Bonner 27-93, exhausted eligibility
- 28.4% Roddy Gayle Jr. 29-102, returning
- 26.7% Taison Chatman 4-15, returning
- 25.0% Zed Key 3-12, returning
- 15.0% Devin Royal 3-20, returning
- 11.8% Evan Mahaffey 2-17, returning
- 0.0% Kalen Etzler, 0-4, returning
- 0.0% Felix Okpara, 0-6, returning
Meechie Johnson who is returning from South Carolina shot 32.1% last year for the Gamecocks at 60-187.
The four above in bold are not returning. Between them, Battle, Middleton, Bonner, and Hardman accounted for more than half of the team's three point attempts and more than three out of five of the team's made three pointers. That, to me, is the biggest hit to the roster.
The two freshman additions for next season include 6'6" 3* Forward Colin White who will likely contribute nothing from long range and 6'2" 4* Point Guard Juni Mobley who might.
In the modern game I think it is a near necessity to have a couple guys who can reliably hit better than a third of their threes. There is a non-remote possibility that some two of Thornton, Johnson, Mobley, Gale, and Chatman could become those guys.
The next question I'd be concerned about is depth at the 5. For next year I think that the combination of Okpara and Key should be fine. Okpara was the B1G's second leading shot blocker last year behind only some no-name from Purdue (LoL). My concern here is two things:
- Depth: If Okpara and Key both get in foul trouble, is Austin Parks a serviceable Center at this level?
- Beyond 2024-2025: Key will use up his eligibility this year and Okpara could play his way into the NBA so . . . Then what? Can Parks be the starter in 2025-2026? Even if he can, we'll need a backup for him.
Reposted with edits to reflect that Bonner is out of eligibility.
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This is how I analyze it. Here are Ohio State's definite losses and their statistical contributions as a percentage of Ohio State's totals for 2023-2024:
(https://i.imgur.com/iatAATY.png)
The three point shooting stands out to me. Looking across the table, the four guys tOSU is losing represented:
- About one tenth of Blocks.
- About one fifth of Assists.
- About a quarter of Free Throws, Made Free Throws, Rebounds, Turnovers, and Steals.
- A little under one third of Minutes, Shots, Makes, and Points.
- About half of Three Point Shots.
- About three in five Made Three Point Shots.
As I see it, four more-or-less average (for this level) guys can pretty readily replace everything lost except the Three Point shooting. That represents a hole that needs to be filled either by substantial improvement from existing guys or by additions who can shoot.
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https://twitter.com/MattNorlander/status/1775602467600028018?t=AjvV1gJ91MyG-tGxgWVOJQ&s=19
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Roddy Gayle to the portal
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Roddy Gayle to the portal
Ugh.
That makes five of the 23-24 team's most accurate 3pt shooters gone.
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Ugh.
That makes five of the 23-24 team's most accurate 3pt shooters gone.
3 point shooters are like relief pitchers. They are a dime a dozen because year to year volitility is high
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I'll do some looks at the rosters but at this point it isn't even worth the effort. Wake me up in the summer.
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This is good, so long as the replacement is an ace recruiter, which Oliver wasn't.
Rumors of Gard hiring his brother. That would be a huge mistake in my opinion.
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This is good, so long as the replacement is an ace recruiter, which Oliver wasn't.
Rumors of Gard hiring his brother. That would be a huge mistake in my opinion.
Nepotism in coaching may work sometimes but it can also be a catastrophe. The Iowa/Ferentz situation was similar to JoPa hiring his son at Penn State earlier.
I've been thinking about this lately because Jake Diebler's brother Jon is a guy that I would ordinarily love to see as an assistant at Ohio State. He was a star for some great Ohio State teams under Matta and when he graduated he was the league's all time leader with 374 3pt shots (since surpassed by Jordan Bohannon). He holds the league's fifth (116 in 2009-10) and seventh (114 in 2010-2011) most threes in a season and is the fifth most accurate long range shooter ever to play in our league.
Jon is also a current college basketball coach. He serves as Director of Recruiting at Butler.
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Gard's brother is the HC at UW-Platteville. Gard played there under Bo Ryan.
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This is good, so long as the replacement is an ace recruiter, which Oliver wasn't.
Rumors of Gard hiring his brother. That would be a huge mistake in my opinion.
It's fake news.
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I think this is a free article.
