10 impact transfers: High majors heading for more opportunities with a mid-major
Sometimes a change of scenery is just what the doctor ordered
The start of college basketball season, with the transfer portal in place, has become a confusing time. Take the NBA—now famous for doing all its player movement over the first 72 hours or so of free agency, followed by months of relative silence save whatever has happened recently in Brooklyn—only multiple the number of teams by 10 and stretch out the movement period from late March until early August. Even an engaged consumer of the product might have trouble navigating who is who, where they were last year and where they might be now.
Fortunately, you have me—and more importantly, you have access to my addictive and obsessive worry about fit, narrative, skillset and whether or not the player in question does, or does not, Got That Dawg In Him.
Consider supporting continued Got That Dawg In Him research as a paid subscriber!
The move from a mid-major to a high-major program usually requires proof that the player on the move has the skills to hack it against bigger competition. Occasionally, raw size and skill can be the clay an enterprising high-major coach might wish to mold, but taking on such projects can be dicey and at that level, proven talent will be happy to take your scholarship and NIL cash.
The opposite move—from high-major to mid-major—requires much more speculation on the part of the coaches and players. If this guy has the talent, why couldn’t he hack it where he was? Is he a problem? Was it just a matter of fit, or system, or too much superior talent ahead of him on the depth chart? There’s not always a clear answer.
So speculating on transfers, as we covered, can be dicey business. Speculating on those who left a situation where they weren’t getting much run for one they hope to use to establish a reputation as someone who more than belongs on a Division I floor can be even more fraught with peril. I won’t say any of these guys are going to work out—I’ve seen too many examples where the talent didn’t matter because the player in question did not have the required level of Dawg to get the job done. But if you had to bet on some dudes figuring it out with more ample opportunities, you’d probably bet on some of these guys.