Big 4 Hoops Blogger

Javonte Brown was a player that had visited Syracuse, San Diego State and Ohio this offseason. Former UConn and Texas A&M player who was a Top 125 recruit in high school. Intriguing addition for Western Michigan.

I’m always excited about Ohio and Buffalo hoops. I think the Bobcats are a 20+ win, top 100 team heading into next season. As for UB, I can’t wait to see how Halcovage does year one and how he rebuilds the Bulls program. I’ve always thought that both schools should be in the top five of the MAC on a yearly basis with Akron, Kent and Toledo.

I have no issue with not rooting for him. I personally have no interest in where his career goes from here but do think he’s a decent head coach.

That’s fair. Obviously, I don’t know if the 100k number is true or how they choose to allocate their funds if that indeed is the case. We’ll just have to see how everything plays out.

Let’s not dismiss Calhoun now because he didn’t want to come to UB. He’s a solid coach and has done well at a program that’s very difficult to succeed at. Predicting the better job will never come sounds like wishing him a bad future.

What about roster retention? Ohio just kept their entire team in place and added two solid guards into the mix. They’re also likely to add another big man soon. Boals has mentioned that a big part of the job now is re-recruiting your own players at the end of every season due to the transfer portal. You better believe that NIL is just as important in that regard as it is to adding new talent. And let’s not just downplay Cornish and Mitchell. Cornish in high school would’ve gone down as the highest ranked recruit in UB history. Just because it didn’t work out at Maryland doesn’t mean he’s not a solid transfer for a MAC program. We would be hyping him up a ton if he was coming to Buffalo.

Fair point and you’re right that the list of schools involved weren’t tremendous. Ohio was in the running for talented Monmouth transfer Myles Foster (went to Illinois State) and is pursuing another former Top 200 recruit out of UCONN and Texas A&M. The point is that Boals is being aggressive. I didn’t want to post this because it’s unconfirmed but there was a rumor that Ohio’s collective has raised $100,000 for basketball. That’s not nothing if true…

The reasoning was “why would he leave a job for another similar situation at UB when he can wait for something better?” His contract ended up getting re-worked. Calhoun has also already had success with the portal at YSU which is an awful job.

This is a quote on Bobcat Attack allegedly from Jeff Boals regarding the transfer portal while talking to fans at a caravan event: Unsurprising insight from caravan event in Pickerington: Players in the portal are driven by dollar signs. "And big men are more expensive than anyone else." -- Jeff Boals. I read somewhere that it was rumored Ohio had a decent chunk of change in their collective for basketball. They recently added a former 4-star Maryland transfer and 3-star Creighton transfer. Pair that together with UB being relatively quiet on the portal front and it makes you think. Jerrod Calhoun was rumored to not be interested in the job once he heard about the Bulls NIL situation. I think this is going to play a bigger factor going forward than many posters on this board want to admit.

I don't think anyone is saying UB needs to pay basketball recruits $50,000+ to sign with our program but it is possible to get kids a few thousand bucks through a collective with a little bit of effort. The priority should be on improving facilities and making the program sustainable for long term success first and foremost but it's clear that Buffalo can't just ignore NIL's. There are other mid-majors securing four star recruits and high level transfers. If UB wants to be among the top mid-majors again, they'll have to play the same game as everyone else. Woj comments in the video that if you're not willing to do what it takes, you're gonna fall behind. He even mentions that Bona has to figure things out as well. The collectives aren't just about bringing players in but they can also play a pivotal role in keeping players at your program. There are mid-major players with agents and family members shopping their services to power programs in season. Schools with collectives can sometimes find ways to convince players to stay.

Didn't know where to post this but thought it was relevant to UB and recent conversations on our board regarding NIL collectives and facilities. Woj is absolutely correct. It sucks to admit as a mid-major program but a huge part of recruiting now is paying up and taking a year-to-year approach. Will be interesting to see how we fill out our roster.

Dwight Wilson will be a big loss for them. He was the Bobcats best player last year and a force in the post. Baker turned it on late but should be replaceable. Ohio might have the best collection of guards in the MAC next year and I wouldn't be surprised to see them utilize four guard lineups at times. They return Jaylin Hunter, AJ Brown (former top 200 recruit), Elmore James, Miles Brown and just added Maryland transfer Ike Cornish (former 4-star, top 115 recruit) and Creighton transfer Shareef Mitchell (former 3-star, top 235 recruit).

Solid addition for Ohio. Looks like he might have two years of eligibility remaining since he only played in six games his junior year at Creighton. Former Top 250 recruit and Nebraska Gatorade Player of the Year. Will be interesting to see where he fits in with the Bobcats guard rotation that returns Hunter/James/AJ Brown/M. Brown. Can sometimes be difficult projecting P5 backups transferring to the mid-major level.

I don't know how many of you actively use Twitter but I'm always posting about UB sports and the Bills/Sabres. You can find me at @Mike_Bundt

I don't know how many of you actively use Twitter but I'm always posting about UB sports and the Bills/Sabres. You can find me at @Mike_Bundt

Hey guys, We're back for another episode of Talkin' Big 4 Hoops tonight. John Snyder and myself will be joined by Kevin Massare around 6:30ish. We'll have a link to the live show below. You can also watch the replay of the entire episode after the fact. We have some juicy news regarding the latest rumors surrounding the UB coaching search and give our opinions on where things currently stand.

Hey guys, We're back for another episode of Talkin' Big 4 Hoops tonight. John Snyder and myself will be joined by Kevin Massare around 6:30ish. We'll have a link to the live show below. You can also watch the replay of the entire episode after the fact. We have some juicy news regarding the latest rumors surrounding the UB coaching search and give our opinions on where things currently stand.

He had a huge decline in minutes and production this year under Michael Lewis. Niagara will offer him an opportunity to start again and be a key contributor on an improving MAAC squad. I like the fit for him on the Purple Eagles. He wasn't a great player in the MAC but should be decent in the MAAC.

Wouldn't this be how UB is trying to help their student athletes acquire NIL deals? They have a Built In Buffalo NIL student request form. https://ubbulls.com/sb_output.aspx?form=22

I don't know if UB currently has one but Ohio launched their NIL program last May: https://ohiobobcats.com/news/2022/5/24/general-ohio-athletics-unveils-the-ohio-nil-exchange-to-public.aspx Here's an idea of how it operates: https://dash.inflcr.com/exchange/ohio-university

I recently gave my thoughts on UB firing Jim Whitesell on Trainwreck Sports. Fast forward to the 12:20 mark for our coaching discussion.

It appears that only three of their regional locations have been announced at this time (Wichita, Louisville, West Virginia). I know there was speculation about Buffalo in the past and would think that's a strong possibility given Blue Collar's recent string of success. https://thetournament.com/tbt/2023-locations/