Greg Gard Comments on A.J. Storr, Dean Oliver (247sports.com) (https://247sports.com/college/wisconsin/article/wisconsin-badgers-head-coach-greg-gard-discusses-aj-storr-transfer-dean-oliver--229908275/)
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M. Sisoko (MSU) now in the portal. I had really hoped this trend (having to replace half your team every year) was going to be a short-lived thing, but I'm guessing the wild wild west is here to stay.
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M. Sisoko (MSU) now in the portal. I had really hoped this trend (having to replace half your team every year) was going to be a short-lived thing, but I'm guessing the wild wild west is here to stay.
Didn't really make any sense for him to stay
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Not until there is some regulation. The NCAA is now professional leagues with no salary cap, no contracts, no nothing. It's a joke.
In the NBA you have to wait 4 years to become a free agent. In the NCAA, you have to wait 4 days.
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He could have left as a grad transfer even under the old rules
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I just read that AJ Storr went to 3 different high schools and will now be on his third college unless he's drafted.
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Zed Key to the portal
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M. Sisoko (MSU) now in the portal. I had really hoped this trend (having to replace half your team every year) was going to be a short-lived thing, but I'm guessing the wild wild west is here to stay.
Honestly, and ELA can tell me I'm wrong, but him leaving seems like the kind of space where all this portal-ing is pretty fine.
To start with, he only has another year because of COVID. He only played a lot (15 mpg) this year because MSU didn't have a particularly consistently good player taller than 6-8 (and he wasn't a center type). And if we're gonna be honest, he was also somewhat the beneficiary of the fact Izzo has a habit of letting several big-but-not-that-good centers get a little run in games just because.
Could be a nice defensive anchor on a lower level. Could be an OK 10 MPG backup elsewhere. And honestly, a guy going elsewhere to ply his trade like that, seems fine.
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Yeah, he already graduated. I think if he wanted to return, that would be fine, but his role was reducing substantially later in the year. He actually got his most run against Purdue, simply because he had the best chance physically againdt Edey. He fouled out, but he made him work, and was a large reason it was still a game.
Hes a great kid, has his degree, and probably decided to use his last year somewhere where he can get more PT. Its not like hes a freshman who wanted more run out of the gate, or trying to find the best possible NIL deal. I actually think his student visa prevents him from getting NIL, and instead he has asked for whatever NIL money would come his way to help build a school in his village in Mali.
He was a top 50ish recruit, but very raw. He was discovered in Mali, and then played a year or two as a foreign exchange student in Utah. He didnt play much his freshman year, but rumor was he was in the dorm quad that had the COVID breakout, and he was actually hospitalized. I dont think he played at all after that. Then sophomore year he came out and had like back to back 20-10 games to open the season. And it was against Oscar Tshebwe (Kentucky) and Drew Timme (Gonzaga). Literally the starting frontcourt on the preseason AA team. And then he never did it again. Even against lesser competition.
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For the record, my post was about all of the transfers everywhere, not Sisoko's case specifically.
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LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – Nebraska men’s basketball is adding a 6-foot-10 forward to its roster next season.
North Dakota State’s Andrew Morgan announced Monday on Instagram that he is transferring to Nebraska.
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LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – Nebraska men’s basketball is adding a 6-foot-10 forward to its roster next season.
North Dakota State’s Andrew Morgan announced Monday on Instagram that he is transferring to Nebraska.
Interesting to add him with Mast having more eligibility. Could be an interesting pairing.
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Josiah Allick was senior
gotta have 2 big men
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<Grillrat and other Boilermakers have entered the chat...>
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<Grillrat and other Boilermakers have entered the chat...>
Definitely a different team next year without Edey. Lance Jones is done, I think everyone else could come back, though not sure guys like Ethan Morton would come back for a fifth year or not. Still should be really good - the junior class is strong with Smith, Loyer, and Kaufman-Renn.
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ESPN put out the Way Too Early Top 25, assuming that every top 60 NBA Draft prospect leaves. Granted with the portal, and the final COVID year, this remains dumb, but just as a starting point...
- 1. Duke
- 2. Gonzaga
- 3. Kansas
- 4. Connecticut
- 5. Iowa State
- 6. Purdue
- 19. UCLA
- 20. Maryland
- 21. Rutgers
- 24. Wisconsin
- HM Ohio State
- HM Michigan State
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UCLA?
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Definitely a different team next year without Edey. Lance Jones is done, I think everyone else could come back, though not sure guys like Ethan Morton would come back for a fifth year or not. Still should be really good - the junior class is strong with Smith, Loyer, and Kaufman-Renn.
