Duke gets a commitment from top 25 recruit Guard Ashlon Jackson today. A big get from a player recruited by UConn Louisville and others
^ can i borrow a microscope?
It appears that 3 Duke WBB players have entered the transfer portal:
Mikayla Boykin
Sara Anastasieska
Jayda Adams
https://twitter.com/ariivory/status/1352833896904339458
Boykin and Adams both graduated HS in 2017, so they should be getting their degrees this spring. Anastasieska was a grad transfer this year. If there is March Madness in 5 or 6 weeks, and they are immediately eligible (I have no idea), I can't imagine any competitive team blowing up their chemistry at this point in the season by inserting newcomers.
Plus a quick search does not confirm this news from any major source.
Sara confirms on twitter. I've seen nothing on the others.
https://twitter.com/AnastasieskaS/st...387590/photo/2
While of course there is no way to know how our ACC season would have shaken out, we do know how Carolina's is going.
In short...badly.
They are 8-7 overall, with each of those losses coming in conference play, placing them at 3-7 in the ACC. Their chances of a post season are next to nil.
In hindsight, I'm very ok with UNC getting Banghart as their coach.
Q "Why do you like Duke, you didn't even go there." A "Because my art school didn't have a basketball team."
Well, she had a full season last year, too, and that was a disastrous start. She has players now that are from her first recruiting class, which was the 11th in the country, so it's not like she doesn't have talent on her court.
Next year will be her biggest test, since this year she signed the #2 class.
Q "Why do you like Duke, you didn't even go there." A "Because my art school didn't have a basketball team."
While I wouldn't bet against Duke or UNC long term, things will continue to be really competitive in the ACC. In 2020 the conference had 5 top 20 recruiting classes:
http://www.espn.com/high-school/girl...s/_/class/2020
For 2021 it's six at this point:
https://www.espn.com/womens-college-...na-starts-no-1
As we all know, great recruiting in WBB does not always translate into great success, so the next couple of seasons in the ACC should be pretty interesting all around. For the time being, I'm not used to State having the best team in the triangle and seeing ND with a mediocre team, but who knows how this will shake out.
For those following WBB at all this year, the season is absolutely bonkers, with what will be the fifth No. 1
USC
Stanford
UL
USC
and now
Uconn
I think there are probably a dozen teams who could make a run at the title.
April 1
Haley Gorecki was just invited to Seattle camp and this will have another shot to compete for a roster spot after getting cut last year
Resurrecting the thread to point out that transfers aren't just a men's thing. Duke had another player enter the transfer portal today, Jennifer Ezeh. Ezeh spent two years on the roster and had yet to play in a game for Duke. That brings the list of transfers to (in order of exit):
Mikayla Boykin - Starting PG
Sara Anastasieska - Reserve SG (transfered in last season)
Jayda Adams - Reserve PG (out last season with a knee injury)
Jaida Patrick - Starting/reserve combo guard
Jada Claude - Reserve PF
Jennifer Ezeh - Injured PF
At this point we have just five scholarship players on the roster, and that's assuming the graduating Jade Williams returns to play next year, which she has not announced and which I understand she is not expected to do. We also have two incoming freshman commits, and one walk-on.
I've not heard anything about transfers in, and it is largely too late to grab incoming freshman that would be contributors next year.
I know coaching changes often prompt a lot of players leaving, but the extent of the exodus is surprising and, frankly, concerning. At this point it would be nice to hear something from the school, IMO.
Tell us they are aware of what it looks like. Explain a little bit about what is going on, and, hopefully, tell us they have a plan in place. Six players later, it's not a coincidence. What are we doing to address it? I have to think it looks really bad on the recruiting trail, too. Surely some kind of statement would help with that aspect, too, even if any statement is bound to be quite vague, at least admit there's an issue. Even just thanking the exiting players for their time at Duke would be helpful to try to show that we aren't running them off.
The look here is really terrible, IMO.
Last edited by Phredd3; 03-16-2021 at 02:57 PM.
yeah. I mean, maybe if they had a season some might have been sold and stuck it out, but given they're no longer being coached by the person they thought they were going to be playing for, are we surprised that they are taking advantage of a free transfer? especially when Lawson made it clear by rescinding some offers that she is going in a different direction?
The concern to me isn't that some of these guys are moving on, but in filling out the class for next year, which as Phredd points out, is on the slim side.
April 1