Men's Basketball Transfer Carousel and Portal - 2024-25

[RIFan]

Welcome to the misery loves company club.

[Jdrums#3]

I still have faith in Archie , but with PC, Bryant, and most of our A10 opponents landing some solid talent it does get me a little concerned where this team is going . Archie seems like a very good , high IQ basketball coach, but he doesn’t seem to be able to attract players. With the mess around college basketball between the NIL and transfer portal , add in the lack of any real improvement so far with this team, my interest level is nearing an all time low. This is coming from a die hard fan like many on this board for 30 plus years. I may need Rhody rehab or some sort of impact commitment to spark my interest.

99, my recommendation is to start with Rhody Rehab. See you there!

[79RhodyFan]

I still have faith in Archie , but with PC, Bryant, and most of our A10 opponents landing some solid talent it does get me a little concerned where this team is going . Archie seems like a very good , high IQ basketball coach, but he doesn’t seem to be able to attract players. With the mess around college basketball between the NIL and transfer portal , add in the lack of any real improvement so far with this team, my interest level is nearing an all time low. This is coming from a die hard fan like many on this board for 30 plus years. I may need Rhody rehab or some sort of impact commitment to spark my interest.

99. I completely agree with your take here. What I find most concerning is the fact that we still have four openings and yet we hear-nothing about any potential recruits. I am getting concerned with Archies recruiting skills. I would feel much better if we could get an impact commitment or at this point, any commitment. Why not us??? Seems like everybody else is grabbing somebody.

[Jersey77]

I still have faith in Archie , but with PC, Bryant, and most of our A10 opponents landing some solid talent it does get me a little concerned where this team is going . Archie seems like a very good , high IQ basketball coach, but he doesn’t seem to be able to attract players. With the mess around college basketball between the NIL and transfer portal , add in the lack of any real improvement so far with this team, my interest level is nearing an all time low. This is coming from a die hard fan like many on this board for 30 plus years. I may need Rhody rehab or some sort of impact commitment to spark my interest.

99. I completely agree with your take here. What I find most concerning is the fact that we still have four openings and yet we hear-nothing about any potential recruits. I am getting concerned with Archies recruiting skills. I would feel much better if we could get an impact commitment or at this point, any commitment. Why not us??? Seems like everybody else is grabbing somebody.

We did pick up 2 immediate impact probable starters at guard. That was a good start.

Waiting for some positive news regarding bigs and others.

[McRam]

I am thinking that we need to wait until the rosters are filled in the A 10 before we “rate” how well Archie did. Perhaps this is a rationalization right now, as our current results seem underwhelming!

[Billyboy78]

I still have faith in Archie , but with PC, Bryant, and most of our A10 opponents landing some solid talent it does get me a little concerned where this team is going . Archie seems like a very good , high IQ basketball coach, but he doesn’t seem to be able to attract players. With the mess around college basketball between the NIL and transfer portal , add in the lack of any real improvement so far with this team, my interest level is nearing an all time low. This is coming from a die hard fan like many on this board for 30 plus years. I may need Rhody rehab or some sort of impact commitment to spark my interest.

99. I completely agree with your take here. What I find most concerning is the fact that we still have four openings and yet we hear-nothing about any potential recruits. I am getting concerned with Archies recruiting skills. I would feel much better if we could get an impact commitment or at this point, any commitment. Why not us??? Seems like everybody else is grabbing somebody.

And we're still short a coach, so there's that.

[McRam]

I still have faith in Archie , but with PC, Bryant, and most of our A10 opponents landing some solid talent it does get me a little concerned where this team is going . Archie seems like a very good , high IQ basketball coach, but he doesn’t seem to be able to attract players. With the mess around college basketball between the NIL and transfer portal , add in the lack of any real improvement so far with this team, my interest level is nearing an all time low. This is coming from a die hard fan like many on this board for 30 plus years. I may need Rhody rehab or some sort of impact commitment to spark my interest.

99. I completely agree with your take here. What I find most concerning is the fact that we still have four openings and yet we hear-nothing about any potential recruits. I am getting concerned with Archies recruiting skills. I would feel much better if we could get an impact commitment or at this point, any commitment. Why not us??? Seems like everybody else is grabbing somebody.
[/quote
And we're still short a coach, so there's that.