Purdue actually has a large, decently ranked class coming in (13th in the nation), but we are actually over-signed by one at the moment. I had originally thought that Gillis would be transferring (he has a Covid year he could use, I think), but it wouldn't surprise me if Morton or Furst ended up leaving instead considering their minutes dropped dramatically over the last month (Morton played about 10 minutes and Furst played about 2 minutes the entire tournament).
For the record though, between Will Berg (SO) and Daniel Jacobson (FR) both being 7'-3" on the roster, I don't expect Painter to rewrite his offensive philosophy over the summer now that Edey is gone.
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Illinois lands Louisville transfer Tre White. Previously played at USC for a season. Now on his 3rd school in 3 years.
Good pickup if he stays for 2 years.
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Purdue's Morton to the portal. Can't say I blame him.
Decent defender, but a liability on offense. Was a decent 3 point shooter his first two years, but lost his confidence and has barely shot at all this year.
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Purdue's Morton to the portal. Can't say I blame him.
Decent defender, but a liability on offense. Was a decent 3 point shooter his first two years, but lost his confidence and has barely shot at all this year.
I was shocked he was still there. The highest rated Western PA recruit since DeJuan Blair, but he never looked the part. Western PA basketball ain't great, and most of the high recruits go to prep school. Credit to him, he stayed at his public HS, and had a shot at a state title, before COVID shut it down, but you can also see that maybe he didn't face the best competition in Western PA public school. The best Western PA public school kid this year is headed to Lehigh, and is considered a reach, but he's a legacy recruit.
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Mason Gillis to the portal too
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Mason Gillis to the portal too
His porn star NIL ran out?
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His porn star NIL ran out?
????
Where is that coming from?
Besides, if there is anybody in CBK who is bringing in that sweet sweet XXX NIL, it's this guy:
(https://i.imgur.com/dZpyDbI.png)
Grant Nelson, Alabama
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His barbed wire tattoos. I haven't seen that on a dude outside of 1990s porn stars and low card WCW wrestlers
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His barbed wire tattoos. I haven't seen that on a dude outside of 1990s porn stars and low card WCW wrestlers
You apparently watched alot more '90's porn than I did. NTTAWWT. ;)
For the record though, apparently it is making a comeback...
Barbed wire tattoos are back from the 90s - and they're all over Instagram - Daily Star (https://www.dailystar.co.uk/real-life/barbed-wire-tattoos-back-90s-25877997)
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You apparently watched alot more '90's porn than I did. NTTAWWT. ;)
For the record though, apparently it is making a comeback...
Barbed wire tattoos are back from the 90s - and they're all over Instagram - Daily Star (https://www.dailystar.co.uk/real-life/barbed-wire-tattoos-back-90s-25877997)
I was a teen. I was in my porn and WCW prime
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Morton and Gillis both using Covid years, both great dudes. Likely headed to Notre Dame is my prediction to be with Shrews. We are over signed by 1 and had no room for them to stay for their Covid year. Thought Gillis might call it and get on with his life, but I guess not.
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Morton and Gillis both using Covid years, both great dudes. Likely headed to Notre Dame is my prediction to be with Shrews. We are over signed by 1 and had no room for them to stay for their Covid year. Thought Gillis might call it and get on with his life, but I guess not.
Gillis could absolutely contribute at ND. Figured Morton would transfer down a level.
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Figured Morton would transfer down a level.
I'm not sure he's a Mike Woodson type of player.
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Kentucky going from Calipari to Mark Pope. All right
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Kentucky going from Calipari to Mark Pope. All right
Apparently they never went after Billy Donovan. I just wanted to see Billy Donovan coach Kentucky against Florida on Billy Donovan Court
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Kentucky going from Calipari to Mark Pope. All right
Pope did play there, so that's the connection.
In today's landscape, who wants that job?
Quite honestly, who wants any CFB or CBB job? You have to be a little crazy to want to work in that environment.
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Pope did play there, so that's the connection.
In today's landscape, who wants that job?
Quite honestly, who wants any CFB or CBB job? You have to be a little crazy to want to work in that environment.
$27.5 million over five years to coach basketball? Hey, say all the mean things about me you want
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amen brother
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(https://i.imgur.com/9lCyFuH.png)
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you can ask for anything
start high and let the negotiations begin
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Gillis could absolutely contribute at ND. Figured Morton would transfer down a level.
I don't totally know what to make of Gillis because he seemed most optimized at a place like Purdue.
