Transfer Thread

[Eight Legger]

At this point, I would take a guy who played for X and Vandy sight unseen. Fifteen turnovers isn't going to scare me away in the least. I'd want to watch film on him, of course, but I'm not writing him off based solely on a quick scan of a few numbers. I suspect he ends up with a better program than ours.

 

[fan2011]

At this point, I would take a guy who played for X and Vandy sight unseen. Fifteen turnovers isn't going to scare me away in the least. I'd want to watch film on him, of course, but I'm not writing him off based solely on a quick scan of a few numbers. I suspect he ends up with a better program than ours.

Recruiting kids because they rode the pine at P5 schools is a horrible way to improve your team. I would be fine if we took him on as a last resort grad transfer like Kwesi or JMA, but I would not expect him to play more or contribute more than either of those two.

 

[Eight Legger]

I disagree. And we have a desperate need for a guard who can contribute next year. I don't see a lot of options out there, and this is an experienced one. Regardless, I think we will see him go somewhere higher.

 

[VT_Spider]

So is Buckingham leaving or what? I saw that tweet from a few weeks ago and haven't seen anything since.

 

[spiderman]

I just don't see UR as a preferred destination for a grad transfer PG this year.
a grad transfer is looking for a great playing time situation, not to be an insurance policy for Gilyard. many programs will have an opening which promises more playing time or even an opportunity compete to start. we're offering 5 mpg.

 

[spider23]

Spiderman, are you a member of Mooney's sales staff?? Just kidding, but honestly we have Fore's minutes to replace. Heck, I saw a Uconn blogger and they are all worried about their 5TH GUARD for depth. We are continuously trying to count on 5 guys for 35 minutes and not an efficient way to work at all. Yes, guys can point to some past teams that have had success but I don't think it is working. I'll keep waiting for some immediate help this year.

 

[97spiderfan]

I just don't see UR as a preferred destination for a grad transfer PG this year.
a grad transfer is looking for a great playing time situation, not to be an insurance policy for Gilyard. many programs will have an opening which promises more playing time or even an opportunity compete to start. we're offering 5 mpg.

We need a grad transfer guard, doesn't have to be a point guard. Buck and Gilyard are the only two guards on our roster who can handle the rock. Those guys will play a max of 35 minutes per game, so there is 10 minutes, but as we all know Buck has been playing a lot of forward his first 2 years, so I'm thinking we have a good 20 minutes to offer up.

And you know what if we get a really good player (yeah, I know Mooney's history with grad transfers) there is no reason to say this player couldn't get even more minutes than that.

 

[Eight Legger]

Not every grad transfer is going to find a starting role. it doesn't work that way. this kid has not played a lot at Vandy, so if he wants to start, he'll probably have to go down to the MAAC or that level. Maybe he will. I suspect he could go to a better program than ours and play 10 mpg. I suspect he could play about that much, maybe a little more, for us too. And if it's not him, there's some other grad transfer out there who would be willing to take what we can offer.

 

[fan2011]

I just don't see UR as a preferred destination for a grad transfer PG this year.
a grad transfer is looking for a great playing time situation, not to be an insurance policy for Gilyard. many programs will have an opening which promises more playing time or even an opportunity compete to start. we're offering 5 mpg.

I agree, no way we are getting anything close to a decent grad transfer PG. No playing time, and all semi-decent grad transfers go to P5 schools anyway.

 

[spider23]

OK, so that's settled - we are not a desirable location for a grad transfer - AND there are no minutes - though we did just recruit a guard for the following year when we have the same guards available and B. Schneider battling for minutes?
I guess we are back to hoping no one else transfers out news. Now, I guess no news is good news. I am getting more confused by this thread.

 

[fan2011]

OK, so that's settled - we are not a desirable location for a grad transfer - AND there are no minutes - though we did just recruit a guard for the following year when we have the same guards available and B. Schneider battling for minutes?
I guess we are back to hoping no one else transfers out news. Now, I guess no news is good news. I am getting more confused by this thread.