. Do you think Cunningham was Archie’s decision?

[Jersey77]

Doubtful McRam.
Cunninham played and worked for Mack, they have a close relationship.

[steveystuds06]

I still have faith in Archie , but with PC, Bryant, and most of our A10 opponents landing some solid talent it does get me a little concerned where this team is going . Archie seems like a very good , high IQ basketball coach, but he doesn’t seem to be able to attract players. With the mess around college basketball between the NIL and transfer portal , add in the lack of any real improvement so far with this team, my interest level is nearing an all time low. This is coming from a die hard fan like many on this board for 30 plus years. I may need Rhody rehab or some sort of impact commitment to spark my interest.

I think we are all very worried after the last two years. I'm not nearly as confident as I was when we landed Archie. This is a HUGE year and I get why you're concerned.

Let me ask you this.

Would you be excited if Rhody landed an A10 shooting guard who scored 14 points per game last year? A guard who dropped 29 against Umass, 27 against a NCAA tournament team in Dayton, and 18 on the road at PC?

Would you be excited if we landed an A10 forward who dropped 14 points per game while shooting 43% from 3? A forward who was out for a long time and was rusty but still managed to put up those impressive numbers?

Would you be excited if we landed an A10 freshman big man who averaged 8 points and 6.5 rebounds per game? He had some great games, including 23 points and 12 rebounds against Richmond, 15 points and 11 rebounds against Fairfield, 13 points and 10 rebounds against St. Joes, and last but not least, 12 points and 17 rebounds against Fordham.

Would you be excited if we landed an A10 freshman guard who dropped 7 points per game while shooting 41% from 3 and has plenty of upside, especially on the offensive end?

I think people forget that returning House, Green, Fuchs, Cam is just like landing four new recruits. When you factor in that he brought back his best players, added a strong player in Lawernce, a good point guard in Bassy, and a hustle piece in Taroe, I don't think it's as bad as some of you are making it out to be. Will we be much better? I don't know. I think it really depends on how good Bassy is. When Luis played well we looked so great. We know what we will get from House and Green, but if we have an impactful point guard that's consistent, we should be much better.

If we can't land a player like Javonte Brown or Zapala, I'll be worried. We definitely need to land another big man. And since I don't think Farrell is ready to be a rotation piece, I think we need to land a wing.

There are still plenty of talent out there. Let's see what happens!

[spar]

I still have faith in Archie , but with PC, Bryant, and most of our A10 opponents landing some solid talent it does get me a little concerned where this team is going . Archie seems like a very good , high IQ basketball coach, but he doesn’t seem to be able to attract players. With the mess around college basketball between the NIL and transfer portal , add in the lack of any real improvement so far with this team, my interest level is nearing an all time low. This is coming from a die hard fan like many on this board for 30 plus years. I may need Rhody rehab or some sort of impact commitment to spark my interest.

I think we are all very worried after the last two years. I'm not nearly as confident as I was when we landed Archie. This is a HUGE year and I get why you're concerned.

Let me ask you this.

Would you be excited if Rhody landed an A10 shooting guard who scored 14 points per game last year? A guard who dropped 29 against Umass, 27 against a NCAA tournament team in Dayton, and 18 on the road at PC?

Would you be excited if we landed an A10 forward who dropped 14 points per game while shooting 43% from 3? A forward who was out for a long time and was rusty but still managed to put up those impressive numbers?

Would you be excited if we landed an A10 freshman big man who averaged 8 points and 6.5 rebounds per game? He had some great games, including 23 points and 12 rebounds against Richmond, 15 points and 11 rebounds against Fairfield, 13 points and 10 rebounds against St. Joes, and last but not least, 12 points and 17 rebounds against Fordham.

Would you be excited if we landed an A10 freshman guard who dropped 7 points per game while shooting 41% from 3 and has plenty of upside, especially on the offensive end?

I think people forget that returning House, Green, Fuchs, Cam is just like landing four new recruits. When you factor in that he brought back his best players, added a strong player in Lawernce, a good point guard in Bassy, and a hustle piece in Taroe, I don't think it's as bad as some of you are making it out to be. Will we be much better? I don't know. I think it really depends on how good Bassy is. When Luis played well we looked so great. We know what we will get from House and Green, but if we have an impactful point guard that's consistent, we should be much better.

