EternalOptimist

I was thinking we would see more Summit League players jumping into the portal. Last year as soon as the season was over they jumped in like crazy. After doing some research, it doesn't look like there is much of an advantage for a D1 player to announce he is going into the portal until the portal actually opens on April 7th. If you are a JUCO, D3, or D2 player, you can actually enter the portal after your season is over. Once in the portal, you can talk with coaches and they can talk with you (and make offers). As a D1 athlete, it doesn't matter if you have gone through the steps or announced it, there is a no contact rule until April 7th. We may not see much activity until either just before April 7th, or after April 7th. Only a 3 week window this year to jump in, so players jumping will all jump close together.

I guess I didn't think we'd see 7 schools decline the invite.

I was surprised to see St Thomas get an NIT invite.

And 10 mins after I speculate, Marley posts an Instagram post that really makes it seems like he will most likely be staying. If Marley stays, A3 stays and vice versa

Ha! Speculation. Obviously, if Greyson stays, that changes things. What also may change my prediction, especially with A3 and the Twins is what UND is willing to offer in terms of NIL, same with Jones. I don't think there is enough NIL $ available for Greyson, but the Twins and A3 could be swayed by a heavier NIL offer.

I'm in on the speculation. It's tough to predict as if the right dominoes fall, a lot of dominoes could fall. If a few key dominoes stand/stay, others will also be inclined to stay. That said, here is are my thoughts. The twins and A3. Not real happy about the playing time decisions, they look for somewhere else. Unpopular possible opinion: Micah stays. Marley and A3 leave. Karson O. He also leaves understanding he is over his head at a D1 program. Erickson, Doppler, and Bothun. They leave looking to actually play. Wiley and Kraft - stay at UND King, Anderson, Thomas - graduate and are out of eligibility. Guga - his agent finds him another home. Jones - this a a domino that could look around ad say, everyone is gone, im gone too, or, if my predictions above are wrong and several stay, he could stay as well. Greyson - the key domino. I think he strikes while the iron is hot and leaves. He doesn't have to go to a power 5 to make it worth it. A program will throw crazy money at him and tell him things he will like to hear. He has 3 years of eligibility left, and he is probably looking at the UND guys coming back (which he probably has a good idea who is and isn't coming back) and he is thinking UND will be reliant on portal acquisitions to be competitive next year with several key cogs from this year gone. He probably wants to go somewhere to win or at least compete for a shot at playing in the NCAA tournament and advanced his career. He leaves.

I would think we'd hear something. Obviously, the portal doesnt officially open until April 7th, so there isn't a rush, but i would assume end of season meetings will take place and off-season workouts will start up this week. The coaches should learn the intent of the players at the meetings. It's possible, there may be some $$ negotiations with some, so that may drag out players who were in the rotation and are on the fence.

Hmmmm, I dont think so. I think they have a few hunches, but I wouldn't say they have a good idea. Some hopes maybe, but not a good idea. They will have player meetings right away, maybe even Monday morning. After that, they will have a good idea, and will react to what is discussed in the meeting. This will be the beginning of the $$ negotiations.

Or maybe he just had a bad game, maybe he is dealing with an injury we don't know about, who knows. I think he made the right decision to leave. Sure, he could have been the Summit League player of the year (possibly). Instead he went to a big time school, got to play in some very awesome environments, got to get a look at what the next level looks like and figure out where or if he fits in. In the process he started all 32 games, and averaged 9.5 ppg. Throw in the small amount of the $1.5 million or whatever it was and the choice seems obvious - it's a complete no brainer to leave ND and get that experience. He would have been a fool not to. That's not the same with some of the others who have left, but sometimes you have to take a leap of faith to get to the next chapter in life, if you don't, time runs out and you look back wishing you had at least tried. Kudo's to him

Just curious as I don't even know how I feel, if given a choice, would you take someone who did really well at the D2 level, or would you rather have someone who was at a higher level and wanting to play more?

It's their spring break, so I wouldn't expect too much this week. Next week might be different though.

After last year, I did the math and it was something like 43% turnover within the league

Great write-up. I think you're pretty close. I agree with the most of what you said. I believe Doppler and Erickson will move on to play elsewhere. I also believe Bothun will do the same. In my opinion, that one is the loss. Yes, he started the year 0-15 from 3, but finished the year shooting .333 from 3 and 57% from 3 in the conference games. At 6'9, I think he would help at the 4 spot next year, but i doubt he stays with the limited minutes he saw. As far as the guards, I'd be surprised if Greyson stays. I agree that he should and would do well staying at this level, but he is going to have a lot of folks talking to his agent, and deals will be tossed around. The family had no ties to UND before he arrived. They will be huge supporters where ever he goes. A3 is a wildcard, and has a lot of noise going on just within his family. He is tight with the Curtis twins, and I believe they will look elsewhere as well. Kraft will be here until he runs out of eligibility. Jones will be back. I most likely am the odd man out on my assessment of Jones based on the comments I've read. My opinion, based on stats (which I know, a physical presence isnt measured in stats), he is a complete liability on offense. A D1 team just cant have that. His defense is physical, but that's it. He doesnt rebound well, and doesnt block as many shots as one would expect. The dumb fouls are off the chart, and aggravatin. He stays here because the coaches love it. Guga will be gone. Karson - who knows. He should have never burned the redshirt year. Just my opinion.

🤣🤣 after scoring 80+ points in the Summit League tournament and being named on the all summit league team, as well as breaking the freshman scoring record at UND, along with the other accolades, I don't think that's what his agent is telling him. But I guess time will tell. Im not sure what your definition of a little bag is, but I think he will have options.

There might be, but here is a picture