Class of 2023 F Alyssa Latham (IL) transferring to Tennessee

[jr4750]

Ugh. I hate this so much.

 

[Dr. Bill]

Ugh. I hate this so much.

Losing Latham Hurt! Why? She was an important building block for the growth of this team over the next few years. In the current "Transfer Portal" environment, building a team, will be an every year project! In the old days, players transferred for many reasons, but playing time and relationship with the coaching staff were key reasons. Now, those two things can be in place, but there is another factor that trumps these traditional obstacles, and that is Money...NIL cash! Today, players are hunting for the best deals...Can we really blame them, when they see other players getting paid big money, buying $100,000 cars as college students? Not saying Latham left for more money, I don't know why she left, but on the surface, Syracuse seemed to offer everything she needed to develop as a player as well as a person. We had all better get used to this kind of scenario because recruiting, now has three phases:
1)Recruiting High School talent
2) Re-recruting your existing talent to keep them on the team
3) Recruiting the transfer portal to rplace talent that you lost

Welcome to the new era of College Sports

 

[llandz]

Losing Latham Hurt! Why? She was an important building block for the growth of this team over the next few years. In the current "Transfer Portal" environment, building a team, will be an every year project! In the old days, players transferred for many reasons, but playing time and relationship with the coaching staff were key reasons. Now, those two things can be in place, but there is another factor that trumps these traditional obstacles, and that is Money...NIL cash! Today, players are hunting for the best deals...Can we really blame them, when they see other players getting paid big money, buying $100,000 cars as college students? Not saying Latham left for more money, I don't know why she left, but on the surface, Syracuse seemed to offer everything she needed to develop as a player as well as a person. We had all better get used to this kind of scenario because recruiting, now has three phases:
1)Recruiting High School talent
2) Re-recruting your existing talent to keep them on the team
3) Recruiting the transfer portal to rplace talent that you lost

Welcome to the new era of College Sports

Number 2 is always going to be a problem in all sports. Better player will be worth more money, and better players will want to be with the top teams. We have to get to the next level to help keep our players. We are close, and I think in this sport it will happen. If Felisha can't keep them, no one person can. She is incredibly engaging and involved with her players.

 

[Dr. Bill]

Number 2 is always going to be a problem in all sports. Better player will be worth more money, and better players will want to be with the top teams. We have to get to the next level to help keep our players. We are close, and I think in this sport it will happen. If Felisha can't keep them, no one person can. She is incredibly engaging and involved with her players.

 

[Dr. Bill]

'If Felisha can't keep them, no one person can. She is incredibly engaging and involved with her players"!!!
That is why the LATHAM transfer hurts so much!! All the reasons that LATHAM STATED, when she was interviewed and asked why she selected Syracuse, were true, she got playing time , she played almost the entire game, and if it wasn't for her tendency to commit fouls, she would have played almost 40 minutes per game. Coach Jack is a great mentor and loves on all her players......So, her decision to transfer, had to be motivated by something else...... and that something else, is going to remain a temptation! We haven't mentioned the fact that teams are now tampering with players and putting out feelers through agents, to entice them to leave their current programs, long before they ever enter their names in the Portal.

 

[Cheriehoop]

'If Felisha can't keep them, no one person can. She is incredibly engaging and involved with her players"!!!
That is why the LATHAM transfer hurts so much!! All the reasons that LATHAM STATED, when she was interviewed and asked why she selected Syracuse, were true, she got playing time , she played almost the entire game, and if it wasn't for her tendency to commit fouls, she would have played almost 40 minutes per game. Coach Jack is a great mentor and loves on all her players...So, her decision to transfer, had to be motivated by something else... and that something else, is going to remain a temptation! We haven't mentioned the fact that teams are now tampering with players and putting out feelers through agents, to entice them to leave their current programs, long before they ever enter their names in the Portal.

I think it may have been more like a Quincy Guerrier reason - Latham from her statements didn’t want to be an inside player but wanted to play more on the perimeter, handle the ball more etc. She wanted to define her own role on the team.

 

[swish7]

Losing Latham Hurt! Why? She was an important building block for the growth of this team over the next few years. In the current "Transfer Portal" environment, building a team, will be an every year project! In the old days, players transferred for many reasons, but playing time and relationship with the coaching staff were key reasons. Now, those two things can be in place, but there is another factor that trumps these traditional obstacles, and that is Money...NIL cash! Today, players are hunting for the best deals...Can we really blame them, when they see other players getting paid big money, buying $100,000 cars as college students? Not saying Latham left for more money, I don't know why she left, but on the surface, Syracuse seemed to offer everything she needed to develop as a player as well as a person. We had all better get used to this kind of scenario because recruiting, now has three phases:
1)Recruiting High School talent
2) Re-recruting your existing talent to keep them on the team
3) Recruiting the transfer portal to rplace talent that you lost

Welcome to the new era of College Sports

Let's keep this simple. She left for $.