He's best as a connector/tough defense floor spacer on a good team. And paradoxically, that has less value on a bad P5. So unless he drops to a lower level where he's a scorer, he's probably best off just moving to somewhere that can surround him better but needs his to fill a gap.
(He'd be really useful at UW, but would need at least one other specific kind of transfer, and would probably be made redundant by the right two transfers)
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Pope did play there, so that's the connection.
In today's landscape, who wants that job?
Quite honestly, who wants any CFB or CBB job? You have to be a little crazy to want to work in that environment.
Thousands of people want those jobs. Many thousands.
People are motivated by oh so many things.
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you can ask for anything
start high and let the negotiations begin
(https://i.imgur.com/A6zmguH.png)
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Minnesota has a kid who was just granted an 8th year
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Minnesota has a kid who was just granted an 8th year
and when he is done we are not going to be able to call him Dr.
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Kentucky going from Calipari to Mark Pope. All right
Kentucky hiring Pope feels a lot like Kentucky hiring Billy Gillispie from Texas A&M back in 2007. Except with less excitement and less potential upside. Lexington will chew up Mark Pope and spit him out. A placeholder, like Gillispie, until their right guy becomes available. Then, like Gillispie, preemptively chased out of the building. Literally and figuratively.
With that said, Kentucky fans deserve somebody set up for failure because their lunatic expectations absolutely set their coaches up for failure.
Billy Gillispie lasted two seasons in Lexington:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4wFlnRhl_-8
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Buckeyes get Aaron Bradshaw from the portal, formerly of Kentucky. 7'2'' center who was a top five recruit a year ago. He pretty much sucked last year, but definitely a big departure from the Holtmann era in the type of guys they are targeting.
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Weird. I thought only Purdue got big guys.
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Weird. I thought only Purdue got big guys.
(https://media.tenor.com/vJaMkAXzbToAAAAM/alreadygotone-monty.gif)
(Actually counting the incoming freshman, we've already got two.)
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Buckeyes get Aaron Bradshaw from the portal, formerly of Kentucky. 7'2'' center who was a top five recruit a year ago. He pretty much sucked last year, but definitely a big departure from the Holtmann era in the type of guys they are targeting.
Smart gamble by them.
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Smart gamble by them.
Yeah not bad for the backup center. I thought he might look at Indiana, but they got Oumar Ballo from Arizona today.
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Yeah not bad for the backup center. I thought he might look at Indiana, but they got Oumar Ballo from Arizona today.
Apparently for $1.2 million
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geez, that's as much as a starting QB in the B1G
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geez, that's as much as a starting QB in the B1G
Maybe even one in the Big Ten East
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Lots of transfer smoke in Madison right now. Things could get really ugly, really fast.
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And there it is. Chucky is gone. My guess is MSU.
(https://i.imgur.com/mXsqn5Z.png)
I'm done with college hoops. Fuck it.
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he could come home
O:-)
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Not a chance. I just read Louisville offered him $1.4 Mil.
He'll need some of that money to cover up the large Badger tattoo on his arm.
Many people wanted this shit (paying players) to happen, including some here. I hope you/they are happy.
B1G CFB51 board getting closer to a being a cooking/travel/news message board every day.
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Hoiburg got a less expensive point guard transfer
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Not a chance. I just read Louisville offered him $1.4 Mil.
He'll need some of that money to cover up the large Badger tattoo on his arm.
Many people wanted this shit (paying players) to happen, including some here. I hope you/they are happy.
B1G CFB51 board getting closer to a being a cooking/travel/news message board every day.
Land of the free. Remember when kids were worth millions of dollars and schools tried to pay them with meal plans? That said, I'm not sure Chucky Hepburn is worth that squeeze.
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Land of the free. Remember when kids were worth millions of dollars and schools tried to pay them with meal plans? That said, I'm not sure Chucky Hepburn is worth that squeeze.
I do remember the Cadillac meal plans.
I also remember them receiving the best medical care, nutrition programs, the best training, beautiful housing, the best tutors, free clothing and a free education and all that goes with it.
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they still get all that and now some added cash!
should be a cap
$50K on top of the other perks should be enough for a college kid to get by for a year
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they still get all that and now some added cash!
should be a cap
$50K on top of the other perks should be enough for a college kid to get by for a year
Salary caps have to be collectively bargained
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A.J. Hoggard out at MSU. Putting his name into the draft, but will likely be headed to another school.
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And there it is. Chucky is gone. My guess is MSU.
(https://i.imgur.com/mXsqn5Z.png)
I'm done with college hoops. Fuck it.
