What is the story about?
Roster season is settling down a bit, and while there is still a lot of sorting and sifting to do, we can get a reasonable idea of where some teams around the country stand. Here are some of the more intriguing moves.
SEC
When Will Wade left NC State for LSU, NC State fans were furious. But as it turns out, his replacement, Justin Gainey, is getting a decent start, while Wade is struggling to build a team. Currently, he has exactly one player on his roster.
It’s almost May. Enjoy, Wuffie buddies.
Around
the rest of the SEC:
- Cole Cloer to Alabama. Cloer was a Wade recruit at State who was redshirting. A great three-point shooter, he’ll fit right in.
- Roman Siulepa to Ole Miss. A solid athlete, Chris Beard will find uses for him.
- Dai Dai Ames to Tennessee. Maybe. We’ve never been totally sold on him.
- Jalen Haralson to Tennessee. He did well at Notre Dame and should be a rotation player for the Vols, at a minimum.
- David Punch to Texas. Great move.
- Simeon Wilcher Texas to Seton Hall. A one-time UNC recruit before he changed his mind, Wilcher has never really been impressive. Maybe a move back home will help.
- Tyler Nickel and Jalen Washington, both former Tar Heels, have both opted to leave Vanderbilt.
- Bonus: Kentucky has struggled to get players. They do have a couple of point guards, but on Tuesday, they whiffed on the #1 player in the class, Tyran Stokes, who chose Kansas over the Wildcats. That is not going over well with BBN. It didn’t help that John Calipari’s Arkansas got a commitment from Finnish phenom Miikka Muurinen this week also. Did you ever hear the old joke about the monkey, the elephant, and the cork? The pressure on Mark Pope is building to that level. It’s not going to be pretty when that BBN cork goes flying.
Big Ten
Indiana. The Hoosiers went all-in on ACC transfers.
- Markus Burton seems smart – if he can stay healthy. Duke fans loved Darren Harris. Hopefully, he’ll thrive there. Jaeden Mustaf had his moments with Georgia Tech and while former SMU big man Samet Yigitoglu is ponderous, to be kind, guys his size (7-2, 270), don’t grow on trees.
Maryland
- Bishop Boswell and DJ Wagner should be interesting additions. Maryland fans hated Buzz Williams, and that might be an understatement. Boswell will give him the defense he loves, and if DJ Wagner can play reasonably well, the Terps will have a solid backcourt. Nothing settles things down like winning.
Michigan State
- Anton Bonke comes over from Charlotte, and he’s an intriguing big guy. With rivals like Michigan and Duke going big lately, Tom Izzo isn’t going to be left behind.
Minnesota
- Kyan Evans comes from UNC just as former Tar Heel Cade Tyson leaves. Nothing major, but interesting to see the Heels as a feeder school for the Gophers.
Big 12
Cincinnati
- Jizzle James went from Cincinnati to Charlotte. James is sticking with Wes Miller, who briefly kicked him off the team this past season at Cincinnati. Apparently, they both got past it.
Kansas
- Melvin Council. He seemed like a folk hero in Lawrence after the Bizarro Darren Peterson saga, but Council went portaling.
Big East
Georgetown
- Jaland Lowe. The former Pitt point guard tried Kentucky, but that didn’t work out so well. Now he’s a Hoya. This is the third program in a row where he’ll play for a coach on a hot seat.
Marquette
- Sananda Fru. He was a useful player at Louisville, but not great. Shaka Smart eschewed the portal last season and finished 12-20. Lesson learned: Shaka needs players. Fru will help.
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