2025 Transfer Portal

[packwrap]

Latson a bit of a unique case. She has a good relationship with FSU/Coach Wycoff.

She is using portal the way it was intended, LOL, to explore transfer options. She will still consider staying at FSU, and FSU can choose to compete for her services by matching an NIL deal.

Still 90% likely she goes, as FSU team pretty weak now for next year, but there is no ill will now between player and program. If she did choose to stay, she could set a slew of FSU/ACC records next year, and 'noles would still be a tourney team.

 

[packwrap]

Aren't most of Juju's deals direct with the companies who sponsor her? It's unclear to me how much USC has to do with respect to NIL in her case. I thought she had a couple deals in place before she had even committed.

JuJu had the generic booster NIL to "stay home in LA", plus what she was able to add on later in real marketing deals with sponsors.

The biggest real deals only come right at the point player explodes on national scene. In JuJu's case close fans always knew how good she was, but skeptics jumped on board with the 50 point game at Stanford, and the UConn '24 elite 8 game. Nike and State Farm joined then too.

It's difficult for a school to 'guarantee' potential earnings from national marketing deals with big companies during recruitment, but they can guarantee the payout from the booster NIL fund.

Players and agents love to see that real $number on paper.

The new contracts are about to be:

1- scholarship
2- Alston money for school expenses
3- Pay to play money from school fund.
3- Booster NIL.
4- Team NIL, already signed and agreed with local business.
5- Your personal NIL deals with support of our school NIL staff.

= Total compensation.

...but don't worry. You are a student/athlete not an employee.

 

[bballtalk]

I can see McMiller easily at Ole Miss. Her final four schools out of high school were Florida state, Ole Miss, Rutgers, and Temple. Ole Miss is the best program in that list. Ole Miss also has room to fill in their backcourt with Deans, Todd-Williams, and Sadler all graduating. They also need the scoring with 4 of their top 5 scorers graduating. Lastly, I think coach Yo could be a good mentor for McMiller. I don’t see her at a top level school like South Carolina, LSU etc because I don’t know how her game fits in. I can see her at Ole Miss, NC state, Maryland type school.

 

[cancontent]

JuJu had the generic booster NIL to "stay home in LA", plus what she was able to add on later in real marketing deals with sponsors.

The biggest real deals only come right at the point player explodes on national scene. In JuJu's case close fans always knew how good she was, but skeptics jumped on board with the 50 point game at Stanford, and the UConn '24 elite 8 game. Nike and State Farm joined then too.

It's difficult for a school to 'guarantee' potential earnings from national marketing deals with big companies during recruitment, but they can guarantee the payout from the booster NIL fund.

Players and agents love to see that real $number on paper.

The new contracts are about to be:

1- scholarship
2- Alston money for school expenses
3- Pay to play money from school fund.
3- Booster NIL.
4- Team NIL, already signed and agreed with local business.
5- Your personal NIL deals with support of our school NIL staff.

= Total compensation.

...but don't worry. You are a student/athlete not an employee.

While I get it and kind of agree, from my vantage point they've been all three even before NIL came into existence.

 

[Dillon77]

Michigan had a hard time retaining players last summer. But this one surprises me, because from the outside… it seemed like their was a lot of joy at that program.

If I'm correct, Yulia Grabovskaia transferred over from Middle Tennessee and probably expected to start (she got one start all season). Against ND, she and Kate Koval blasted each other around in the lane a few times, but didn't see anything memorable (on either side, truth be told).
She's got only one year and has decided to take a chance on (yet another) place.

You're right: Barnes Arrico seems to have unified, happy teams during the year, but often suffers from defections: Last year she was down to 4 kids on the roster in May. Sign o' the times? Or is there something not seen, but felt? No idea.

 

[Dillon77]

Ok, put Coquese on the "Hot Seat" thread for 2026....her time in Piscataway has not been great....

BTW, she's been on the hot seat for at least two years.
But there's probably a contract that lasts a few more years at this point because she's still on point.
(Let's transfer this discussion over to the Hot Seat thread...gosh knows there's enough daily news here!)

Edit: The moment I moved off this initial reply, saw this presser in which she addresses said transfer and
admits it was a "mutual" decision. As Raoul noted in his original post, it's around the 40 second mark.