 

[Cheriehoop]

Let's keep this simple. She left for $.

Bet it didn’t hurt.

 

[swish7]

Bet it didn’t hurt.

If we are a stepping stone while boosters make sacrifices to the ghosts of a bygone Pat Summit era & we can continue to find one hit wonders like Cardoso & Latham & have real shots at upsetting the blue bloods, I'll take it. Retooling everything every year is the new reality. Almost need a whole additional resource on staff to manage this.

 

[Dr. Bill]

I think it may have been more like a Quincy Guerrier reason - Latham from her statements didn’t want to be an inside player but wanted to play more on the perimeter, handle the ball more etc. She wanted to define her own role on the team.

Her impression of her game, the way she described her skill set, when interviewed, was different then the reality of what she presented on the court. Yes, she could handle the ball, and had some mobility, and perimeter skill set, but, that aspect of her game, needs a lot of work. She had every opportunity to perform that "Unicorn" skill set, that she always talked about, but, her outside shot was very inconsistent. She went through a serious scoring slump in the middle of the season and had difficulty converting simple put backs from inside. There is a huge leap from high school to college, and she definitely showed flashes of what is to come, but she did not dominate from an offensive standpoint, like some of the big time freshmen wings that come to mind.. I wish her the best of luck in her quest to be the best....

 

[CuseLegacy]

It will be interesting to see how things go for her at Tenn. Her father stated that Syracuse was "not a good fit".

 

[Cheriehoop]

It will be interesting to see how things go for her at Tenn. Her father stated that Syracuse was "not a good fit".

There’s probably jealousy over star players like Fair or Tiana when she played here. It happens and it could very well happen again. There might even be some UB jealousy. Always part of the coaching journey to balance individual expectations with team balance which probably is really only heightened in this new transfer portal, NIL world.

 

[swish7]

It will be interesting to see how things go for her at Tenn. Her father stated that Syracuse was "not a good fit".

This might be why Danny Hurley & other pretty good coaches say they review the parents as much as the kids.

 

[MSOrange]

Her impression of her game, the way she described her skill set, when interviewed, was different then the reality of what she presented on the court. Yes, she could handle the ball, and had some mobility, and perimeter skill set, but, that aspect of her game, needs a lot of work. She had every opportunity to perform that "Unicorn" skill set, that she always talked about, but, her outside shot was very inconsistent. She went through a serious scoring slump in the middle of the season and had difficulty converting simple put backs from inside. There is a huge leap from high school to college, and she definitely showed flashes of what is to come, but she did not dominate from an offensive standpoint, like some of the big time freshmen wings that come to mind.. I wish her the best of luck in her quest to be the best...

Very good assessment. She had a really good year and I loved her potential, but I agree that she seemed to really hit the freshman wall at a certain point and I actually felt Coach FLJ put her in the position to best do the things that were still working for her to help the team.

 

[llandz]

There’s probably jealousy over star players like Fair or Tiana when she played here. It happens and it could very well happen again. There might even be some UB jealousy. Always part of the coaching journey to balance individual expectations with team balance which probably is really only heightened in this new transfer portal, NIL world.

Having spent some time alone with the team, and with her specifically, I don't think she has the personality to be jealous of a star, but she is very shy, and I was told she was shy by staff, so I think coming in with all of the Buffalo players, and the returning players who gelled the prior season with the Buffalo players, made friendships a hard nut to crack for someone who is shy.

 

[Cheriehoop]

Having spent some time alone with the team, and with her specifically, I don't think she has the personality to be jealous of a star, but she is very shy, and I was told she was shy by staff, so I think coming in with all of the Buffalo players, and the returning players who gelled the prior season with the Buffalo players, made friendships a hard nut to crack for someone who is shy.

Interesting that she’s shy. The article below, about her, she sounded like a pretty confident person. It’s a big move to go to a different program in a different state with a different staff, teammates, professors etc. I was really looking forward to her development here.

Latham doesn’t want to put a limit on who she can be on or off the court

Latham is a burgeoning piece for a program that has had a breakthrough season and opens NCAA Tournament play Saturday afternoon.

www.syracuse.com

 

[llandz]

Interesting that she’s shy. The article below, about her, she sounded like a pretty confident person. It’s a big move to go to a different program in a different state with a different staff, teammates, professors etc. I was really looking forward to her development here.

