"College basketball transfers linked ‘play me now’ culture"
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Not long after Virginia was beaten soundly by Florida in the NCAA tournament last month, Coach Tony Bennett asked an assistant to compile a list that since has consumed the assistant’s offseason. It features every player in major college basketball who is currently seeking a transfer, and it hasn’t stopped growing.
As of Tuesday it contained more than 390 names. That’s good news, because Bennett is in the market for transfers after four of the six players from his first recruiting class at Virginia have departed over the past two seasons in search of more playing time. But even as he tries to replenish his own roster, Bennett is part of a growing group of coaches concerned that roster turnover is out of control.
“It’s an epidemic, without a doubt,” said Bennett. “I think players have always been anxious to play, I really do. But when they thought, ‘I don’t know if this is the right place,’ the advice was always ‘Wait your turn. Stay put.’ But the times of waiting and being patient, well, it’s a different time.”
In recent years, the NCAA itself has made it easier to transfer by allowing more exemptions to traditional rules that forced transfers to sit out a season after moving to another Division I school. More players have been given waivers to compete right away if they transfer to be closer to home or an ailing family member.
Former Connecticut big man Alex Oriakhi likely will not have to sit out a year after transferring to Missouri this month because of academic sanctions that will prevent the Huskies from qualifying for the NCAA tournament next season.
But many point to the AAU basketball culture in which today’s college basketball player is raised.
“They don’t like their high school situation, they transfer. They aren’t happy with their AAU team, they transfer,” said ESPN senior recruiting analyst Dave Telep, who has covered the AAU scene for more than 15 years. “There’s so many opportunities for them to go to the next best thing that they’re never held accountable, they never fight through any adversity. And what do we expect when they get to college and things get rough? They do exactly what they’ve been taught to do: transfer.
“We see it on the floor. We see it in their play.”
TO READ THE REST OF THE ARTICLE CLICK HERE
Here is the most recent list from CBS College Hoops Insider Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanCBS on Twitter)
350+
CLICK HERE FOR TRANSFER LIST
As of Tuesday it contained more than 390 names. That’s good news, because Bennett is in the market for transfers after four of the six players from his first recruiting class at Virginia have departed over the past two seasons in search of more playing time. But even as he tries to replenish his own roster, Bennett is part of a growing group of coaches concerned that roster turnover is out of control.
“It’s an epidemic, without a doubt,” said Bennett. “I think players have always been anxious to play, I really do. But when they thought, ‘I don’t know if this is the right place,’ the advice was always ‘Wait your turn. Stay put.’ But the times of waiting and being patient, well, it’s a different time.”
In recent years, the NCAA itself has made it easier to transfer by allowing more exemptions to traditional rules that forced transfers to sit out a season after moving to another Division I school. More players have been given waivers to compete right away if they transfer to be closer to home or an ailing family member.
Former Connecticut big man Alex Oriakhi likely will not have to sit out a year after transferring to Missouri this month because of academic sanctions that will prevent the Huskies from qualifying for the NCAA tournament next season.
But many point to the AAU basketball culture in which today’s college basketball player is raised.
“They don’t like their high school situation, they transfer. They aren’t happy with their AAU team, they transfer,” said ESPN senior recruiting analyst Dave Telep, who has covered the AAU scene for more than 15 years. “There’s so many opportunities for them to go to the next best thing that they’re never held accountable, they never fight through any adversity. And what do we expect when they get to college and things get rough? They do exactly what they’ve been taught to do: transfer.
“We see it on the floor. We see it in their play.”
TO READ THE REST OF THE ARTICLE CLICK HERE
Here is the most recent list from CBS College Hoops Insider Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanCBS on Twitter)
350+
CLICK HERE FOR TRANSFER LIST
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