If it's $1.4 million, it ain't MSU. They are already out on Trey Townsend because of the price tag, which is less than $1.4 million
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Not a chance. I just read Louisville offered him $1.4 Mil.
He'll need some of that money to cover up the large Badger tattoo on his arm.
Many people wanted this shit (paying players) to happen, including some here. I hope you/they are happy.
B1G CFB51 board getting closer to a being a cooking/travel/news message board every day.
Paying the players isn't the issue. Removing the transfer sit out rule is. If they were worried that their own eligibility rules don't hold up in court, what's keeping a kid from playing in college forever. Obviously not the stars, but guys like a Cassius Winston?
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Rumblings are $800k from Louisville.
I’m a bit less irked than I could be. I’m kind of impressed that is out there for a player like him.
We’ve come a long way from coaches telling kids they’re replaceable.
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Matt Rhule says he prefers NFL Free Agency
after the player signs, the contract is out there for everyone to see
an agent asks for 1.4 but then the player signs for $800K, you know what the actual price was
the shady agents get a reputation
nothing in NIL is above the table or public knowledge
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Rumblings are $800k from Louisville.
I’m a bit less irked than I could be. I’m kind of impressed that is out there for a player like him.
We’ve come a long way from coaches telling kids they’re replaceable.
I still think he ends up at MSU with his Omaha buddy.
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I still think he ends up at MSU with his Omaha buddy.
Why wouldn’t Louisville just toss in another $800k for the other fella?
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Matt Rhule says he prefers NFL Free Agency
after the player signs, the contract is out there for everyone to see
an agent asks for 1.4 but then the player signs for $800K, you know what the actual price was
the shady agents get a reputation
nothing in NIL is above the table or public knowledge
It makes sense that he would.
They’ve got a cap and great handle on leverage in all this. Plus the perceived penalty for owners leaning cheaper is much lower.
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Rumors are that everyone has
It makes sense that he would.
They’ve got a cap and great handle on leverage in all this. Plus the perceived penalty for owners leaning cheaper is much lower.
Plus, collective bargaining and all. Allowing the players to unionize is the only thing that can save this.
And I stand by that the NCAA should be allowed to set their own rules for eligibility to play, without hampering freedom of movement and freedom to earn. You put no rails on NIL, but set it at 4 years and done, and you sit out if you transfer. Allow unlimited transfers, and unlimited redshirt years. If you want to take 8 years to get through college, go for it. That seems like a fine solution to me. The funny thing is that the transfer portal was to keep giving the players everything other than getting paid, and then they eventually got that, and the transfer portal made it even easier.
I think what eventually puts guardrails on this is the fact that the schools get pissed that donors money is going directly to the players, rather than a donation to the school to have a weight room named after them.
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Why wouldn’t Louisville just toss in another $800k for the other fella?
I guess they could. But is he worth it?
Storr committed to Kansas today. The NBA thing was bullshit from the start.
Essegian is probably going to end up at Indiana. Defense not required there.
Who knows where the Gus Bust will land.
Lindsey is at South Dakona State now, where he belonged in the first place.
3 walk-on's are also in the portal. OK then.
Gard has to build a whole new team - and who knows if there will be more departures. Blackwell, Crowl and Klesmit could easily find $$$ out there at this point.
At this point I really don't care and I'm not alone. Both of my friends still in Madison are not renewing their season tickets.
Wisconsin is now just a feeder school for those with huge NIL money available for basketball.
The courts have ruined the game because the NCAA shit the bed.
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Rumors are that everyone has Plus, collective bargaining and all. Allowing the players to unionize is the only thing that can save this.
And I stand by that the NCAA should be allowed to set their own rules for eligibility to play, without hampering freedom of movement and freedom to earn. You put no rails on NIL, but set it at 4 years and done, and you sit out if you transfer. Allow unlimited transfers, and unlimited redshirt years. If you want to take 8 years to get through college, go for it. That seems like a fine solution to me. The funny thing is that the transfer portal was to keep giving the players everything other than getting paid, and then they eventually got that, and the transfer portal made it even easier.
I think what eventually puts guardrails on this is the fact that the schools get pissed that donors money is going directly to the players, rather than a donation to the school to have a weight room named after them.
They hung onto the amateurism bit too long. Tying student athlete rules to that of regular students was a disaster when people outside the system took a look at it.
Shoot, even the forced year sitting out used to have some BS amateurism underpinning. You might have had a prayer with sport management, all of the pros had long had an extreme level of roster fluidity.