If we can't land a player like Javonte Brown or Zapala, I'll be worried. We definitely need to land another big man. And since I don't think Farrell is ready to be a rotation piece, I think we need to land a wing.

There are still plenty of talent out there. Let's see what happens!

In complete agreement here.

I also think Arch is being very selective with these last few spots to fill. He knows what we still need, let's not kid ourselves. We have a solid returning core, and made solid pickups so far. He wants the right fit(s) and so do we. Sure we've missed on a few guys, but so has everyone. There's a lot of players out there. And that's not even taking into account overseas. It can be tough too when your coach has a penchant to operate under the radar. I kind of like it though. Let's see how it all shakes out.

To quote Tom Petty - "The waiting is the hardest part"

[Jersey77]

Another big to maybe keep an eye on is Spencer Mahoney (6'9"/230) but probably out of our reach.
He redshirted as a freshman this past season at Washington State, 4-years left.
He was a 4* from NYC, rated the 2nd top recruit in the state.
He did prep at St Benedict's in NJ, so I am sure Duane is aware of him.

[Jdrums#3]

Good speculation, Jersey.

Also, excellent Tom Petty song reference, Spar.

Waiting is very testing. Ooph!

[Jersey77]

Good speculation, Jersey.

Also, excellent Tom Petty song reference, Spar.

Waiting is very testing. Ooph!

Just grabbing at straws, at this point have no idea what is going on.

[Billyboy78]

Any idea how many division 1 teams currently have 9 or less scholarship players on their roster? I'm just wondering if this is the norm at this point. Not criticizing.....serious question.

[adam914]

Any idea how many division 1 teams currently have 9 or less scholarship players on their roster? I'm just wondering if this is the norm at this point. Not criticizing.....serious question.

I was actually wondering about the exact same thing yesterday, but I couldn't really find a good resource that had up to date current rosters. This was the best I could find, but obviously does not include all teams.

https://www.espn.com/mens-college-baske ... s-recruits

[Jdrums#3]

Good speculation, Jersey.

Also, excellent Tom Petty song reference, Spar.

Waiting is very testing. Ooph!

Just grabbing at straws, at this point have no idea what is going on.

Keep it up, Jersey. I enjoy the speculation whether anything comes of it or not. We are talking Rhody hoops! Always fun.

[rhodyram22]

It's wayyyy too quiet right now...

[PeterRamTime]

It's wayyyy too quiet right now...

Dang

Was checking to see if it wasnt...

[Jdrums#3]

It’s a bummer that we don’t have any spies on campus to notice if there are any bigs visiting and touring campus.

No covert intel sucks.

[Ramfan22]

Jeremy flipped to Mississippi State. Had a strong feeling he was going to end up power 5.

[section(105)]

It’s a bummer that we don’t have any spies on campus to notice if there are any bigs visiting and touring campus.

No covert intel sucks.

Maybe we need spies at PJCC. When I start work there Monday, I/ll have my head on swivel!

[adam914]

Jeremy flipped to Mississippi State. Had a strong feeling he was going to end up power 5.

That's interesting. Curious to see what kind of an impact he has there. I could see it going either way.

[KeaneyBluBallz]

It’s a bummer that we don’t have any spies on campus to notice if there are any bigs visiting and touring campus.

No covert intel sucks.

Maybe we need spies at PJCC. When I start work there Monday, I/ll have my head on swivel!

let us know when Calhoun and Hurley T it up and who the other two in their group is.

[steveystuds06]

Jeremy flipped to Mississippi State. Had a strong feeling he was going to end up power 5.

That's interesting. Curious to see what kind of an impact he has there. I could see it going either way.

I think he'll be a bench piece at best, but we all know he's talented.... My hope is we land a more defensive-minded big. Someone that battles in the post and outhustles and outworks his opponent. I really wanted it to be Javonte Brown, but the more time passes, the less likely I think we land him. If Traore is the best player we could bring in, I would have preferred to keep Fou or Brown. However, someone on the staff told me that Traore is better than Brown.

[rhodyram22]

Jeremy flipped to Mississippi State. Had a strong feeling he was going to end up power 5.

I hate that we lost him to a power 5 team. I wonder if he stays if Archie gives him more playing time?

