2022-23 Transfer portal announcements

[azfan]

The above comment I assume was sharing Raoul’s tweet about Madison Conner. Updated to change the academic year from
Sophomore to Junior, but I think that’s incorrect

Three point shooter,. defensive liability

 

[TheFarmFan]

Barnes is losing what little benefit of the doubt she has left. She's probably lost more players to the transfer portal since April 2021 than it takes to fully man a D1 roster.

 

[bballnut90]

Big exodus out of Tucson similar to last year, plus a lot of talent graduating. They have 3 potential impact players coming in next season, should get opportunity for big minutes early.

 

[SECbbfan24]

Barnes is losing what little benefit of the doubt she has left. She's probably lost more players to the transfer portal since April 2021 than it takes to fully man a D1 roster.

 

[tigers4ever]

Ooh she fits the profile that I assume Dawn will be looking for out of the transfer portal. I think we will grab a guard out of the portal to be a stopgap between Zia and the next generation (Tes Johnson and T Cooper)

I think she would fit any coaches' profile.

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

We actually met with someone from the Arizona athletics department. Word from there is that Adia's problem is that she doesn't manage personalities and playing time very well. She isn't personally disliked by the players, in fact she's a players coach, but he was telling us that she has expectations that players are similar to when she played - that they want to play, that they will work hard, and are willing to be used sporadically and will await their "turn". That's just not today's players. And it isn't that she doesn't know that, she's even said so, but it is none-the-less how she runs the team. And her mentors are Tara and Joan Bonvicini. Both old school.

He said what she really needs is an assistant experienced in managing players.

I don't get Ware's issue, but I get Conner and Clark no problem. Adia used Conner in every position - she filled in whenever it was convenient. She didn't get a lot of total minutes, she was expected to know the proper moves in plays for 4 different positions and the lack of minutes and odd roles definitely affected her ability to score. Similarly, Clark was a stud - in fact, Adia has said so and praised her as being vital for the team. But she wouldn't give consistent minutes to the freshman - there were some games where they were available and she wouldn't play them. I'm sure in Adia's mind it was waiting your turn - but Clark came to Arizona specifically because she didn't think she would get minutes at UCLA when Rice committed there. See the picture? I will admit I posted - and still say - I'm not sure how you could have the team you had and satisfy everyone with playing time, but . . .

Hilton wasn't a factor, she didn't fit in from the beginning.

Add to the fact that she routinely recruits over players or gets too many players at a certain position - and I can see the transfers. I will also add that she was over-the-top committed to Jade Loville this year and really didn't get a good return and also starting Lauren Fields who rarely took a shot (great defender, but definitely hurt our offense, haven't heard anyone (but presumably Adia) disagree).

I really like Adia, but when you have a weakness you need to address it. That is my main concern, that she doesn't seem able to change.

 

[TerpWomenFan]

Not a surprise for the Canadian Lemyah Hylton. Maryland recruited her very hard before she committed to Arizona. The Terps don't have a spot on their roster now and if they do, they have other priorities.

 

[BRS24]

Technically not a transfer, however ...

 

[ThatCG1801]

Hmmm... Belmont is in Tennessee...the University of Tennessee is in the sweet 16...Tenn is possibly losing a lot of production at guard without any proven backups... Belmont has an all-star guard in Destinee Wells who is also a Tennessee native...hmmm

The orange doesn't fall too far from the orange tree, eh? Football, basketball, baseball..

 

[cancontent]

Not a surprise for the Canadian Lemyah Hylton. Maryland recruited her very hard before she committed to Arizona. The Terps don't have a spot on their roster now and if they do, they have other priorities.

Agreed. Personally, I think it was a matter that Arizona had the recent Final Four appearance that drew her in. And with Jada Williams coming in, the depth at that position was going to make it harder. Wish her all the best wherever she ends up.

 

[jdote33]

Big exodus out of Tucson similar to last year, plus a lot of talent graduating. They have 3 potential impact players coming in next season, should get opportunity for big minutes early.

Can't wait to hear Adia Barnes talk about it. I think it's so hard on athletes to sacrifice without the success. South Carolina can bench All Americans because they still win every night. Teams like Arizona and North Carolina, I can get the players frustration. I am surprised about Lauren Ware as well. But everytime I saw Paris Clark get minutes she made an impact.

We actually met with someone from the Arizona athletics department. Word from there is that Adia's problem is that she doesn't manage personalities and playing time very well. She isn't personally disliked by the players, in fact she's a players coach, but he was telling us that she has expectations that players are similar to when she played - that they want to play, that they will work hard, and are willing to be used sporadically and will await their "turn". That's just not today's players. And it isn't that she doesn't know that, she's even said so, but it is none-the-less how she runs the team. And her mentors are Tara and Joan Bonvicini. Both old school.