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I think this is a free article.
Flood: Get Used to It (247sports.com) (https://247sports.com/college/wisconsin/article/wisconsin-badgers-basketball-needs-to-adapt-or-get-run-over-in-transfer-portalnil-era-after-chucky-hepburn-loss-229710494/)
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So the basketball schools are going to develop all of their basketball recruits, and then the football schools are going to swoop in and buy up all the ones that pan out into great players?
Nice!
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Someone posted this on the 247 Badger board.
How Two Wisconsin Basketball Players Decided To Take On The NCAA | Only A Game (wbur.org) (https://www.wbur.org/onlyagame/2017/10/13/zach-bohannon-nigel-hayes-wisconsin-ncaa)
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Felix Okpara to the portal. Feels messy in Columbus
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Felix Okpara to the portal. Feels messy in Columbus
I'm not totally surprised.
I'll be interesting when folks figure out the way to sort this out. It's hard to sell a good transfer on coming and clearly not starting. But if you sell starting, and you have a returner, you've got to get them on board. And often that just doesn't work out.
It leads to the interesting question of how depth develops. Is that adding good freshmen? Or just creating situations where things are just unclear enough that it all works out. (Illinois has been weirdly masterful at that)
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It's messy everywhere. UW is a red hot mess right now.
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Nebraska hitting the Big Ten portal - gets Essegian to go along with Gavin Griffiths
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just need Chucky
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https://twitter.com/JonRothstein/status/1782065353129877914
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not even half
yet
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https://twitter.com/JonRothstein/status/1782065353129877914
do you attribute this more to following the money or are there really that many bad fits after one season?
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I doubt Bronny needs any money. He's not that good anyway.
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Michigan's new coach Dusty May is putting a team together. Actually looking forward to next season.
https://www.si.com/college/2024/04/22/grades-high-major-mens-basketball-coaches (https://www.si.com/college/2024/04/22/grades-high-major-mens-basketball-coaches)
SI's Kevin Sweeney gave the Ohio state hire of Diebler a D. LOL
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SI's Kevin Sweeney gave the Ohio state hire of Diebler a D. LOL
I can't think of many dumber exercises than grading hires at the time they are made
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I'm sure Diebler and May will be compared against each other for the duration of their tenures, similar to how Archie Miller and Chris Holtmann were compared. In the end, both failed in that one, so we'll see what happens here.
The Buckeyes have somewhat hedged their bet w/ Diebler by giving him a cheap deal. If it works out, he'll get a big raise. If not, then they can move on without a mega buyout. I think it made some sense as the team was playing well for him, but now 2 of his top 3 players are transferring out. There weren't really any big candidates available, unless you count May, which I'm not so sure I do. If it doesn't work out, hopefully there is a better candidate pool next cycle in a few years.
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I have a feeling Greg Gard will be on the market next year. Hopefully he can field a team for next season, for his own sake. He's a genuinely great person.
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Might be a free article.
Greg Gard Opens Up on NIL, How the Badgers Can Be More Competitive in Transfer Portal (247sports.com) (https://247sports.com/college/wisconsin/article/greg-gard-wisconsin-badgers-basketball-opens-up-on-nil-how-uw-can-be-more-active-in-transfer-portal-230927052/)
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(https://i.imgur.com/GqbVTLK.png)
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it's a free country, the kid has the right to make some $$$
it's up to illinois and kansas to understand if the kid will bail on Wisconsin, the kid will bail on them
tampering should be enforced
apparently that's not the case any longer
F the NCAA
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I hope Illinois gets drilled with this, and that Storr is declared ineligible.
(https://i.imgur.com/MLVRZL8.png)
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(https://i.imgur.com/GqbVTLK.png)
Out of curiosity, I looked up the games in the "February swoon" where they went 2-6 and Storr's points in each of those 6 losses was 28, 14, 20, 14, 21, and 14. In every one of those games, he was either the leading scorer or second leading scorer (and usually only by 1 point under the leader).
So, if Storr was shopping himself around, his play didn't reflect it. I suppose you could make an argument that if the rest of the team knew about it, it may have affected their play, but that is somewhat hard to imagine with the typical desire to win for most players.
This is not to say that I disagree with the sentiment though. If Storr was truly shopping himself out, there should be reprecussions.
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I looked at the scores too, and you have to wonder if the others knew.
I'm guessing they did.
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I hope Illinois gets drilled with this, and that Storr is declared ineligible.