[adam914]

Jeremy flipped to Mississippi State. Had a strong feeling he was going to end up power 5.

That's interesting. Curious to see what kind of an impact he has there. I could see it going either way.

I think he'll be a bench piece at best, but we all know he's talented.... My hope is we land a more defensive-minded big. Someone that battles in the post and outhustles and outworks his opponent. I really wanted it to be Javonte Brown, but the more time passes, the less likely I think we land him. If Traore is the best player we could bring in, I would have preferred to keep Fou or Brown. However, someone on the staff told me that Traore is better than Brown.

Yeah bench piece would probably be my guess to if I had to bet on it. Probably agree on Fou (long term) over Traore, but I'm definitely hoping he is better than Brown. Maybe it's just wishful thinking on my part but I feel like Traore could surprise us a little.

[STC]

I'll be very interested to see how this goes for Foumena. Jans is a good coach, did he see something in Foumena or is this just backend roster filler?

[79RhodyFan]

Jeremy flipped to Mississippi State. Had a strong feeling he was going to end up power 5.

I hate that we lost him to a power 5 team. I wonder if he stays if Archie gives him more playing time?

I think he definitely would have stayed if Archie gave him more playing time. During the games reading his body language you could time he really wanted to get more playing time. I think Archie really messed up with the way he handled Jeremy. Archie seemed to tolerate mistakes from his young players (Cam and Always) but not Fou. I feel Jeremy left because of Archie and its going to a big mistake by Archie if he develops into a good player. Especially if URI keeps losing out on their other big man targets.

[reef]

I would think Big Fou comes off the bench for them this year

[Blue Man]

Jeremy flipped to Mississippi State. Had a strong feeling he was going to end up power 5.

I hate that we lost him to a power 5 team. I wonder if he stays if Archie gives him more playing time?

I think he definitely would have stayed if Archie gave him more playing time. During the games reading his body language you could time he really wanted to get more playing time. I think Archie really messed up with the way he handled Jeremy. Archie seemed to tolerate mistakes from his young players (Cam and Always) but not Fou. I feel Jeremy left because of Archie and its going to a big mistake by Archie if he develops into a good player. Especially if URI keeps losing out on their other big man targets.

Yes it’s definitely Archie’s fault. No blame to the player who actively refused coaching publicly, made boneheaded plays despite obvious directives from coaches, pouted, and was generally an unhappy camper who felt he should have the freedom to be Giannis while possessing 1/10 of that skill set.

I forgot. Did we love Dave Cox’s style of letting the players do whatever they want? Did that work here? Or were we hoping for a little more accountability.

I loved foumena’s size, talent and upside too. I loved the same about Jordan Hare. If they don’t want to be coached then what do you expect Archie to do? How do you expect to build a culture if you’re letting a raw underclassman dictate how he wants to play?

[steveystuds06]

Jeremy flipped to Mississippi State. Had a strong feeling he was going to end up power 5.

I hate that we lost him to a power 5 team. I wonder if he stays if Archie gives him more playing time?

I think he definitely would have stayed if Archie gave him more playing time. During the games reading his body language you could time he really wanted to get more playing time. I think Archie really messed up with the way he handled Jeremy. Archie seemed to tolerate mistakes from his young players (Cam and Always) but not Fou. I feel Jeremy left because of Archie and its going to a big mistake by Archie if he develops into a good player. Especially if URI keeps losing out on their other big man targets.

I also wanted Fou to play more. I agree; I was a little perplexed by his playing time, especially when we lacked energy and when Fuchs was out.

He did give Cam a longer leash, but I felt like Cam didn't take dumb shots or force things. If anything, he was too passive. Archie barely played Ways, so I don't feel he was given a longer leash.

Fou should have played more. Although he made many mistakes when he played, he seemed to perform better against the low-major teams than the A10 teams. Once he started playing against guys his size, he wasn't as efficient. But I wanted him to stay and felt like he could develop into a good big man. There were also rumblings that Brown worked his ass off every day, and his effort stood out at practice, which is why he ended up playing more than Fou.

My guess is that Archie committed to Fuchs being our starter, and Fou wanted a bigger role. Although he will have a similar role at Mississippi State this year, maybe he's getting paid more? Who knows. If Fuchs makes a good jump and becomes a good starter, I won't really care if Fou develops into a good big. However, if Fuchs doesn't improve and Fou becomes the better player, it will be frustrating that Archie didn't play him more last year

[section(105)]

I have always thought Fou was fixable.