The grad transfer and regular transfer markets are very different. Blake will be here for 2 years, next year we lose JJ which opens up another 15 minutes for guards, and the year after that we lose Sherod and Buck, so a ton of playing time for Blake. A grad transfer PG this year will be hoping for 5 minutes a game behind Jake, which is fine if you are going to be here for multiple years and more time will open up for you in the future (like a freshman or regular transfer), but if you are only here for one year that is just not a desirable scenario and there are many better opportunities.

 

[spiderman]

Spiderman, are you a member of Mooney's sales staff?? Just kidding, but honestly we have Fore's minutes to replace. Heck, I saw a Uconn blogger and they are all worried about their 5TH GUARD for depth. We are continuously trying to count on 5 guys for 35 minutes and not an efficient way to work at all. Yes, guys can point to some past teams that have had success but I don't think it is working. I'll keep waiting for some immediate help this year.

oh man, I wish! dream job. but instead I'll keep plugging away at this desk.

I'm not saying we don't TRY to land a great grad transfer guard. I'm saying from the grad transfer's point of view, we don't offer a great situation.
yes, if we want to continue playing Buck at the 4, then there's a ton of minutes available. but I believe we want him at the 2.

I do think we're an attractive destination for a big forward if Coach feels we need one. no promises, but you tell him Buck's a 2 and we have no incumbent to beat out at the 4. it's an open competition for an incoming forward with Cayo, Sal, Tomas, and Phoenix. you could win the starting spot. we can't say that to a PG. Jacob's the man.

 

[97spiderfan]

The grad transfer and regular transfer markets are very different. Blake will be here for 2 years, next year we lose JJ which opens up another 15 minutes for guards, and the year after that we lose Sherod and Buck, so a ton of playing time for Blake. A grad transfer PG this year will be hoping for 5 minutes a game behind Jake, which is fine if you are going to be here for multiple years and more time will open up for you in the future (like a freshman or regular transfer), but if you are only here for one year that is just not a desirable scenario and there are many better opportunities.

I don't understand why you and S-man keep suggesting that we need a grad PG transfer who will only play 5 minutes behind Gilyard. We lost our 2 guard, in Khwan, so that is who we would be looking for a grad guard transfer to replace. Preferably, like Khwan this player could play both positions though.

So, if I'm a grad transfer looking for a place to play, I see Richmond just lost their starting guard who played about 32 minutes last year.

I know you both are putting this mindset out though because you know as well as the rest of us that if we get a grad transfer this year, it is going to be some bottom of the barrel guy that no one else wants.

 

[fan2011]

I don't understand why you and S-man keep suggesting that we need a grad PG transfer who will only play 5 minutes behind Gilyard. We lost our 2 guard, in Khwan, so that is who we would be looking for a grad guard transfer to replace. Preferably, like Khwan this player could play both positions though.

So, if I'm a grad transfer looking for a place to play, I see Richmond just lost their starting guard who played about 32 minutes last year.

I know you both are putting this mindset out though because you know as well as the rest of us that if we get a grad transfer this year, it is going to be some bottom of the barrel guy that no one else wants.

I don't think we need a grad transfer guard at all. Khwan's minutes should be replaced by forwards, not guards. As I understand it, Eight legger and Spider23 are suggesting we need a grad transfer PG to backup Jake.

 

[Eight Legger]

I think we need a guard to back up Jake and Buck. And I don't know that we are just handing a starting spot to Cayo. So the way I see it, we have four starters – Jake, Buck, Nick and Grant – and beyond that, who knows?

Yeah, if we can get a stud 6-8 power forward, let's plug him in and go. But that doesn't seem as realistic as getting a capable guard who can play 15-20 minutes a game at either the 1 or 2. Couple that with JJ and Cayo, and now we have at least a little bit of quality depth.

 

[fan2011]

I think we need a guard to back up Jake and Buck. And I don't know that we are just handing a starting spot to Cayo. So the way I see it, we have four starters – Jake, Buck, Nick and Grant – and beyond that, who knows?