(https://i.imgur.com/MLVRZL8.png)
They won’t, and the person who wrote that is a fanboy dink.
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Isn't Outkick like the NY Post for sports? It's not full on National Enquirer "bat boy lives", but it's clearly just click bait?
Once again, let them be employees, let them unionize, and lets collectively bargain all of this out.
Or just put the old transfer rule in without exceptions. I still don't understand how the NCAA isn't allowed to set their own eligibility rules. Otherwise, what is keeping a guy who is a good college player, but not a pro, from playing college basketball for a decade as long as he's an enrolled student. I don't see how the NCAA regulating that is any different than saying if you transfer, you have to sit out a year.
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All 15 players on the All-Big East 1st, 2nd and HM teams are gone. Either portal, Draft, or out of eligibility
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All 15 players on the All-Big East 1st, 2nd and HM teams are gone. Either portal, Draft, or out of eligibility
Looking closer, only three people listed as non-senior/grad students in the bunch. One is a top-5 draft pick. One is a fifth year guy who I guess had eligibility left, one is a junior who won conference player of the year and went to the draft.
As far as I can tell, the only transfer is a fifth-year guy who was on the team through the last coaching change.
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So, UW now has 3 transfers coming. All are from mid-major schools and came either cheap or free.
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Gillis could absolutely contribute at ND. Figured Morton would transfer down a level.
Morton to Colorado State. That makes more sense.
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So, UW now has 3 transfers coming. All are from mid-major schools and came either cheap or free.
Hmm, didn’t see the reporting about the price tag. Interesting.
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Isn't Outkick like the NY Post for sports? It's not full on National Enquirer "bat boy lives", but it's clearly just click bait?
It's a weird sort of beast.
It was started by an ex-Jim Rome caller and eventual Deadspin contriburoty, who kind of crafted a sort of bro sports site/radio empire that just kept growing and adding stuff. At some point, he leveraged some fame from being sort of anti-political against ESPN, and then kind of realized that being very political was a better bet for him.
It's now sort of a fusion of politics, sports and politics of sports with a keen eye for aggregation and messaging. I think they have some good stuff somewhere in there, but the grinding out spicy stories that are lightly reported and raw political commentary seems to pay the bills.
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Hmm, didn’t see the reporting about the price tag. Interesting.
Rivals.
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I want to preface all of this by saying that it is absolutely NOT typical "my team is getting screwed" fan complaining.
I could be wrong but at this point I actually *think* that my team is doing really well in this new environment. They have lost some guys:
- Bowen Hardman to Akron
- Zed Key to Dayton
- Felix Okpara to Tennessee
- Roddy Gayle Jr to Michigan
It appears, however, that the additions are likely better than the losses:
- Micah Parrish from SDSU (previously Oakland)
- Meechie Johnson back from USCe
- Sean Stewart from Dook
- Aaron Bradshaw from Kentucky
My point is that I'm NOT complaining because this is hurting my team. At this point it appears to be helping my team but I still don't like it.
It looks like a majority of Ohio State's starters and at least close to half of Ohio State's minutes next year will come from transfers.
I just don't like the lack of continuity. I enjoyed watching players develop over time. I was looking forward to seeing how Okpara, Key, Gayle, and Thornton would perform with an entire season of competent coaching.
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https://www.si.com/college/purdue/purdue-boilermakers-arizona-wildcats-nonconference-basketball-game-canceled-2024-2025-college-basketball-season
Odd
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Honestly, this is so hard to follow. To other tOSU fans, do I have this right:
Used up eligibility:
- Jamison Battle
- Dale Bonner
- Owen Spencer (walk on)
Transferred:
- Felix Okpara - Tennessee
- Roddy Gayle Jr - Michigan
- Scotty Middleton - Seton Hall
- Zed Key - Dayton
- Bowen Hardman - Akron
Returning:
- Bruce Thornton, 6-2 G will be a JR, 4* in 2022 class
- Devin Royal, 6-6 F will be a SO, 4* in 2023 class
- Evan Mahaffey, 6-6 G will be a JR, transfer from PSU
- Colby Baumann, 6-3 G will be a Jr, walk on from Houston via IMG
- Taison Chatman, 6-4 G will be a SO, 4* in 2023 class
- Austin Parks, 6-10 C will be a SO, 3* in 2023 class
- Kalen Etzler, 6-8 F will be a JR, 3* in 2021 class
Incoming:
- Meechie Johnson, 6-1 G will be a SR, 4* in 2020 class, transferred to USCe, returning
- Sean Stewart, 6-8 PF will be a SO, 5* to Dook in 2023, transfer
- Aaron Bradshaw, 7-1 C will be a SO, 5* to Kentucky in 2023, transfer
- Micah Parrish, 6-6 SF will be a SR, 1* to SDSU but 3* as a transfer
- Juni Mobley, 6-2 PF will be a FR, 4* from Utah
- Colin White, 6-6 SF will be a FR, 3* from Ottawa, OH
I *THINK* they have one roster slot available because Baumann is a walk-on but I could be wrong.