[Dino611]

I would think Big Fou comes off the bench for them this year

Every*

[79RhodyFan]

I am really looking forward to the day we can talk about a new commitment that we received on this thread. I check every day, hoping for some news. I guess today’s not going to be the day maybe tomorrow. Trying to optimistic hopefully sooner or later we get another one

[Iggy1979]

When your seat starts to get warm you don't go to war with players who don't want to be coached. Now they're gone so let's see what Archie can do.

[steveystuds06]

I am really looking forward to the day we can talk about a new commitment that we received on this thread. I check every day, hoping for some news. I guess today’s not going to be the day maybe tomorrow. Trying to optimistic hopefully sooner or later we get another one

It's not about who can build the roster the fastest. The last thing we need is for Archie to rush to fill spots. He's aware that the last two seasons were a huge letdown. This is a HUGE year, and there are plenty of good players available on the transfer portal alone. Let's not forget Fuchs came out of nowhere and was, in my opinion, a great find from our staff. The good news is we have a solid rotation right now. We likely already have our starting 5 in place.

https://247sports.com/season/2024-baske ... ferportal/
Check out this list, and you'll see all the available players.

Archie will fill out this roster. The question is, can he find a few more impactful players that want to play here.

[Billyboy78]

I am really looking forward to the day we can talk about a new commitment that we received on this thread. I check every day, hoping for some news. I guess today’s not going to be the day maybe tomorrow. Trying to optimistic hopefully sooner or later we get another one

It's not about who can build the roster the fastest. The last thing we need is for Archie to rush to fill spots. He's aware that the last two seasons were a huge letdown. This is a HUGE year, and there are plenty of good players available on the transfer portal alone. Let's not forget Fuchs came out of nowhere and was, in my opinion, a great find from our staff. The good news is we have a solid rotation right now. We likely already have our starting 5 in place.

https://247sports.com/season/2024-baske ... ferportal/
Check out this list, and you'll see all the available players.

Archie will fill out this roster. The question is, can he find a few more impactful players that want to play here.

No, he shouldn't rush, but the more all of these new players play together this summer, the better. Summer session 1 for classes starts on Monday.

[PlayMikeMotenMore]

I hate that we lost him to a power 5 team. I wonder if he stays if Archie gives him more playing time?

I think he definitely would have stayed if Archie gave him more playing time. During the games reading his body language you could time he really wanted to get more playing time. I think Archie really messed up with the way he handled Jeremy. Archie seemed to tolerate mistakes from his young players (Cam and Always) but not Fou. I feel Jeremy left because of Archie and its going to a big mistake by Archie if he develops into a good player. Especially if URI keeps losing out on their other big man targets.

I also wanted Fou to play more. I agree; I was a little perplexed by his playing time, especially when we lacked energy and when Fuchs was out.

He did give Cam a longer leash, but I felt like Cam didn't take dumb shots or force things. If anything, he was too passive. Archie barely played Ways, so I don't feel he was given a longer leash.

Fou should have played more. Although he made many mistakes when he played, he seemed to perform better against the low-major teams than the A10 teams. Once he started playing against guys his size, he wasn't as efficient. But I wanted him to stay and felt like he could develop into a good big man. There were also rumblings that Brown worked his ass off every day, and his effort stood out at practice, which is why he ended up playing more than Fou.

My guess is that Archie committed to Fuchs being our starter, and Fou wanted a bigger role. Although he will have a similar role at Mississippi State this year, maybe he's getting paid more? Who knows. If Fuchs makes a good jump and becomes a good starter, I won't really care if Fou develops into a good big. However, if Fuchs doesn't improve and Fou becomes the better player, it will be frustrating that Archie didn't play him more last year

So basically in your last point, you're saying that Archie needs to have a crystal ball of player development for you not to be critical of how players turn out. Sure, that seems fair to Archie.