Yeah, if we can get a stud 6-8 power forward, let's plug him in and go. But that doesn't seem as realistic as getting a capable guard who can play 15-20 minutes a game at either the 1 or 2. Couple that with JJ and Cayo, and now we have at least a little bit of quality depth.

The only reason Buck has been playing the 4 is because we have not had good forwards the past 2 years. Buck is a guard not a forward, and we need a good forward to play the 4 to be a good team. Buck should be playing at the 1-3. Sherod and JJ should be playing at the 2-3. JG should be at the 1. Between our guards, essentially all the time at the 1-3 is accounted for (JG 35, Buck 33, Sherod 33, JJ 19). We don't need more guards, we need more forwards so our guards don't have to play out of position. We should not be recruiting more guards so our current guards can continue to play out of position.

 

[spider23]

No, I am suggesting we need a guard, hopefully can handle some ball handling duties. We cannot rely on Buck and Gilyard to play 40 minutes a game and stay healthy and play at a high level. I like JJ, but I see him as a wing skill set.

 

[fan2011]

No, I am suggesting we need a guard, hopefully can handle some ball handling duties. We cannot rely on Buck and Gilyard to play 40 minutes a game and stay healthy and play at a high level. I like JJ, but I see him as a wing skill set.

Buck and Gilyard don't need to play more minutes to replace Khwan's. Buck's minutes at the 4 can replace Khwan's at the 1-2, we need someone to replace Buck's minutes at the 4. Need to step back and realize the 4 guard lineup is far from ideal and we shouldn't be recruiting to try to maintain it. Khwan's replacement is already on the roster, and he is really good. The grad transfer you guys want would be the 5th guard option, maybe 4th at best.

 

[MountainSpider]

It just boggles my mind that anyone can look at our starting lineup and think what is missing is another guard.

5'9"
6'4"
6'4"
<-- insert power forward here
6'10"

It is almost like people want us to suck next year so they can complain about Mooney's 4 guard line-up.

 

[spider23]

Agree with you there. Really would prefer two guys 6'8" or taller on the court at all times. I think that does go some ways to solving the issue. BUT, still think we need more guard depth. Also losing Kirby, who really played some solid minutes over the last couple years. I am not necessarily trying to replace anyone's minutes, but we need another guard. As EL notes, it would seemingly be easier to find a guard than a big in grad transfer market.

 

[plydogg]

I think right now, unfortunately, this is all speculation since we aren't really sure where we are at in the grad transfer market since things have been eerily quiet on the rumors of us being connected to grad transfers the past week or so.

I think one of the central points is no guard will want to come here because we can only offer 5 minutes a game to them. I think if a higher end guard comes in and wants to come here Mooney isn't going to tell him "Sorry but you're only getting 5 minutes". That is people here speculating that will be the case. Obviously the odds of a high quality grad transfer wanting to come in, either a guard or forward, is extremely unlikely.

One point I will say I agreed with earlier was Eight saying he'd rather take a guy on the bench for a power 5 program than a lower level program. There's a reason the guy on the bench at least ended up at Vanderbilt and there's a reason the guy on the bench at Chicago State ended up at Chicago State.

 

[97spiderfan]

Buck and Gilyard don't need to play more minutes to replace Khwan's. Buck's minutes at the 4 can replace Khwan's at the 1-2, we need someone to replace Buck's minutes at the 4. Need to step back and realize the 4 guard lineup is far from ideal and we shouldn't be recruiting to try to maintain it. Khwan's replacement is already on the roster, and he is really good. The grad transfer you guys want would be the 5th guard option, maybe 4th at best.

With both of our ball handling guards (Gilyard and Buck), they could get injured, might get in foul trouble, might need a more than a 2 minute breather during a game and right now we have no back-up on the roster. We might need to make an in-game adjustment in response to what another team is doing and if we don't have another ballhandling guard, we literally have no ability to even make an adjustment to counter that. Or what if Buck and Gilyard are having an off night.