Of the returning players Thornton (1179), Mahaffey (793), and Royal (369), played meaningful minutes in 23/4. The others only averaged 2-3 MPG or less.
I feel like trying to follow this sport is more of a complete crapshoot than ever:
Optimistic view:
- Stewart and Bradshaw were legit 5*'s and just misused/bad fits at Dook/Kentucky. They'll show up as Sophomores and show why they were 5* guys.
- Johnson and Parrish are quality transfers and will be great players.
- Thornton, Mahaffey, and Royal will improve at least incrementally and with another year under their belts they will be great players.
- Chatman will finally "click" and look like the 4* recruit that he was a few years ago.
- Mobley will arrive on campus ready to at least fill in at PG to give Thornton breaks.
- Parks will develop sufficiently to at least give Bradshaw breaks.
The above is a great and a deep team that just might win the B1G and go DEEP in March.
Pessimistic view:
- Dook and Kentucky moved on from Stewart and Bradshaw for good reasons and they'll never be more than serviceable at this level.
- Johnson isn't really any better than he was when he left Columbus and Parrish isn't ready for the game-in, game-out grind of playing at this level.
- Thornton, Mahaffey, and Royal have already hit their peaks and will continue to be no more than serviceable players at this level.
- Chatman is just plain a bust and will never be a substantial contributor at this level.
- Mobley will be unready.
- Parks was a 3* guy despite being 6-10 for a reason and he'll never be a substantial contributor at this level.
The above is a team that will not come close to a B1G title and they'll be lucky to even make it to March Madness let alone actually make it out of the first weekend.
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So I was thinking about something and it seems to me that careers are going to be made and busted on the smallest of margins in this new world of transfers and whatnot, even MUCH moreso than before.
Consider this scenario:
Ohio State and Michigan with their new coaches Diebler and May each make the tournament and have a very close game in the second round. One wins and one loses the type of game that could go either way and is decided on a buzzer-beater or somesuch. The team that wins also manages to win their S16 and E8 games to make a F4 appearance.
One coach now has a F4 at his new school, the other has only a "tournament appearance".
In the old days (ya know, like a few weeks ago) that would be a difference but it wouldn't be THAT big because the younger players on the teams wouldn't have to be re-recruited. Now . . .
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Honestly, this is so hard to follow. To other tOSU fans, do I have this right:
Used up eligibility:
- Jamison Battle
- Dale Bonner
- Owen Spencer (walk on)
Transferred:
- Felix Okpara - Tennessee
- Roddy Gayle Jr - Michigan
- Scotty Middleton - Seton Hall
- Zed Key - Dayton
- Bowen Hardman - Akron
Returning:
- Bruce Thornton, 6-2 G will be a JR, 4* in 2022 class
- Devin Royal, 6-6 F will be a SO, 4* in 2023 class
- Evan Mahaffey, 6-6 G will be a JR, transfer from PSU
- Colby Baumann, 6-3 G will be a Jr, walk on from Houston via IMG
- Taison Chatman, 6-4 G will be a SO, 4* in 2023 class
- Austin Parks, 6-10 C will be a SO, 3* in 2023 class
- Kalen Etzler, 6-8 F will be a JR, 3* in 2021 class
Incoming:
- Meechie Johnson, 6-1 G will be a SR, 4* in 2020 class, transferred to USCe, returning
- Sean Stewart, 6-8 PF will be a SO, 5* to Dook in 2023, transfer
- Aaron Bradshaw, 7-1 C will be a SO, 5* to Kentucky in 2023, transfer
- Micah Parrish, 6-6 SF will be a SR, 1* to SDSU but 3* as a transfer
- Juni Mobley, 6-2 PF will be a FR, 4* from Utah
- Colin White, 6-6 SF will be a FR, 3* from Ottawa, OH
I *THINK* they have one roster slot available because Baumann is a walk-on but I could be wrong.
I think that is right. They are supposedly still recruiting so they must have one spot left. I'm not sure what to expect.