He said what she really needs is an assistant experienced in managing players.

I don't get Ware's issue, but I get Conner and Clark no problem. Adia used Conner in every position - she filled in whenever it was convenient. She didn't get a lot of total minutes, she was expected to know the proper moves in plays for 4 different positions and the lack of minutes and odd roles definitely affected her ability to score. Similarly, Clark was a stud - in fact, Adia has said so and praised her as being vital for the team. But she wouldn't give consistent minutes to the freshman - there were some games where they were available and she wouldn't play them. I'm sure in Adia's mind it was waiting your turn - but Clark came to Arizona specifically because she didn't think she would get minutes at UCLA when Rice committed there. See the picture? I will admit I posted - and still say - I'm not sure how you could have the team you had and satisfy everyone with playing time, but . . .

Hilton wasn't a factor, she didn't fit in from the beginning.

Add to the fact that she routinely recruits over players or gets too many players at a certain position - and I can see the transfers. I will also add that she was over-the-top committed to Jade Loville this year and really didn't get a good return and also starting Lauren Fields who rarely took a shot (great defender, but definitely hurt our offense, haven't heard anyone (but presumably Adia) disagree).

I really like Adia, but when you have a weakness you need to address it. That is my main concern, that she doesn't seem able to change.

Thanks for this insight. I like Adia too.

 

[CBus13]

I wonder if Clark gives Tennessee another look. I believe her Uncle played to the Vols back in the day. I'm not sure who else she looked at out of High School.

 

[Dillon77]

This was one of Coach Coquese Washington's last recruits before she was let go.
Camden worked her way into the starting lineup for a year or two before being pushed back in the rotation and effectively neutralized/used incorrectly as a three-point option.

MaKenna Marisa, another one of those recruits, is coming off her senior year, too, I believe. Wonder what she'll do...ooh, just read she's coming back. That could be Kieger's lifeline....

This Kieger experiment in Penn State shows that being a "hot" coach at one school (Marquette) doesn't always translate. At some point, Kieger has to be put on another thread: the Coaching hot seat. The next year is the "put up or post your house" year, in my opinion.

 

[BRS24]

 

[BRS24]

 

[sweetspot]

This was one of Coach Coquese Washington's last recruits before she was let go.
Camden worked her way into the starting lineup for a year or two before pushed back in the rotation and effectively neutralized/used incorrectly as a three-point option.

McKenna Marisa, another one of those recruits, is coming off her senor year, too, I believe. Wonder what she'll do...

This Kieger experiment in Penn State shows that being a "hot" coach at one school (Marquette) doesn't always translate. At some point, Kieger has to be put on another thread: the Coaching hot seat.

 

[LwrcasefaN]

The transfer process is often not well thought out by teams. If you know exactly what you're looking for AND how bringing the player onboard will impact the current team and future recruiting, then it can have a positive impact. On the other hand, if you bring in the wrong player or too many and it causes "season long" or beyond chemistry problems, then coaches need to own that. You can't just go star gazing.

 

[Dillon77]

We actually met with someone from the Arizona athletics department. Word from there is that Adia's problem is that she doesn't manage personalities and playing time very well. She isn't personally disliked by the players, in fact she's a players coach, but he was telling us that she has expectations that players are similar to when she played - that they want to play, that they will work hard, and are willing to be used sporadically and will await their "turn". That's just not today's players. And it isn't that she doesn't know that, she's even said so, but it is none-the-less how she runs the team. And her mentors are Tara and Joan Bonvicini. Both old school.

He said what she really needs is an assistant experienced in managing players.

I don't get Ware's issue, but I get Conner and Clark no problem. Adia used Conner in every position - she filled in whenever it was convenient. She didn't get a lot of total minutes, she was expected to know the proper moves in plays for 4 different positions and the lack of minutes and odd roles definitely affected her ability to score. Similarly, Clark was a stud - in fact, Adia has said so and praised her as being vital for the team. But she wouldn't give consistent minutes to the freshman - there were some games where they were available and she wouldn't play them. I'm sure in Adia's mind it was waiting your turn - but Clark came to Arizona specifically because she didn't think she would get minutes at UCLA when Rice committed there. See the picture? I will admit I posted - and still say - I'm not sure how you could have the team you had and satisfy everyone with playing time, but . . .

Hilton wasn't a factor, she didn't fit in from the beginning.