We saw this play out last year. We couldn't make adjustments because we literally had only 8 players that we felt at all confident about inserting into the game. And so now we lose one of them and don't replace him with someone of a similar skill set and somehow that is OK?

 

[97spiderfan]

It just boggles my mind that anyone can look at our starting lineup and think what is missing is another guard.

5'9"
6'4"
6'4"
<-- insert power forward here
6'10"

It is almost like people want us to suck next year so they can complain about Mooney's 4 guard line-up.

Yes, we need a power forward as well. Not saying we don't.

Mooney's 4 guard line up for the past 2 years has come to be because he can't recruit a full and deep roster across all positions. Unless he fills these last 2 slots with a power forward and a guard who can play immediately, that tradition will continue again this year.

We have 2 ball handling guards. Nick and JJ are wing players, you don't want them handling the rock unless you want someone to press us relentlessly. We actually are deep at the forward position but the quality of that depth is quite unknown.

 

[spiderman]

we do need another guard, but I believe it'll be a backup break glass in case of emergency type of PG. I think it'll be a late blooming HS senior, not a grad transfer. a guy like Sullivan if not Sullivan. the last spot I believe will so to a grad transfer, but a big guy not a guard. a JMA if you will. an emergency big man who if all goes well won't play much.

our 5 starters are basically set, even though the guy playing the 4 is "Mr. TBD". we have 4 big guy options at the 4, so I'm confident at least two will be good ... a starter and a backup.

Buck moves to the 2 where he belongs. JJ is our 6th man who can back up both Buck at the 2 and Nick at the 3.

you see the options all the good grad transfers have. P5 teams seems to have a lot of late holes to fill. we're not a likely landing spot for a stud grad transfer.

 

[Eight Legger]

It's really not a stretch to suggest that we will be more likely to sign a guard than a power forward. If Khwan didn't transfer, we would have three guards starting for us next year, for the second year in a row. We may disagree with the idea that it's the best way to win games, but it would have been our reality had he not left.

So I don't think it's a stretch at all to suggest that Mooney may look to replace one of those three guards with another guard. It's what he knows, it's what he is able to recruit most effectively, and he was preparing to play an entire season for the second year in a row with three guards.

 

[spiderman]

best players play, Eight. if we can land a guard who's one of our best 5 like Khwan was, then yes he'll play. but I think that's unlikely.

 

[Eight Legger]

Meanwhile, W&M just landed a 7-foot transfer from Wisconsin.

 

[Eight Legger]

Austin just committed to Central Michigan, which was 21-15 this year and has 8 returning guards next year.

 

[mcspider]

Getting a guard to come in and fill in when Jacob and Buck need a break is a need. However I have a hard time believing a grad transfer would work. I am admittedly very skeptical because of the previous two grad transfers. On top of the lack of success from them, the offense/defense that we run is most likely not changing anytime soon. I can't believe that a one year guy is going to be able to come in and hit the ground running with the offense and defense.

 

[spiderman]

these transfers take us back to the earlier question. obviously a guy like Austin has talent enough to be recruited to XU and then transfer to Vandy. but end of the day, after 3 full seasons he's scored 82 points. no idea how good he is. but yes, he's a guy I'd take a shot with.

same with the 7 footer. only played garbage time or in easy wins. but again, the type of guy I'd be fine with. might just be Paul, but that's ok. we need a couple bodies.

 

[97spiderfan]

these transfers take us back to the earlier question. obviously a guy like Austin has talent enough to be recruited to XU and then transfer to Vandy. but end of the day, after 3 full seasons he's scored 82 points. no idea how good he is. but yes, he's a guy I'd take a shot with.

same with the 7 footer. only played garbage time or in easy wins. but again, the type of guy I'd be fine with. might just be Paul, but that's ok. we need a couple bodies.

