Class of 2019 PG Dakota Leffew (GA) Portal to Georgia

[Cuse2023]

can y0u provide any evidence of your assertions?

My evidence is that I have people involved telling me this is the case.

Or the fact that we lost Jesse to money, wasn’t close at all to the Hunter Dickinson recruitment because of money, lost Jalil Bethea to money, was out of the Malik Mack sweepstakes because of money, etc

Even if you have no sources inside Syracuse, If you can't recognize this ^^ and connect the dots then I don't know what to tell you.

The same goes for when you see a great PG or Center (before we had Lampkin) enter the portal and see Syracuse isn't involved. There is a reason why.

 

[pwong]

The fact you can see how little all this $$ has truly translated to results is important too. Great example of a multi sport school figuring it out is Tennessee. Chasing good mid major guys out of the portal while trying to retain what they can of their guys. I’m sure they have a bigger budget too but point is they are certainly managing things a little differently too than some of those we lost out too.

Gtown is rebooting all over again after Cooley flunked in year 1. Miami looked like crap after their FF run. Kansas was bad by their standards despite all they spent.

I’m not saying having all the NIL in the world will automatically give you the best on court results but a good amount of on court performance comes from having higher end talent (from having good NIL) and good roster management

 

[Capt. Tuttle]

Hate this take. Terrible

Why?

 

[Orangezoo]

I’m not saying having all the NIL in the world will automatically give you the best on court results but a good amount of good on court is performance comes from having higher end talent (from having good NIL) and good roster management

Grading it out is where it gets tricky though too- are we too low to be able to compete effectively? Not sure that fact is by any means settled even if we do need to improve- like any money race that’s a moving target so improving is always going to be a goal.

 

[CardiacCuse]

My evidence is that I have people involved telling me this is the case.

Even if you have no sources inside Syracuse, If you can't recognize this ^^ and connect the dots than I don't know what to tell you.

so howd they get the highest rated portal guard in 2023 JJ starling then???

 

[PauliePeppas]

I think the biggest question is why? How has football come in and raised all this NIL money? How does Indiana have all this NIL money but we don't? We have one of the biggest fan bases in the nation and constantly lead in attendance why are we lacking in NIL? What are other basketball programs doing that we are late to the party with? Why didn't the Red hire generate buzz and new funding streams for the program?

There is no reason why Syracuse, one of the top basketball brands in the nation, is taking a back seat to anyone in NIL to be honest.

Agreed on all fronts, frustrating

 

[RyanCuse44]

If Ballo getting 1.2 mill we can connect the dots. SU is not doing that

Yes but their fans chipped in with their GoFund Me

 

[pwong]

Grading it out is where it gets tricky though too- are we too low to be able to compete effectively? Not sure that fact is by any means settled even if we do need to improve- like any money race that’s a moving target so improving is always going to be a goal.

I agree, I don’t think Cuse is poor in NIL but just above average last year in the ACC last year. It doesn’t seem like we’ve improved enough bball NIL wise due to focus on football where as other schools improved significantly.

You can kind of tell based on the lack of HM transfers we are connected to (outside of Lampkin who came out of no where). HM transfers will cost more than MM up transfers generally.

 

[Orangezoo]

I agree, I don’t think Cuse is poor in NIL but just above average last year in the ACC last year. It doesn’t seem like we’ve improved enough bball NIL wise due to focus on football where as other schools improved significantly.

You can kind of tell based on the lack of HM transfers we are connected to (outside of Lampkin who came out of no where). HM transfers will cost more than MM up transfers generally.

I guess another factor is NIL terms- if they go beyond a players time on campus and that money is tied up then you are managing the equivalent of dead money too… this is something I’ve been curious about how it’s managed with the portal and even kids that go pro

 

[SUFan44]

Why?

Going to the highest bidder and 'getting yours' is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard and not what college athletics has been about. Slippery slope, which I fear is already arrived and too late to turn back.

 

[FrancoPizza]

There is no reason why Syracuse, one of the top basketball brands in the nation, is taking a back seat to anyone in NIL to be honest.

