The Athletic - Are so many transfers good for women’s college basketball?

[BRS24]

Getting Technical: What will be the impact of the transfer portal on women's college basketball?

Welcome back to Getting Technical, as the women’s basketball writers at The Athletic take you into our conversations about the NCAA offseason. It used to be that the end of the NCAA Tournament signaled a dead zone in the college basketball calendar; instead, the drama hasn’t stopped off the...

theathletic.com

Merchant - Despite the fact that two of those programs have a bit more cache at the moment than the other, my guess is that Morrow makes her way out west and ends up with the Trojans. There are too many frontcourt players who will take away minutes from her if she chooses to go to the SEC

Chantel: She’s a pro prospect anywhere she goes, and all three of those schools can develop her as such. My general feel is that Morrow is going to be pulled west by the allure of building something.

Regardless of where she lands, Morrow’s departure really signals something to high mid-major programs: You’re only going to be able to keep your best players for a year or two ... They used to be able to find those diamonds in the rough, but now once those players become diamonds, they’re gone.

 

[Alydar]

What it tells me is that a lot of players over the decades must have been very unhappy with their choice of school and changing was too difficult.

Hopefully this results in more satisfied players. For 98% of them college is the end of their basketball careers.

 

[Alydar]

Getting Technical: What will be the impact of the transfer portal on women's college basketball?

Welcome back to Getting Technical, as the women’s basketball writers at The Athletic take you into our conversations about the NCAA offseason. It used to be that the end of the NCAA Tournament signaled a dead zone in the college basketball calendar; instead, the drama hasn’t stopped off the...

theathletic.com

Merchant - Despite the fact that two of those programs have a bit more cache at the moment than the other, my guess is that Morrow makes her way out west and ends up with the Trojans. There are too many frontcourt players who will take away minutes from her if she chooses to go to the SEC

Chantel: She’s a pro prospect anywhere she goes, and all three of those schools can develop her as such. My general feel is that Morrow is going to be pulled west by the allure of building something.

Regardless of where she lands, Morrow’s departure really signals something to high mid-major programs: You’re only going to be able to keep your best players for a year or two ... They used to be able to find those diamonds in the rough, but now once those players become diamonds, they’re gone.

Like Siegrist?

Morrow was a cut diamond coming in.

 

[sun]

Betts wanted to play with her friend Kiki Rice at UCLA.
I'm not sure who Morrow would rather play with, but the personalities of the teammates that she's considering must be a factor.
Would she rather play & socialize with x, y or z?

And then there's the potential for NIL money, for a NC, how many fans does she feels comfortable playing in front of that attend home games, the desire to work with a particular coach, there's a lot of variables.
Some players are more interested in academics while others aren't.

The players can't control who they get scholarship offers from out of high school.
Meanwhile the top recruits for some schools are total busts.
Now the portal makes recruitment a 2 way street.
The kids should get closer to the school that they deserve the 2nd time being recruited, and schools can make up for recruitment mistakes by accepting seasoned transfer players.
The mid-majors will become sort of like the collegiate minor league, players ripe for moving up while others can move down to get more PT.
It seems like a business model but it's based on ability & the individual's level of satisfaction & random luck.

 

[HopJim]

Difficult to evaluate the true benefit or downside of this deluge of transfers. While this benefits the player who made a poor choice of program or coach, on the other hand, with notable exceptions of Siegrist and Clark, it appears many high-level players on teams that are not in the Top 20 (or those that are perceived as falling out of Sweet 16 competition), leave. Not sure this always benefits the player and certainly is difficult for the coach and school to plan around. Probably have to look at a case by case set of circumstances.

 

[martyn]

No

 

[reelfan]

There has to be strict limits on transfers to end the pandemonium.

 

[GoChips20]

Betts wanted to play with her friend Kiki Rice at UCLA.
I'm not sure who Morrow would rather play with, but the personalities of the teammates that she's considering must be a factor.
Would she rather play & socialize with x, y or z?

And then there's the potential for NIL money, for a NC, how many fans does she feels comfortable playing in front of that attend home games, the desire to work with a particular coach, there's a lot of variables.
Some players are more interested in academics while others aren't.

