
John Fanta
University Basketball and Reporter Resert
On Thursday, we learned about the last news lot of the transfer portal in what has become a cycle never deactivated.
The Memphis star and the American guard PJ Haggerty entered the portal. Auburn Big Man Dainja, who has to request an exemption for an additional year of eligibility in a process that is unpredictable to begin, supposedly would enter, but that rumor was quickly that it was published on social networks. ”
One of the best main players in the country, the player of the Mid-American Conference and the former Akron star, Nate Johnson, also joined the more than 2,000 names on the portal. Combine that chaos with the deadline of April 22 to enter the portal-you can expect a drama in the Buzzer with what the current rate is even for decent talents at this time, and the state of university basketball, this low season is a total chaos. An absolute disaster.
Players are not blamed at all. If you could maximize your value and effective at this age, wouldn’t you try to get every dollar you can? That is an intelligent business.
But this is not Pro Sports where there are structured contracts in all areas that are honored by both parties. Auburn’s leading prominent, Chad Baker-Mazara, entered the portal on Thursday, however, had signed a contract with the Tigers that would be back a percentage of the money he gave him for an agreement that included his return for the 2025-26 season. This is a child who already has legs to three different schools, including the state of San Diego and the Juco Northwest Florida State College. Returning to Auburn for the third year and making seven figures while consolidating as a great tigers is certainly a good route, but in this market, the amounts of dollars are constantly increasing. Baker-Mazara wants more money, but what about that contract?
If Auburn fights him, is it worth the potential damage that the school could do to a player? Couldn’t that hurt Auburn in recruitment, or is there something to say about a point with a 25 -year -old and get him and his people honoring the contract?
All these are questions that I am sure at this time for a program that has just achieved the greatest stage of sport and should feel as well as anyone, less than the national champion Florida, at this time. Instead, Auburn is in the same fight in which everyone is found: the offer wars that continue to increase.
We have passed from Nijel Pack leaving Kansas State for Miami (Florida) in an agreement worth $ 800,000 for two years to multiple programs that have budgets that reach the eight -digit mark.
“This is an absolute Cesso well,” said an important coach, who has solid diverse money. “The birth of original sin is born too long of the greed of the NCAA. Adults in the room gave no guidelines. Without guidance. Without rules. Imagine the NBA with the annual free agency without restrictions and without salary limits. And now imagining ask a team full of players who earn six figures to go to class.”
[MORE: Ranking the best players available in the college basketball transfer portal]
While the NCAA seeks to complete an agreement that will force the association to pay $ 2.8 billion in the rear damage to athletes who practiced sports from 2016 to 2024 and are not entitled to the same rights as current athletes have in the ablaftul, the conferences and direct direct directors and direct rabbits of the direct rabbits and the direct connections and the direct conferences and the direct conferences and the direct conferences of the directors of the directors of the directors of the directors. Claudia Wilken. While both groups of representatives are discussing the limits of the list list, with Wilken wanting to gradually change the cap of 105 soccer players and 15 basketball players, between a variety of limits to make the walks and others be happy for now instead of opening a new can of worms are still tracking for a July 1 implementation of this new policy. Wilken has even granted the preliminary approval of the agreement.
While a budget of $ 20 million or so will be dedicated mainly to football and any external money would have to go through a “spare” approach process, we do not act as subtitive funds for players, so use uses uses Uses Uses Uses Uses Uses Uses Uses Uses. So, even with this settlement, there are still lagoons.
“This is a rodeo of AF grade goat ——“, said Mid-Mojor coach with some of the best funds in his league. “I need to pray the rosary to spend the low season.”
“It is terrible to see why, as a guy who played four years in my school and was part of the championships, the pride of the team on the male side is dead,” a former national player and champion told me.
“It’s without law,” said one of the best programs in the United States to Fox Sports. “I am in favor of the players to receive a payment, but we need a government body, an association of players, a salary limit, formal and enforceable rules and contracts (on both sides). And we need the portal, also known as free agency, from the conclusion of the season, like this.”
That can be what summarizes the dysfunction of this sport at this time more than anything. The transfer portal formally opens the next day to the conclusion of the first weekend of the NCAA tournament.
Because? Why does the low season start while the season continues to happen? This year, we saw players in tournament teams that went to sweets 16: minors, but still! – He entered the portal while his current program advanced at Big Dance.
We do not talk about the management of the list and what follows for a national program that door at the national level any other postseason in sports, because instead we focus on who stays for a Super Bowl, the NBA finals, the World Series, etc. But while the best period is happening in university sports, social networks are full of advertisements of players who thank their fans base, saying that they are a bulldog or a wild cat for life and that, after a lot of thought and deliberation, they continue.
Can’t you expect that? There are many things that must be answered, but the duration of the opening of the portal of the season, although with only 16 remaining teams, is pure stupidity. Nor is it healthy for anyone used in sport. Dead period? Forget it.
“I see that many people say that the market for male and female university basketball players is broken, but the only thing they point out is that players are paid a lot,” said sports lawyer Mit Winter. “That does not mean that the market is broken. It simply means that current market values are high.”
So what would be needed for collective bargaining? For some of this chaos to be reduced? For players to have a $ 600,000 sacrifice, agree in principle and then obtain the offer for $ 1.1 million of a more desperate place and the chaos of the open season simply continuous. I am not blaming a player for Seijs the value, but the structure of that is like the butcher of death on a Mac laptop. It is a structurally hamster wheel.
“Obviously, there should be quite large concessions of the school and the teams of the conference, the cheese are financial, but ethers that provide benefits and protection,” Winter told Fox Sports last year, since he was asked about the possible performance of Wombom, Whatiche, anyway, what happens? What is what straight, what rank, that really, leaves, what really, what really, what really, what really, what really is accompanied, what is really accompanied, what, what, what, what, what, what, what, what, what, what, what is, what is what is, what is what is. Change. “There should be quite large compensation for athletes to limit limit their freedom of movement, but professionals do it all the time, so I don’t think it’s something I didn’t bit, but I would have to agree.
[MORE: College basketball is in a state of chaos, but it’s not beyond fixing]
A high -senior chief coach who is not in the middle of his league in terms of budget shared this with Fox Sports on condition of anonymity: “It is a challenge, but it is still an incredible sport. I hate when the coaches complain because we choose this life, but there are obvious changes that need to happen to grow our game and increase its popularity of the madness of March.
For those who say that university basketball is dying, the national championship game between a pair of non -bluja blood (Florida and Houston) delivered 18.1 million viewers and reached its maximum point in 21.1 million spectators, limiting the most watched sports four. For a year, even with Cinderellas not to be a topic this time. We have seen some returns in the university rings, with the guard of Purdue Asado to Smith returning for his senior season in West Lafayette at this time, since he is a main candidate for the national player of the year.
This sport has fought through the rule at once, the period in which one could go directly from school high school to professionals, the Advanced League G to take the players of university ranks and much more.
University basketball will never be the same, and a path to regulation has to happen, but for that to happen, the current leadership must recognize the fact that the student-attached model has left.
These are employees, with the warning of making the “University” part of the contract: you go to class. That degree is not so bad either, but there must be a medium term at some point for all those involved, and begins with the acceptance of the reality that is happening is not productive to anyone and that the current “system” is not really.
John Fanta is a national university basketball station and writer of Fox Sports. It covers the sport in a variety of capabilities, from calling the games in FS1 to serve as the main host in the Big East digital network until providing comments in the 68 Network field. Follow it in @John_fanta.
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