(03-25-2021 06:49 PM)fallsdog Wrote: (03-25-2021 12:07 PM)Muskrat Wrote: Fallsdog, Walsh is D II and has a pretty decent program He would fit in there well. He is too good for Hiram and Oberlin. Bainbridge is suited for "low major' or D II. At the Kent State level, barring injuries to others, he's limited to a few minutes.
I am well aware of each school’s athletic programs and standing. My only concern is Kent State.
Two bigs from the same class, neither of which had any business getting basketball scholarships to Kent State now need to be replaced. But I know, I know, that’s how it is for everyone.
All of this is true ...BUT ... and this is a very big BUT... finding decent bigs (6-8 plus) AT THE MID-MAJOR LEVEL IS AN ABSOLUTE CRAPSHOOT. The majority of bigs (6-8-plus) on the transfer portal have EITHER barely played at all, or, have played enough to almost immediately be lured by a high-major program.
Look at Jason Carter who originally started at Ohio, had good numbers through his sophomore year, left for Xavier where he was a rotational piece, and is now back in the transfer portal, quite likely for a return to the mid-major level.
And that's a good case scenario ... most bigs that transfer up don't even have that kind of success. For all the talk about guards, and perimeter shooters being keys to success (and they are), in the end it's having even a decent big inside that separates the better teams from just the good teams.
Consider how good Ohio looked in the MAC Tournament, and the first round of the NCAA Tournament, vs. their second game in the tournament. It wasn't guards that beat the Bobcats, it was bigs. And by P5 stardards Creighton's bigs were very pedestrian at best.
All this is to say good bigs are hard to find, and very hard to keep. Name a decent big (6-8 or better) in the MAC? (And Mballla is 6-7). There are none. Dwight Wilson is a vg MAC post player. But even as his numbers against Creighton said he put up a good fight, to the naked eye he was no match for the Bluejays bigs who all played above the rim.
This is why I think it's flawed for EB to abandon ship, particularly when he has a 'free' year to see if he can turn things around. No, he's not the player we all hoped he would be. But he can run, he can jump, he's long and SHOULD be able to score in some form or fashion if he finds his niche.
Doesn't look like that will happen at Kent.