Program Height Realistic Expectations

[BUBraves2006]

I almost put this in the Rienk thread, but thought it fit best here:

I keep coming back to the regular season championship in Peoria.

You, as a player, can take that one of two ways:

1. You can observe how incredible it was and see the growing potential for the team. It shows how Peoria will support a winner. You keep playing for bigger crowds. Sustained success leads to maybe more chances at at large bids.

2. You can observe how incredible it was and think that might be a once in a lifetime thing because of how big of a deal that one game was. You achieve this incredible thing and ... you still don't even get a NCAA tournament bid. You don't even get a NIT home game against a team you clearly had a better season than other than in name recognition.

I don't know a single player personally as most of us on here don't, but I worry that I might have misjudged how many fall into camp one and how many fall into camp two.

 

[Da Coach]

I think all the Bradley players are extremely grateful that Bradley offered a full scholarship and an opportunity to play D1 basketball, and that Bradley has kept their commitment. Most are extremely happy and satisfied with their situation, and have no interest in looking to transfer. But with the NIL money now available, everything has changed. It's not just the kids who want more playing time, or think the coach is too demanding that consider transferring like it used to be. It now could be any player who has a degree of success, and some school with deep pockets thinks he can fill a role they need.
Today's student-athletes have only 4 or 5 years to make the most of their careers, so you can't blame them for looking at all their options.
Unless the NCAA figures out a way to reign in the use of NIL money as a tool to recruit ready-to-play D1 players from the mid-majors, we need to get used to the fact this could happen every year.