Latham doesn’t want to put a limit on who she can be on or off the court

Latham is a burgeoning piece for a program that has had a breakthrough season and opens NCAA Tournament play Saturday afternoon.

www.syracuse.com

I spent Thanksgiving weekend with her and the team and had dinner with them and interacted with her directly as she used the locker I donated. She was definitely shy around me and around her teammates. I did not make this up.

 

[Cheriehoop]

I spent Thanksgiving weekend with her and the team and had dinner with them and interacted with her directly as she used the locker I donated. She was definitely shy around me and around her teammates. I did not make this up.

I didn’t think nor ever say that you made anything up and sorry you took it that way. I was referencing the article that depicted a confident player in her abilities that she thought weren’t being utilized fully yet. I mean the title of the article is ‘Latham doesn’t want to put a limit on who she can be on or off the court”. Found it interesting.

 

[CoopSwoop]

He's locked his twitter now and sanitized most of it.

Johnny Latham
Feb 29

Thanks for the love! Alyssa
@DLyss32
isn't talked about like other freshmen as much. But she's not in the position to have to do as much as some of the other young ladies. Hopefully, people watch next year, and she is a BALLER

This decision feels more like a parental involvement. Every parent wants the best outcome for their child. Sometimes their vision overshadows the reality. No matter where she played this year, Alyssa was not in same league as JuJu, Hannah, Fulwiley, Tess Johnson, Madison Booker. For one the are all guards and more athletic, better ball handlers and shooters.

She's not a Rickea Jackson, does not have the range, explosive step to basket. She is a rebounder and will play similiar role at Tenn as Hollingshed is their only other big at the moment.

Wish her well but think it will be rocky road in rocky top as there is a lot of height in the SEC.

 

[baggerbob]

This decision feels more like a parental involvement. Every parent wants the best outcome for their child. Sometimes their vision overshadows the reality. No matter where she played this year, Alyssa was not in same league as JuJu, Hannah, Fulwiley, Tess Johnson, Madison Booker. For one the are all guards and more athletic, better ball handlers and shooters.

She's not a Rickea Jackson, does not have the range, explosive step to basket. She is a rebounder and will play similiar role at Tenn as Hollingshed is their only other big at the moment.

Wish her well but think it will be rocky road in rocky top as there is a lot of height in the SEC.

And the Tennessee offense has always been throw up a shot and go after the rebound.

 

[Dr. Bill]

This decision feels more like a parental involvement. Every parent wants the best outcome for their child. Sometimes their vision overshadows the reality. No matter where she played this year, Alyssa was not in same league as JuJu, Hannah, Fulwiley, Tess Johnson, Madison Booker. For one the are all guards and more athletic, better ball handlers and shooters.

She's not a Rickea Jackson, does not have the range, explosive step to basket. She is a rebounder and will play similiar role at Tenn as Hollingshed is their only other big at the moment.

Wish her well but think it will be rocky road in rocky top as there is a lot of height in the SEC.

She was given every opportunity to display her talent. WAs she given a do not shoot order from the staff? She played almost 30 minutes per game and would have played longer if she could have stayed out of foul trouble. I am not trying to slam her game, she has talent and I actually thinjk she had a good freshman year, but to somehow imply that she was miss- used , or wasn't given an opportunity to display her true talent...I just don't understand that line of thinking at all. Her game and versatility would have developed just fine had she stayed at the Cuse, but I will always support people who think they can do better by leaving a situation because it is their life to live! Best of luck and only time will tell...

 

[Marsh01]

Something tells me this is not her last stop

 

[dollarbill44]

Interesting that she’s shy. The article below, about her, she sounded like a pretty confident person. It’s a big move to go to a different program in a different state with a different staff, teammates, professors etc. I was really looking forward to her development here.

Latham doesn’t want to put a limit on who she can be on or off the court

Latham is a burgeoning piece for a program that has had a breakthrough season and opens NCAA Tournament play Saturday afternoon.

www.syracuse.com

"Shy" doesn't automatically mean not confident. People can be very confident in their own abilities and still be introverted.

 

[Cheriehoop]

"Shy" doesn't automatically mean not confident. People can be very confident in their own abilities and still be introverted.

Being introverted or quiet doesn’t always mean one is shy either. A person can be introverted, quiet yet confident in their own abilities but not shy. Too bad she didn’t feel comfortable here regardless of her reason.