I’d expect there to be a loose correlation between program revenue and NIL, by sheer fact that ticket revenue is a good indicator of fan support. And I’d guess SU is underperforming based on that metric.

 

[Orangezoo]

Going to the highest bidder and 'getting yours' is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard and not what college athletics has been about. Slippery slope, which I fear is already arrived and too late to turn back.

Get paid and hopefully win
Get paid
Win and hopefully get paid
Just win

That’s the new order of importance for many.

 

[Capt. Tuttle]

Going to the highest bidder and 'getting yours' is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard and not what college athletics has been about. Slippery slope, which I fear is already arrived and too late to turn back.

Right. In your world it’s about indentured servitude where everyone except the players, (without whom there would be no college athletics), are free to work where they want and make as much as the market will bear.
By the way, those restrictions have had a disproportionate impact on kids from low income families, many of whom are minorities, while the people in control and preventing access are predominantly from affluen, white families.
How is that fair.

 

[Cuse2023]

so howd they get the highest rated portal guard in 2023 JJ starling then???

Maybe because he is from Syracuse, wanted to come home, and wasn't interested in going wherever the biggest bag was?

Also just because he was ranked on some website as the best guard in the portal doesn't mean he was the most sought after.

 

[Dmcnabbrules]

Maybe because he is from Syracuse, wanted to come home, and wasn't interested in going wherever the biggest bag was?

He and Red are very close too.

 

[Cusefan0307]

I’m sure people will disagree, but I saw little evidence this year that being the highest bidder in the portal was the key to building a winning team. Arkansas tried to buy a team and they imploded, Kansas was meh this year and Villanova was equal to us. I think some get too caught up in Power 5 names when there’s just as good of players At mid majors who have chips on their shoulders.

 

[CardiacCuse]

Maybe because he is from Syracuse, wanted to come home, and wasn't interested in going wherever the biggest bag was?

Also just because he was ranked on some website as the best guard in the portal doesn't mean he was the most sought after.

ok well why did lampkin come despite rumored interest from houston, gtown, providence, and texas?

those schools dont have NIL?

 

[CardiacCuse]

I’m sure people will disagree, but I saw little evidence this year that being the highest bidder in the portal was the key to building a winning team. Arkansas tried to buy a team and they imploded, Kansas was meh this year and Villanova was equal to us. I think some get too caught up in Power 5 names when there’s just as good of players At mid majors who have chips on their shoulders.

agreed. these players are actual people who can think for themselves and do...they dont just auction themselves off to the highest bidder

 

[SUFan44]

Right. In your world it’s about indentured servitude where everyone except the players, (without whom there would be no college athletics), are free to work where they want and make as much as the market will bear.
By the way, those restrictions have had a disproportionate impact on kids from low income families, many of whom are minorities, while the people in control and preventing access are predominantly from affluen, white families.
How is that fair.

Allow me to paint you a picture.

Every single one of these student-athletes is getting a free education. How many of the normal students come out of 4 years of college with zero debt? Not many.

Not to mention, these student-athletes are given top-notch access to facilities, athletic training, doctors, nutritionists, full meal plans plus catered meals on the road/during summer months, not to mention the publicity they receive from the school to help grow their brand.

I am all for allowing these student-athletes to make money legitimately. If they can market themselves and have a following, let them enter deals to sell merchandise, make profit, hold camps and clinics in their home towns and college towns to generate revenue. Post on social media to be a brand ambassador. All of that is what NIL was meant to be,

What it WASN’T meant to be and what it has turned into is pay for play. Collectives are a work around and a loophole for what the NIL opportunities were meant to be about. Add to that the free agency that the transfer portal has created, and there is little to no brand identity that goes along with these student-athletes and fans. And ultimately, it will slowly degenerate into a product that just isn’t watchable. It’s worse than the NBA or any professional league due to the freedom of movement. Four schools in four years is going to become common place. All of these mid majors are going to be pilfered every year. It is going to create burnout for staff members, coaches, etc., who most make enough money but many at lower levels do not. It’s ridiculous.