 

[oldude]

Yesterday I came across an article indicating that WBB powerhouse SC lost $5.6 million during the 2024 fiscal year with a similar loss anticipated for 2025. It’s not surprising that WBB programs lose money. Only a handful end up each year in the black: UConn, Iowa, etc.

With the price of top talent going up and the NCAA settlement still to be finalized, only those schools with football programs earning $100 million and up, or big money boosters with deep pockets who actually care about WBB, are going to be able to afford to field teams that compete for championships.

More power to Aaliyah Chavez for the deal she was able to cut with OU. But I fear that we are about to kill the goose that laid the golden egg, as fewer and fewer teams will be able to compete for top players.

 

[Dillon77]

Yesterday I came across an article indicating that WBB powerhouse SC lost $5.6 million during the 2024 fiscal year with a similar loss anticipated for 2025. It’s not surprising that WBB programs lose money. Only a handful end up each year in the black: UConn, Iowa, etc.

With the price of top talent going up and the NCAA settlement still to be finalized, only those schools with football programs earning $100 million and up, or big money boosters with deep pockets who actually care about WBB, are going to be able to afford to field teams that compete for championships.

More power to Aaliyah Chavez for the deal she was able to cut with OU. But I fear that we are about to kill the goose that laid the golden egg, as fewer and fewer teams will be able to compete for top players.

Per your point about teams with football teams who can subsidize WBB (and other) teams, take a look the men's and women's Sweet 16 and you'll note a conference that is fueled by football monies producing large numbers of excellent basketball rosters. Coincidence? Doubtful. Still need to coach, play, but having resources helps....

 

[Bone Dog]

I know the answer, of course, but I am bemused by the idea that a university should expect various programs to turn a profit. If athletics has a role in education — and following Plato I think it does — we might conclude that it is an investment not a business venture. No one would expect the English department or the Math or Physics departments to turn a profit.

 

[oldude]

I know the answer, of course, but I am bemused by the idea that a university should expect various programs to turn a profit. If athletics has a role in education — and following Plato I think it does — we might conclude that it is an investment not a business venture. No one would expect the English department or the Math or Physics departments to turn a profit.

Well that’s fine until you get to the ultimate conclusion that if a university can not turn a profit, or at least break even, then the university can not fulfill its primary educational mission, since it can not afford to operate.

 

[oldude]

Per your point about teams with football teams who can subsidize WBB (and other) teams, take a look the men's and women's Sweet 16 and you'll note a conference that is fueled by football monies producing large numbers of excellent basketball rosters. Coincidence? Doubtful. Still need to coach, play, but having resources helps....

When you also consider that 15/16 WBB teams and 16/16 MBB teams in Sweet 16 games all hail from P-4 conferences, the stratification of college sports becomes more and more apparent. The days of Cinderella stories, particularly in WBB are gone.

Immaculate, Delta State, Old Dominion and Louisiana Tech are all distant memories. I am fearful that unless my beloved Huskies can somehow hook up to a P4 conference, or Geno coaches forever, UConn will follow those once great programs into obscurity.

 

[Dillon77]

Raoul did a summary entry on late Thursday entries in the portal.
Note the number of entries next to Penn State (7) and Auburn (8); the only difference being Auburn just went through a coaching change while Penn State just announced Carolyn Kieger was coming back, which surprised quite a few people. Apparently a few players, as well.

 

[Bone Dog]

Well that’s fine until you get to the ultimate conclusion that if a university can not turn a profit, or at least break even, then the university can not fulfill its primary educational mission, since it can not afford to operate.

Very true. Though the fundamental contract in education — that tuition revenue should cover costs — exists nowhere. Universities subsist largely from endowment draw and (in the case of state universities) public grants. No university can operate according to business principles and profitability expectations. They can only pretend to do so.

 

[southie]

Latson a bit of a unique case. She has a good relationship with FSU/Coach Wycoff.

She is using portal the way it was intended, LOL, to explore transfer options. She will still consider staying at FSU, and FSU can choose to compete for her services by matching an NIL deal.

Still 90% likely she goes, as FSU team pretty weak now for next year, but there is no ill will now between player and program. If she did choose to stay, she could set a slew of FSU/ACC records next year, and 'noles would still be a tourney team.

I mean, is there a right way and a wrong way? We can all speculate "why" she decided to enter the portal, but unless she is quoted, we might never know the true reason.