[Bos8]

I am really looking forward to the day we can talk about a new commitment that we received on this thread. I check every day, hoping for some news. I guess today’s not going to be the day maybe tomorrow. Trying to optimistic hopefully sooner or later we get another one

It's not about who can build the roster the fastest. The last thing we need is for Archie to rush to fill spots. He's aware that the last two seasons were a huge letdown. This is a HUGE year, and there are plenty of good players available on the transfer portal alone. Let's not forget Fuchs came out of nowhere and was, in my opinion, a great find from our staff. The good news is we have a solid rotation right now. We likely already have our starting 5 in place.

https://247sports.com/season/2024-baske ... ferportal/
Check out this list, and you'll see all the available players.

Archie will fill out this roster. The question is, can he find a few more impactful players that want to play here.

One of the most recent additions is a familiar name of sorts- Preston Murphy Jr.

[Billyboy78]

I am really looking forward to the day we can talk about a new commitment that we received on this thread. I check every day, hoping for some news. I guess today’s not going to be the day maybe tomorrow. Trying to optimistic hopefully sooner or later we get another one

It's not about who can build the roster the fastest. The last thing we need is for Archie to rush to fill spots. He's aware that the last two seasons were a huge letdown. This is a HUGE year, and there are plenty of good players available on the transfer portal alone. Let's not forget Fuchs came out of nowhere and was, in my opinion, a great find from our staff. The good news is we have a solid rotation right now. We likely already have our starting 5 in place.

https://247sports.com/season/2024-baske ... ferportal/
Check out this list, and you'll see all the available players.

Archie will fill out this roster. The question is, can he find a few more impactful players that want to play here.

One of the most recent additions is a familiar name of sorts- Preston Murphy Jr.

As a walk-on or as a scholarship player?

[steveystuds06]

I am really looking forward to the day we can talk about a new commitment that we received on this thread. I check every day, hoping for some news. I guess today’s not going to be the day maybe tomorrow. Trying to optimistic hopefully sooner or later we get another one

It's not about who can build the roster the fastest. The last thing we need is for Archie to rush to fill spots. He's aware that the last two seasons were a huge letdown. This is a HUGE year, and there are plenty of good players available on the transfer portal alone. Let's not forget Fuchs came out of nowhere and was, in my opinion, a great find from our staff. The good news is we have a solid rotation right now. We likely already have our starting 5 in place.

https://247sports.com/season/2024-baske ... ferportal/
Check out this list, and you'll see all the available players.

Archie will fill out this roster. The question is, can he find a few more impactful players that want to play here.

No, he shouldn't rush, but the more all of these new players play together this summer, the better. Summer session 1 for classes starts on Monday.

Very true. Which is why it's good that we have our core rotation already. It's also good that Bassy already knows Archie's system. I still think it's more important to land the right players rather than fill out the roster ASAP. We still have plenty of time before next season starts.

[Billyboy78]

It's not about who can build the roster the fastest. The last thing we need is for Archie to rush to fill spots. He's aware that the last two seasons were a huge letdown. This is a HUGE year, and there are plenty of good players available on the transfer portal alone. Let's not forget Fuchs came out of nowhere and was, in my opinion, a great find from our staff. The good news is we have a solid rotation right now. We likely already have our starting 5 in place.

https://247sports.com/season/2024-baske ... ferportal/
Check out this list, and you'll see all the available players.

Archie will fill out this roster. The question is, can he find a few more impactful players that want to play here.

One of the most recent additions is a familiar name of sorts- Preston Murphy Jr.

As a walk-on or as a scholarship player?

I might have misread this post. Bos, by recent additions, do you mean recent addition to the portal or recent addition to our roster?

[Jdrums#3]

Quiet day here and it’s getting late in the afternoon. I am figuring no commitment coming today. But, how about some rumors? Any rumors involving us and players? No leaks from anyone in the media or anyone associated with college basketball?

Sheesh…our program is tighter than the government spilling the truth about UAP’s.

I know because I check in on UAP news periodically.

[steveystuds06]

I think he definitely would have stayed if Archie gave him more playing time. During the games reading his body language you could time he really wanted to get more playing time. I think Archie really messed up with the way he handled Jeremy. Archie seemed to tolerate mistakes from his young players (Cam and Always) but not Fou. I feel Jeremy left because of Archie and its going to a big mistake by Archie if he develops into a good player. Especially if URI keeps losing out on their other big man targets.

I also wanted Fou to play more. I agree; I was a little perplexed by his playing time, especially when we lacked energy and when Fuchs was out.

