Looking for Clues

[kyyote]

I think we may be able to get a hint or two from transfers and recruits. First let?s look at who is leaving.   My question is why. Are they leaving because they don?t want to be here or want to be somewhere else. Step up step down or step to the side.
If Williams leaves to go to the big 12 he makes a step up. Easy to understand. But when our players are transferring to Portland or Troy you have questions. Did Vuk  and Sjoland  leave because Troy  and Portland are a step up down or to the side. If they see it as a chance to play because a) they are at a higher level moving down and should be able to win the job or b) they see Troy and Portland as a lateral transfer or even a step up in competition. Or are they transferring because they have been told they should.  When I look at who we evidently were recruiting and they signed with Sam Houston I have to again question if we are trying to win basketball games or have the highest gpa.

[Chanson]

Most of these kids that are transfering, especially for a 3rd time, doesn't look like they have a shot at the next level. Williams seems to be the exception. That may be because Williams followed a coach, while the others followed opportunity.
This transferring business has really thrown coaches out of whack (if they let it). The coaches that embrace change, will overcome. The 1 & done thing was also an issue until coaches like Caliperi, Williams, & K promised Championships. Then everyone started following the pattern. Beard really did well with the portal & now others are following suit. I'm happy that Gonzaga has been doing well, because that pushes 4-5☆ kids to not be afraid of mid-major programs.
The thing that coaches really need to deal with during this transfer portal craziness is the character of these boys. If the kid is going for transfer 3 or 4, then how likely are they more about themselves than the team? I'll give an example, we had a 5☆ transfer from SMU come to play 1yr under Floyd. I forgot his name, but the kid was really good. The kicker was he didn't even last to half the season because of personal stuff. That hurt the team in the long run.
Anyway, what I'm getting at is Golding needs to take his time with recruits so a bad apple doesn't set the team back.

[kyyote]

4/24/2021 - 2021 PG Azari Woods (5-9, -, 2★) committed to Sam Houston State.
4/23/2021 - 2020 PG Vuk Vulikić (6-4, 192, 2★) will be transferring to UC San Diego.
4/23/2021 - 2018 SF Kristian Sj?lund (6-8, 210, 3.7★) will be transferring to Portland.
4/22/2021 - JUCO PF Shemar Wilson (6-9, 210, 2★) committed to UT Arlington.
4/21/2021 - 2018 PF Efe Odigie (6-9, 255, 3★) will be transferring to Troy. - Per Troy Trojans MBB
4/19/2021 - 2016 PF Keith Fisher III (6-8, 220, 3★) committed to Illinois State.
4/25/2021 - JUCO SG Jorell Saterfield (6-4, 180, 2★) has received an offer from UTEP.
4/22/2021 - 2023 PG K.J. Lewis (6-4, 185, 2★) has received an offer from UTEP.

I tried to put this in the post above. As I said above I am confused. Terry was supposed to be a great recruiter but our recruits are transferring to smaller schools(?). And we are losing recruits to lower division schools. Wtfigo?

[Chanson]

You have a great point, KY. UTEP is the better gig for these kids, but because it has been over a decade since we have seen the NCAA Tourney & have not been winning for a while, I can see why kids jump to a smaller ship. What ever was going on, left with Terry. The question now is:
Who can Golding retain?
What kind of kids can he bring in?
What recruiters can Golding get to follow him to UTEP?
How much rope will he need to get back to winning?

[kyyote]

I respectfully think it has to be more than a lack of wins and represents something bigger than that.
I think we have to keep context in mind. Not long ago we were going up against the top teams of what became the AAC. Then at some point after that, and it wasn?t immediate we began to slide.  Football quickly, maddeningly, and inexplicably(to me at least) dropped like a rock through a pile of feathers and hit rock bottom. We got Floyd back home and it turned to shit so fast he just said that?s it for me. We ?land? a has been that never was and give home the sweetest of deals and years of one or two win seasons and luckily we snatch away a non winning coach from FRESNO STATE!  Along the way we may have worked our way to the bottom of cusa. Now I have to wonder just how we could have done much worse if we were trying and things that just don?t make sense usually make perfect sense when you know what?s what. Seriously. Why is it a team from cusa is losing recruiting battles to lower division teams?  Are other cusa teams losing recruiting battles to Tennessee State?  If so, does that say something about cusa or just the insanity of ncaa basketball as it stands today?

[SisyphusMiner]

I don't think I'd read too much into kids jumping elsewhere when the coach they signed with left.

I do think it is undeniable that UTEP no longer has the cachet it once did.

[kyyote]

I don't think I'd read too much into kids jumping elsewhere when the coach they signed with left.

I do think it is undeniable that UTEP no longer has the cachet it once did.

That is the true if they weren?t all seemingly going to lesser supposed conferences. And losing recruiting battles to lower division teams. It seems to me that not only have we lost cachet but that it is disappearing at an alarming and perhaps unnatural rate.