We Might Sleep in May, but We Wait in April
The Transfer Portal is going crazy with players (over 1,200 already entered!) and our Larry Wical sent us his 'Portal Wishlist'. Also: featured content from NKU Superfan Wyet Rechtin
It’s that time of year again: NCAA Free Agency! OK, obviously that is not how it's branded, but maybe it should be?
And despite what many fans would like to see happen, the fact remains that the culture of the NCAA is seemingly based upon building a roster of 13 “one year contracts”. When a team’s season ends, fans inevitably must rush to Twitter, make sure they are following @VerbalCommits and other NCAA insiders to get the latest updates on their favorite players. You might even set “Tweet Notifications” so you can be one of the first to know what’s going on. Nonetheless, the portal has its day. No team is safe — not the worst team in the league, not the best team(s) in the league — everyone loses somebody that they’ll need for next year. To help account for NKU’s current portal losses (and possibly another to come), our Larry Wical wrote an article which highlights his “wish list” of players, basically boiling it down to a ‘starting 5’ - one player per position.
The Transfer Portal: Balancing a Roster During Times of Turnover
by Larry Wical
“. . . As it stands today, Head Coach Darrin Horn’s program has lost three players (David Bohm, Adrian Nelson and Seybian Sims) to the Transfer Portal – three players that would have seemingly played a sizeable role in a run at another 20+ win season and postseason consideration.
At face value, this would appear to be catastrophic news for a program forever trying to stick out in an overcrowded field of mid-major programs seeking elevated recognition. In reality, losing three rostered players to the Transfer Portal is right on par with the national average. As of right now (4/7/22), the Transfer Portal of players looking for a new start is 1,220 deep, and that number will be even larger by the end of business day today. That said, there are currently 350 Division I basketball programs in 32 conferences in the country, which equals out to (1220 players/350 programs) roughly 3.5 players lost per program. While the impact of losing these three talented players will be felt, NKU is certainly not alone in losing talent to other programs.
The question now is, how will the Norse use the Transfer Portal to fill in gaps left behind by not only three departing established players transferring out, but also a complete lack of any signed high school players for 2022 and beyond? . . .
Below is a “wish list” of players (we’ll call them the “Portal Starting 5”) I would consider attracting to NKU for the 2022-23 season, players that have entered the Transfer Portal, are listed as “Immediately Available” and are looking for a program that meets their needs on various levels. Naturally, these would also be players that the Norse could use to fill critical gaps on the roster based on their typical “Two Guards and Three Wings” formation” . . .
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE OF THIS ARTICLE, HOSTED BY OUR FRIENDS AT HORIZONE ROUNDTABLE.
«FEATURED CONTENT»
13-year old NKU SUPERFAN Wyet Rechtin has been tracking the transfer portal (specifically as it relates to the Horizon League) in more detail than even those who cover the league daily. He sent us his thoughts on an NKU-wish list, along with his Horizon League Portal Tracker that he’s been working on at home. We hope you enjoy this featured content from a member of the next generation of NKU superfans!
Kenny White Jr.
Kenny White Jr. played at Tennessee Tech for the Golden Eagles under head coach John Pelphrey (25-65, 174-191), and entered the portal on March 7th.
He is a 6’7’’ forward/wing with three years of eligibility left. Originally from Madisonville, KY, White Jr. averaged 10.2 points, 3.9 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and shot 46.6% from the field in 2021-22 — including a season high 24 points in the Nutter Center on December 18th against Wright State.
He is focusing on Murray State, NKU, Morehead State (who is in the same conference as Tennessee Tech and defeated the Golden Eagles in the OVC conference tournament — we call this the Chris Brandon Move), Iona, and Chipola. A big factor which could put us in the front is that he played with Marques Warrick at Manimal Elite. In high school was named a finalist of the Mr. Kentucky basketball award in 2020 along with Warques Warrick.
Dontaie Allen
Dontaie Allen played at the University of Kentucky under Hall of Fame Head Coach John Calipari and entered the transfer portal on March 24th.
The 6’6’’ guard hailing from Falmouth, KY has 3 years of NCAA eligibility left. In 2021-22, Allen averaged only 6.4 minutes a game which has been heavily reported to be one of the reasons for transferring.
In the limited playing time he received last season, he averaged 2.2 points, 1.2 rebounds, 0.3 assists, and shot 29.4% from the field.
The Norse might have their work cut out for them - as Allen being heavily recruited, receiving interest from Xavier, Wisconsin, Texas A&M, Virginia Tech, WKU, Cincinnati, Louisville, Virginia, Northern Kentucky, Furman and Tennessee State amongst others (as reported by @247SportsPortal Travis Branham).
One thing that the Norse have going for them is that he went to Pendleton County High School, less than 30 miles from what could be his future dorm room in Highland Heights, KY.
In 2019 Allen won Mr. Kentucky Basketball Player of the year, edging out the field of players which included Marques Warrick.
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Great read, thank you Larry!!