The players can't control who they get scholarship offers from out of high school.
Meanwhile the top recruits for some schools are total busts.
Now the portal makes recruitment a 2 way street.
The kids should get closer to the school that they deserve the 2nd time being recruited, and schools can make up for recruitment mistakes by accepting seasoned transfer players.
The mid-majors will become sort of like the collegiate minor league, players ripe for moving up while others can move down to get more PT.
It seems like a business model but it's based on ability & the individual's level of satisfaction & random luck.

If Morrow indeed goes west, it likely leaves Stanford as the fourth-best team in the PAC (behind Utah, UCLA, and USC). When’s the last time you could say that?

 

[SEbluebood]

Betts wanted to play with her friend Kiki Rice at UCLA.
I'm not sure who Morrow would rather play with, but the personalities of the teammates that she's considering must be a factor.
Would she rather play & socialize with x, y or z?

And then there's the potential for NIL money, for a NC, how many fans does she feels comfortable playing in front of that attend home games, the desire to work with a particular coach, there's a lot of variables.
Some players are more interested in academics while others aren't.

The players can't control who they get scholarship offers from out of high school.
Meanwhile the top recruits for some schools are total busts.
Now the portal makes recruitment a 2 way street.
The kids should get closer to the school that they deserve the 2nd time being recruited, and schools can make up for recruitment mistakes by accepting seasoned transfer players.
The mid-majors will become sort of like the collegiate minor league, players ripe for moving up while others can move down to get more PT.
It seems like a business model but it's based on ability & the individual's level of satisfaction & random luck.

And NIL cash.

 

[cancontent]

With the COVID year group dwindling, I'm not sure if we'll see transfers at this volume in future. It would be easier to gauge whether this is good or bad without having to factor this into any analysis.

Athletes also have to look at their first transfer more closely as sitting out if they transfer a second time is a more of a reality now that the waiver loopholes have been tightened up.

 

[LwrcasefaN]

If Morrow indeed goes west, it likely leaves Stanford as the fourth-best team in the PAC (behind Utah, UCLA, and USC). When’s the last time you could say that?

Looks that way on paper, but I'll believe it when I see it. Great coaching fixes many a thing.

 

[Beemer]

Whether it is a good thing or not doesn't matter. Transfers are here to stay now that the rules have changed & colleges have to adjust to the change.

 

[LwrcasefaN]

There has to be strict limits on transfers to end the pandemonium.

And consequences (like losing a year of eligibility) after the first. I'm okay with students wanting to change schools, but, greater consideration should come into play going forward. It's approaching insanity. As a fan, teammate, or even coach I wouldn't even know how to root for a player that's been at 3 or 4 schools! Where are the Hayes sisters right now? Last I checked they invaded Marshall. They might be visiting Quinnipiac today for all I know. lol

 

[Rowdy831]

Once money was entered into the mix it changed the landscape forever. Most of these players will play in college and then move on so they should take advantage of every perk they have available to them. Schools like UCONN can still get great players because of their pedigree but a lot of schools have to look in different places to attract the talent.

LSU is paying big money to all sports and all players. They aren't shy about it either and the community supports it as long as they produce winning teams. I don't say this as a negative but simply as a model they use that is getting them results.

 

[BBallF]

When NIL is coupled with the transfer portal you have a "Go for Dough" phenomenon. How much did LSU ( through any source) pay for Hailey Van Lith? Or Angel Reese? Only the players, the payors, and the IRS know. If it was public it would reveal how sordid and venal this is becoming. Scandals are still going to be brewing even though it's mostly legalized which is disgusting.

 

[JellyBean]

That was a great article. Great to see coverage of women's basketball on many platforms. As for the question "Are so many transfers good women's basketball?" It is a great question. To me, players transferring is not going to hurt women's basketball at all. The game, the talent and skill levels of players has grown over the past four decades so much that even mid-major programs are putting together teams that could challenge the so-called P-5 programs.

 

[Cheddie]

What it tells me is that a lot of players over the decades must have been very unhappy with their choice of school and changing was too difficult.

Hopefully this results in more satisfied players. For 98% of them college is the end of their basketball careers.

Changing was too difficult but what we're seeing is an unintended consequence. College players are like pro's. NBA stars want to play with one another to win championships and college players do too. LeBron/Davis, Durant/Irving, Leonard/George, etc. WBB was becoming more balanced and this may create a top tier of teams that pushes in the other direction.

 

[Surly1]

That was a great article. Great to see coverage of women's basketball on many platforms. As for the question "Are so many transfers good women's basketball?" It is a great question. To me, players transferring is not going to hurt women's basketball at all. The game, the talent and skill levels of players has grown over the past four decades so much that even mid-major programs are putting together teams that could challenge the so-called P-5 programs.