We've been body collecting the past couple of years and then low and behold, when we need these bodies to play, they can't. We need to recruit players, guys that can help us either now or in the near future.

If we can't do any better than JMA and Kweisi in the grad transfer market, than we need to stay out of it. I think we should be able to mine that pool for better talent than we have in the past.

Neither the Austin kid or the 7 footer that W&M just got seem like much of a player to me. I would rather take a shot on a kid like Blake, a guy who has performed at a smaller conference versus a BCS guy who is riding the pine. Either way, just get us 2 more playmakers Mooney.

 

[spiderman]

I think with our roster composition of just one senior and a 4 freshman incoming class, it makes a lot of sense to add a grad transfer even if it's just a body.

 

[plydogg]

97 I agree, a producer at a lower level over a bench guy at a higher level. And if we can't do better than even a bench guy at a lower level we shouldn't even be in the market for that like you said.

Hell I just realized I don't even need this post, it is just regurgitating the good points you made.

 

[SpiderK]

As of right now, Julius and Oddo will have to be the back up ball handlers. Oddo will be a senior and has played point guard on the opposition offense for a couple years. He is a good shooter also. We have Bryce 6’6”, Cayo 6’7”, Ford 6’8”, Sullivan 6’6” Tomas 6’7” and Sal 6’8”. Those guys will have to be good enough to fill the 4 slot and back up the 2,3 and 5 slot.

 

[SpiderHoops32]

Noah Yates from Yale. Eligible immediately


http://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/player/_/id/4072624/noah-yates

 

[97spiderfan]

As of right now, Julius and Oddo will have to be the back up ball handlers. Oddo will be a senior and has played point guard on the opposition offense for a couple years. He is a good shooter also. We have Bryce 6’6”, Cayo 6’7”, Ford 6’8”, Sullivan 6’6” Tomas 6’7” and Sal 6’8”. Those guys will have to be good enough to fill the 4 slot and back up the 2,3 and 5 slot.

Mooney isn't going to leave 2 slots just vacant, that would be a very visible reminder to his boss that he is not very good at doing his job. Now, he may fill these slots, with "bodies" as he has done in the past. Let us hope as our positive posters like to remind us that our recruiting really is better and these last two slots will be filled with guys who can actually help us on the court .

 

[spiderman]

of course we want the last spots filled with the best players possible. that's great for the program.

but it's kind of a no win situation for Mooney in your eyes, isn't it? no matter what ... 8-9 guys are going to play significant minutes. so 4-5 guys are going to be on the bench most nights. won't matter if they're good. they'll be considered recruiting misses.

 

[97spiderfan]

JMA and Kweisi were not good. Can we all agree on that? We needed a good quality back up big man the last 2 years and that is who Mooney got us. They weren't good, they were recruiting misses.

It is not a "no win" situation for Mooney. He either fills these spots with guys who can play or he fills them with guys like JMA or Kweisi. He wins and we win more if these last 2 spots are filled with guys who can play A-10 basketball at a high level, likewise he loses and we all lose if he fills them with the type of spring signees that he has gotten the past couple of springs.

I don't know why you feel we only need 8-9 good players and the rest can just be "bodies". This is why we are who we are. And I guess Mooney has conditioned some of us to just expect that some of our recruits will be "bodies".

 

[spiderman]

I don't want bodies. I want good players just like you. I'd love 13 of them. but even if we have 13 good players, 4-5 won't play. too many people here will point to the 4-5 that aren't playing and say they're recruiting misses. too many people write off the current freshmen class without giving them a chance.

 

[spider23]

I am not writing off the current freshman class, but spiderman I think many of the fans like me have been playing this game for years now and have moved on to "show me the production". Yes, of the true freshman Gilyard was very good. Cayo looks to have potential. The other guys got no experience, so expectations have dropped. If Tomas, Ford, and Schneider get on the court this year, have to feel there will be a large learning curve.
Bring in a couple of known D1 producing grad transfers, and if the sophomore's to be can beat them out then so be it.