The transfer portal opened originally in October 2018. It gave the student-athletes the power to make their own decisions and not have to beg their head coach to release them in order to begin the transfer process. In a lot of ways, it's none of our (fans) business why they entered the portal; it doesn't really change the most likely outcome that they move on to another school.

 

[Stagnant]

And they want me to buy season tickets???

 

[Bone Dog]

And they want me to buy season tickets???

I'd buy them if I lived in the area. What else is there to do in Tucson?
[I jest. No one needs to defend the city for me.]

 

[12au]

I'm anticipating a big portal haul for ASU. They will be in the upper half of the B12 probably.

 

[Baller29]

Wouldn’t make any sense at all

 

[YoDore]

I'm anticipating a big portal haul for ASU. They will be in the upper half of the B12 probably.

Interesting. My first thought on seeing that scholarship chart was that it's the perfect situation for Molly Miller. They haven't been good, and the last thing you want when taking over a program is to be stuck with a roster full of...questionable...players. She seems to be a big-personality coach who has also had some success on the court.

I can't explain why, really, but I've always had a positive view of ASU. I wish her luck.

 

[Stagnant]

I'd buy them if I lived in the area. What else is there to do in Tucson?
[I jest. No one needs to defend the city for me.]

It’s phoenix. There is more to do there. I had season tickets last year and sometimes I prefer to stay home and just watch the UConn game.

 

[Bone Dog]

It’s phoenix. There is more to do there. I had season tickets last year and sometimes I prefer to stay home and just watch the UConn game.

Hah! You caught me. I thought we were talking about Arizona, not Arizona St. But, seriously, how much is there to do in Phoenix, really?

I speak from experience, since I live in Santa Fe and there's not much to do here either. Same goes for Albuquerque.

 

[Zarathustra]

I'd buy them if I lived in the area. What else is there to do in Tucson?
[I jest. No one needs to defend the city for me.]

Arizona STATE U is in TEMPE (near Phoenix). U of A (Arizona
Wildcats) is in Tucson (that southern Arizona City). "BEAR DOWN"!
U of A : Think STEVE KERR. Does anyone remember the Kentucky
Wildcats vs the Arizona Wildcats in the NCAA Men's Championship?

 

[Bone Dog]

Arizona STATE U is in TEMPE (near Phoenix). U of A (Arizona
Wildcats) is in Tucson (that southern Arizona City). "BEAR DOWN"!
U of A : Think STEVE KERR. Does anyone remember the Kentucky
Wildcats vs the Arizona Wildcats in the NCAA Men's Championship?

Read the thread -- I was already corrected for this and acknowledged it. This is how we end up on endless swerves.

 

[MSSportsGuy]

View attachment 108218
Wouldn’t make any sense at all

Nope. Williams and Johnson literally play both her positions and none of them is a PG or strong enough to play the 4.

 

[packwrap]

I mean, is there a right way and a wrong way? We can all speculate "why" she decided to enter the portal, but unless she is quoted, we might never know the true reason.

The transfer portal opened originally in October 2018. It gave the student-athletes the power to make their own decisions and not have to beg their head coach to release them in order to begin the transfer process.

I don't disagree. These same friendly coaches generally now see entering the portal as disloyal, and immediately kick someone off the team, who enters the portal. Of course they still have to honor the scholarship for remainder of the year. That means for players, who do not find a home via portal, they are putting their future years of scholarship at risk.

This is also why 'tampering' is prevalent. If you know of your new opportunity before entering the portal, there is no risk. Like leaving a job in the real world. Don't tell them you are going before your new job is lined up.

In Latson case, FSU understands she wants to explore, but will keep her if she decides to stay. That's pretty rare these days.

 

[ISUnorth]

Raoul did a summary entry on late Thursday entries in the portal.
Note the number of entries next to Penn State (7) and Auburn (8); the only difference being Auburn just went through a coaching change while Penn State just announced Carolyn Kieger was coming back, which surprised quite a few people. Apparently a few players, as well.

Penn State seems to be violating the "It's better to fire a coach too soon than to fire them too late" rule.

 

[Geew1992]

 

[Geew1992]

 

[BRS24]

As we progress thru the transfer season, if any of the top recruits from prior years enter the portal, pls give me a shout out. I'm working on a project to help us thru the summer doldrums.

 

[darrell]

If UConn had room, this is someone I’d love to have post-Paige. Great player, I’m sure she’ll have a ton of suitors.