Add to the fact that she routinely recruits over players or gets too many players at a certain position - and I can see the transfers. I will also add that she was over-the-top committed to Jade Loville this year and really didn't get a good return and also starting Lauren Fields who rarely took a shot (great defender, but definitely hurt our offense, haven't heard anyone (but presumably Adia) disagree).

I really like Adia, but when you have a weakness you need to address it. That is my main concern, that she doesn't seem able to change.

Thanks for explanation. As some tweets and our own @TheFarmFan have pointed out, the churn/turnover on this team is overwhelming. I went back to the stat page and studied minutes played:

• Pellington. 5th year. Gone
• Cate Reese. 5th year. Barne's key first recruit, right? Managed to stay and thrive all five years. Gone.
• Esmy Martinez. Senior year. Maybe one more if she takes covid exemption.
• Jade Loville. 5th year transfer. Gone.
• Madison Conner. You've covered. Gone

Other players who will transfer:

• Paris Clark. She played 13.3 mpg, which isn't bad a frosh, but clearly Clark had expectations which weren't in line with Barnes' approach.
• Hilton. Didn't play much and probably saw it was time to hit the road.
• Lauren Ware. Even with Cunningham coming, I see this as a big loss. Steady, athletic presence.

Sure, apologists will note there's another great class coming in, but based on what you told me, the churn will take care of that, too.

Maybe some coaches can live with this yearly turnover. Barnes, Graves and Walz all seem to often go after transfers that overlay HS recruits (see Morgan Jones for Payton Verhulst at Louisville). Can't help themselves? Lack of patience in development?

After awhile, HS recruits will start to wonder about these kinds of situations. Or, at least, I think they should...With that covid year coming to an end soon, most players will have four short years to get the most out of the situation. Be your own best patient: only talk to a doctor -- coach -- who will talk back honestly and then, just as importantly, walk the talk.

 

[MSSportsGuy]

The situation at AZ makes me shake my head. I've posted repeatedly the no sit out wasn't done for the kids, it was done for the coaches who wanted immediate gratification and the ability to fill a spot without requiring a waiting period.

Barnes seems like a decent coach and deserves credit for the 21 runner up spot. Arizona has still done pretty well the past few seasons but the constant churn makes me wonder why this is and also question is it good for overall program success.

Vic took diamonds in the rough at MSU, made them shine, then took over at a Texas program that he couldn't turn down. Since being there he's turned over that roster a bit plus had injuries. This year he bowed out in the round of 32 after a preseason rank of 3. Honestly that's just as disappointing as the LVs who were also expected to shine while bringing in multiple portal players.

Maybe things will die down a bit after the COVID year expires. However I just don't feel good about the direction the game is taking with the never ending roster shuffling.

 

[Geew1992]

 

[Bone Dog]

The Covid exception was needed at the time (to be fair to the players affected by it) but also bad for the game in the sense of taking too many opportunities away from more recent recruits. There weren’t any really good options for the NCAA then, and I think they made the best choice. And by extension, easing up the transfer rules was also kind of necessary given the turbulence having so many 5th year players in the system would create. The system needed a relief valve. I’ll be glad when the Covid exception expires too.

 

[MSSportsGuy]

The Covid exception was needed at the time (to be fair to the players affected by it) but also bad for the game in the sense of taking too many opportunities away from more recent recruits. There weren’t any really good options for the NCAA then, and I think they made the best choice. And by extension, easing up the transfer rules was also kind of necessary given the turbulence having so many 5th year players in the system would create. The system needed a relief valve. I’ll be glad when the Covid exception expires too.

I wasn't a fan at first but warmed up to the idea after some time. It has helped create chaos but does have an end point. The no sit out rule will never be revoked. Even if a person transfers, plays immediately but then transfers again, those players could still get approved for immediate eligibility by submitted a waiver, which is my new least favorite part of the game lol.

 

[BRS24]

 

[Dillon77]

I wasn't a fan at first but warmed up to the idea after some time. It has helped create chaos but does have an end point. The no sit out rule will never be revoked. Even if a person transfers, plays immediately but then transfers again, those players could still get approved for immediate eligibility by submitted a waiver, which is my new least favorite part of the game lol.

Muffet McGraw has been calling all season for the 2nd transfer rule to be tightened up and I could've sworn there was movement in the NCAA to do just that. However, I'm not sure where it stands. I'll check with our resident NCAA rules expert on The Bench and get back, but if anyone knows here, please post up!

 

[Geew1992]

Muffet McGraw has been calling all season for the 2nd transfer rule to be tightened up and I could've sworn there was movement in the NCAA to do just that. However, I'm not sure where it stands. I'll check with our resident NCAA rules expert on The Bench and get back, but if anyone knows here, please post up!

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