The issue of players transferring won't necessarily impact top programs and the majority of Power-5 programs, but from the evidence coming in, the women's game is beginning to mirror college football. Money has become the driving force and is intertwined in the recruiting process. The mid-major programs are the teams that will suffer. Players who may have been passed over coming out of high school and developed their games in their first or second seasons in a mid-major conference are ripe to be pilfered. The examples of the last two NCAA women's tournament of mid-majors pulling upsets will happen less often, simply because the teams won't be able to retain their star players.

 

[Gordo]

I'm all for it. The transfer portal and NIL have added tons of interest and excitement to sports in general, but especially women's D1 college basketball.

 

[cancontent]

I'm all for it. The transfer portal and NIL have added tons of interest and excitement to sports in general, but especially women's D1 college basketball.

Yes it has, however there are downsides to it, especially with the volume of the players in the portal. There aren't enough spots to accommodate the players in the portal. A fair number of players won't end up somewhere. Granted they are aware of the risk, it's unfortunate that this could be a reality.

 

[LwrcasefaN]

Yes it has, however there are downsides to it, especially with the volume of the players in the portal. There aren't enough spots to accommodate the players in the portal. A fair number of players won't end up somewhere. Granted they are aware of the risk, it's unfortunate that this could be a reality.

I wish I could read minds. I'm not sure how much these kids understand the risk here or if they are being honest about their individual abilities. It's fine to be confident and to bet on yourself, but I hope those who don't find a home are ready to pick up that tab for the cost of college. It's exponentially important when you consider that most of them will not end up on some professional roster. That May 11th (?) deadline is creeping up fast and as desperation sets in they may choose a destination (versus facing none) that's worse than where they are leaving. Life choices.

 

[cancontent]

I wish I could read minds. I'm not sure how much these kids understand the risk here or if they are being honest about their individual abilities. It's fine to be confident and to bet on yourself, but I hope those who don't find a home are ready to pick up that tab for the cost of college. It's exponentially important when you consider that most of them will not end up on some professional roster. That May 11th (?) deadline is creeping up fast and as desperation sets in they may choose a destination (versus facing none) that's worse than where they are leaving. Life choices.

I have this same conversation frequently with several friends. Feels like it's a topic that doesn't get discussed enough because it a difficult one to have. So many things to consider that get overlooked, like finances, career planning, etc. And it can't happen while their child is at university. Actually, I don't think high school is soon enough either because saving for tuition requires proper planning.

 

[LwrcasefaN]

I have this same conversation frequently with several friends. Feels like it's a topic that doesn't get discussed enough because it a difficult one to have. So many things to consider that get overlooked, like finances, career planning, etc. And it can't happen while their child is at university. Actually, I don't think high school is soon enough either because saving for tuition requires proper planning.

You nailed it.

 

[Bone Dog]

“Good for college basketball”? This is such a strange formulation. I think we all tend to frame this in terms of competitiveness. In this respect, it’s an open question whether we’ll see wider competitive parity or a great gathering of talent on a few teams. This year it looks like a narrowing may be occurring. Though if Morrow ends up at USC, along with Betts at UCLA, it looks like a couple of west coast programs will have gotten a lot more competitive than they’ve been in recent years. This seems like a basketball-oriented form of the question.

But what about the “college” side of the issue? D1 sports has always been seen as a distraction from any college’s primary mission by the teaching faculty, a dilution of the institution’s efforts and resources. On the other hand, D1 sports energizes student and alumni support and interest in college life. This may be a good the faculty fails to notice. Does transfer policy impact this interest? So far, it seems to be enlivening interest, at least at some schools.

And from the student-athlete point of view, as many have mentioned already, it looks like being able to freely transfer is a simple good for students who may have made bad choices coming out of high school. It doesn’t matter whether they’re motivated by playing time or NIL opportunities or academics.

If I mainly worry about the student experience, I think I have to conclude that the current transfer policy is a good thing. Does this outweigh the possible loss of fan interest a drop in competitive parity might bring? I think so. I’ll lament the loss of a shape of the game I’ve loved for many years, just like many others have expressed. But I’m already lamenting the change in the game produced by rugby-style officiating. I worry about that more than transfer policy or NIL money.