 

[phil77]

I’m sure people will disagree, but I saw little evidence this year that being the highest bidder in the portal was the key to building a winning team. Arkansas tried to buy a team and they imploded, Kansas was meh this year and Villanova was equal to us. I think some get too caught up in Power 5 names when there’s just as good of players At mid majors who have chips on their shoulders.

There is a difference from just going in the portal and spending the most money we can to get the "best" players on the portal ranking lists and identifying your top portal targets that you feel will help your team get over the top and getting outbid on those players. We are in the latter and most common sense teams are if they are not rebuilding.

 

[SUFan44]

Get paid and hopefully win
Get paid
Win and hopefully get paid
Just win

That’s the new order of importance for many.

And get a free education that will set you up for a life after basketball is 135th on the list.

 

[Sbucketball]

I’m sure people will disagree, but I saw little evidence this year that being the highest bidder in the portal was the key to building a winning team. Arkansas tried to buy a team and they imploded, Kansas was meh this year and Villanova was equal to us. I think some get too caught up in Power 5 names when there’s just as good of players At mid majors who have chips on their shoulders.

Not big enough of a sample size yet. We'll see in a few more years, but there has to at least be a loose correlation. But obviously other variables matter - coaching, fit, maturity, system, etc. Whether it's sustainable is another question, and the biggest winners will be whoever can consistently find the best value, like a moneyball system.

 

[CardiacCuse]

Allow me to paint you a picture.

Every single one of these student-athletes is getting a free education. How many of the normal students come out of 4 years of college with zero debt? Not many.

Not to mention, these student-athletes are given top-notch access to facilities, athletic training, doctors, nutritionists, full meal plans plus catered meals on the road/during summer months, not to mention the publicity they receive from the school to help grow their brand.

I am all for allowing these student-athletes to make money legitimately. If they can market themselves and have a following, let them enter deals to sell merchandise, make profit, hold camps and clinics in their home towns and college towns to generate revenue. Post on social media to be a brand ambassador. All of that is what NIL was meant to be,

What it WASN’T meant to be and what it has turned into is pay for play. Collectives are a work around and a loophole for what the NIL opportunities were meant to be about. Add to that the free agency that the transfer portal has created, and there is little to no brand identity that goes along with these student-athletes and fans. And ultimately, it will slowly degenerate into a product that just isn’t watchable. It’s worse than the NBA or any professional league due to the freedom of movement. Four schools in four years is going to become common place. All of these mid majors are going to be pilfered every year. It is going to create burnout for staff members, coaches, etc., who most make enough money but many at lower levels do not. It’s ridiculous.

the root of the mess is institutional greed and orruption, imo

NCAA just doesnt want to give these players any of the actual revenue the sport generates...so they have this weird setup in place (meanwhile, all the money the nCAA generates off the sport is the basis for them getting money in the first place)...if I was a player...I would keep pushing and sue for actual revenue.

"pay to play" is here to stay and inevitable...needs to be better constructed

my solution: let students get a standard amount across schools...so there isnt competition amongst schools for players..or between players themselves for NIL money from schools...

in other words, player "salaries" are all equal and paid by the NCAA

and then allow them to make whatever they can on top of that...through actual image and likeness deals...that they establish on their own without help from schools/collectives/boosters/etc (but I suppose that would just be too "grey" and not "policeable")

 

[qdawgg]

It depends right? The NIL isn't an unlimited pot of money it is a budget. Say we have a budget of 2.5 million per year and Nova has a budget of 2.0 million per year. We could have used up 2 million of our 2.5 million budget on JJ - Bell - Freeman - Lampkin - Davis - Westry etc and only have 500k left. Nova probably has more left to give to players because they don't have people already taking money like we do. So in turn Nova can offer Leffew more NIL but that doesn't mean our NIL situation is worse than Nova's.

The fact a budget has to be explained to posters on a college fan board…..

 

[Cusefan0307]

Not big enough of a sample size yet. We'll see in a few more years, but there has to at least be a loose correlation. But obviously other variables matter - coaching, fit, maturity, system, etc. Whether it's sustainable is another question, and the biggest winners will be whoever can consistently find the best value, like a moneyball system.

If theres not a strong ROI the market may collapse.