He did give Cam a longer leash, but I felt like Cam didn't take dumb shots or force things. If anything, he was too passive. Archie barely played Ways, so I don't feel he was given a longer leash.

Fou should have played more. Although he made many mistakes when he played, he seemed to perform better against the low-major teams than the A10 teams. Once he started playing against guys his size, he wasn't as efficient. But I wanted him to stay and felt like he could develop into a good big man. There were also rumblings that Brown worked his ass off every day, and his effort stood out at practice, which is why he ended up playing more than Fou.

My guess is that Archie committed to Fuchs being our starter, and Fou wanted a bigger role. Although he will have a similar role at Mississippi State this year, maybe he's getting paid more? Who knows. If Fuchs makes a good jump and becomes a good starter, I won't really care if Fou develops into a good big. However, if Fuchs doesn't improve and Fou becomes the better player, it will be frustrating that Archie didn't play him more last year

So basically in your last point, you're saying that Archie needs to have a crystal ball of player development for you not to be critical of how players turn out. Sure, that seems fair to Archie.

I'm one of Archie's biggest defenders here, but of course, he'll be judged on certain players he lands or loses and how they develop. If you think all the successful coaches around the country, who continue to land and predict future impactful players, use a crystal ball, you clearly don't know what you're talking about. Every coach in America will have misses, but there are plenty that have a lot more hits than misses with players.

Regarding Archie and our roster, I feel it's a case-by-case situation. For example, Hammond blew up. There was nothing Archie can do. I'm not going to fault him for that. But Fou? Fou was given a very short leash, and even when Fuchs was out, he didn't play much. If Fou makes a big impact at Miss St., I will look back at last year and wonder why he rarely played a high-upside big like Fou, especially since we were losing anyway...I would have rather seen more Fou than Brown personally. Now, I'm high on Fuchs, and I trust Archie's decision-making, but I'm not the head coach; he is. It's on him to recruit, develop, and retain impactful players, and he'll be judged on that. Can you explain to me why that's unfair?

[jcru]

They're treating us like mushrooms.

Keeping us in the dark, and feeding us sh t

[BattleTested]

Quiet day here and it’s getting late in the afternoon. I am figuring no commitment coming today. But, how about some rumors? Any rumors involving us and players? No leaks from anyone in the media or anyone associated with college basketball?

Sheesh…our program is tighter than the government spilling the truth about UAP’s.

I know because I check in on UAP news periodically.

No news is better than bad news IMO

[RJRam]

Personally, I think I’m more disappointed in losing Zappy than Fou. I don’t think we have a program that needs a 6’11 wing. And from what he has shown after 2 years in the gym, that is all he was. A good wind gave him problems. That’s why he wasn’t effective in A10 action. Zappy looked like he could defend some beefy bigs. We could definitely use a player like that vs a light weight wing.
And just so you know, I did like Fou’s potential. But potential doesn’t win games.

[Jersey77]

Personally, I think I’m more disappointed in losing Zappy than Fou. I don’t think we have a program that needs a 6’11 wing. And from what he has shown after 2 years in the gym, that is all he was. A good wind gave him problems. That’s why he wasn’t effective in A10 action. Zappy looked like he could defend some beefy bigs. We could definitely use a player like that vs a light weight wing.
And just so you know, I did like Fou’s potential. But potential doesn’t win games.

I would have been happy if Fou stayed, but as the season went along it became very apparent that he was going to leave.

One thing I am pretty sure of is that Archie will roll the dice with our 5 probable starters that have been mentioned here many times.
At this point, very doubtful we will improve upon them, but there are some rotational pieces we are missing which includes a rim protector.
On the positive side those starters, whom Archie seems comfortable with at this time, are pretty good and should keep us competitive.

Still plenty of time to bring in those depth pieces, but many of the immediate high impact players are finding homes.

It does seem the anticipated top tier teams also have their probably starters committed or already on the roster.
The exception being the situation with Holmes (Dayton) and the NBA draft.
If he does return, Dayton will be nationally ranked, but if he stays in the draft Dayton still has enough talent to finish in the top tier of the conference.

[reef]

Will Big Fou have a better or worse career in the SEC than Makhi Mitchell ?

[NYGFan_Section208]

Watch the stats...once the games start, no one is going to miss Hammond or the Fou Fighter....