Awaka to the portal

#128
#128
Stoerner Fumbles said:
Aidoo’s choice and Awaka’s choice are wholly independent of one another. We are not out of the woods with Aidoo. He took the end of the season and Purdue loss very hard and has been light on communication. There was growing optimism in the program that Awaka might stay, but Jonas’ quiet has been read with trepidation. I really hope we don’t lose any more core players. I’ll be sweating til five a lot, and mildly worried after. Awaka and ZZ were the fire on the team, but Jonas is an easier fit in the offense. Let’s hope he stays.
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What happens at 5?
 
#133
#133
Proud Army Wife said:
I’m talking about her replies to the comments in the post.
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Every core member of the team has an offer somewhere else of more money and more minutes. We are not handling either aspect well this year. While NIL has changed things, it has never been like this, and we aren’t ready.
 
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#134
#134
Maybe Awaka entered as a play for more N.I.L. money and UT gives it to him to keep him?

No clue but this sucks but is Awaka worth more money if he can't stop fouling and stay on the court? Only way that happens is if we play a 2 big lineup like we did at times this year and I absolutely loved.
 
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#136
#136
It is time to face the facts about Awake and Aidoo. First, Awake is 6'7 and hass a solid, in the paint , offensive game. However, his range in very limited and has no offensive game outside of 10 feet. He has improved his free throw percentage which helped him this year. Defensively, he has limits when he is defending Players who are taller than him and/or have an offensive game which is out to 15 feet. His attitude is really good and he played a tough game of basketball. His real game is as a 4 but his offensive skills are not yet capable of playing the 4 in the SEC. I hate to see him in the portal but is likely the best for him to get more playing time.

Aidoo on the other hand, is 7' tall and runs the floor well for his size. He is capable of have very good offensive games when his attitude is aggressive. However, one can never depend on his attitude to be aggressive. He has worked on his offense but still seems to be inconsistent outside 10 feet. He needs to improve his strength, rebound with authority, and protect the rim. I think he can improve in these areas, with hard work and the correct attitude. His improvement is up to him and his attitude. He did improve his play and attitude in many games this year, but seem to regress in his game time attitude. His further will be determined by his approach to improving his weaknesses and attitude. I hope he stays and becomes the player he can be. It is up to him and his desire to become great player.
 
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#140
#140
Stoerner Fumbles said:
Every core member of the team has an offer somewhere else of more money and more minutes. We are not handling either aspect well this year. While NIL has changed things, it has never been like this, and we aren’t ready.
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This kind of makes me concerned about our transfer prospects as well... sounds like we might get the short end of the stick if we end up in a NIL bidding war with other teams for a portal player.
 
#143
#143
gainesvol82 said:
Maybe Awaka entered as a play for more N.I.L. money and UT gives it to him to keep him?

No clue but this sucks but is Awaka worth more money if he can't stop fouling and stay on the court? Only way that happens is if we play a 2 big lineup like we did at times this year and I absolutely loved.
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Doesn't sound likely. Mashack's mom replied to someone on Twitter if there was a chance he'd come back and she said "nope"...


I'd expect we'll here soon that he's going to St John's.
 
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#144
#144
Stoerner Fumbles said:
Every core member of the team has an offer somewhere else of more money and more minutes. We are not handling either aspect well this year. While NIL has changed things, it has never been like this, and we aren’t ready.
Click to expand...

Which begs the question, why were we not ready?

Not an expert at the landscape of this whole thing, but it seems to me that everyone knew that what we are seeing play out now was coming.
 
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#145
#145
Will not be shocked to see Aidoo leaving and JP being our starting center next year.
 
#147
#147
I'll say this about Tobe Awaka. I really hate to lose him. I really do. He's one of my favorite players. But if he can't stay on the floor because of his undisciplined defense, then he wasn't likely to see more minutes anyway. He will go get paid more money elsewhere, but honestly, his fouling is what kept him from more playing time, so no guarantees on that front at his next stop. Best of luck to him going forward unless they play the Vols.
 
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#148
#148
I hate what the process has become. I do not blame the players at all, but the change isn't good in the long run for most. Why would a program like ours recruit a player that is not a sure fire starter by year two anymore?
 
#149
#149
Great rebounder but not really a center. Doesn't have the floor game to play the four in our system. I'm not sure this is a bad move by him because he might be a better fit in a different system.
 
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#150
#150
Estrella will get major minutes next year. Aidoo may see this and decide
his best bet will also be to leave. Can't blame any of them. We should
hope Philips stays around, there is no guarantee of this either.
 
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