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Virginia should look to recent college basketball pioneers

Umito November 3, 2024

The NIL world that ultimately led to coach Tony Bennett’s retirement will eventually slow down to some extent, but that doesn’t mean a level playing field will exist. By 2025-26, a revenue sharing model under a House agreement will allow member schools of major conferences to have a pool of approximately $20 million to distribute among the sports in their athletic departments, i.e. football and men’s basketball. Schools like Virginiawho have notably excelled in Olympic sports, still operate in the green on behalf of the two aforementioned financiers.

However, a so-called salary cap will fall prey to third-party actors. Players will still have the ability to negotiate deals with companies outside of revenue already received from the shared model, provided those deals reflect fair market value and are reported to a database above $600. This will aim to eliminate the current practice of fee-for-service payment. Now, will schools become adept at hiding paid deals, i.e. a booster promising millions to a certain player with no specific business goal? Without a doubt. Will the NCAA protect itself against schools seeking to gain a competitive advantage? That remains to be seen.

Sadly, Athletic Director Carla Williams and her team find themselves at a critical juncture that will decide the future of Virginia’s athletics program. The University has always done things differently, whether through high academic standards or Coach Tony Bennett’s unique development system that opposed one-size-fits-all structures.

If Virginia wants to adapt to the current landscape of men’s college basketball, two streets are available, one of which I assume the athletic department hopes to take. While NIL plays second fiddle to football within Division I programs, a few programs have remained alive (and well) while following an eerily similar pattern to Bennett’s throughout 2010, relying on the development, retention and transfers of players planned to fill certain positions. roles. NIL did not play as large a role in the success of each program as in others.

Here are some “case studies” of schools rich in culture – dependent less on money than on project and part of a system – which should give some hope to a men’s basketball program facing some question marks, especially regarding the tough NIL competition. other major conference universities.

*Outside of San Diego State, all of these schools posted a higher winning percentage in the last three years (NIL/transfer portal era) compared to the three years prior to 2021-22. Also, a recent article by Gary Parrish and Matt Norlander surveyed more than 100 college coaches regarding the top NIL players in men’s college basketball, with 27 schools listed – none of the five below, however, appeared. Each of the five finished last season in the top 20 in the AP poll, including three in the top ten.

1. San Diego State, 75% winning percentage since 2021-22 (previously 78.7%)

West Virginia, the Aztecs do not stray from a defensive style. Despite competing in the weaker Mountain West region, coach Brian Dutcher has led his teams to a national championship appearance and a Sweet Sixteen berth since NIL took off; furthermore, Virginia’s NIL resources can certainly rival those of the Aztecs. Player development and retention (although this year’s roster reflects significant turnover) remains a relative strength in a world in which players come and go as they please.

That’s not to say the ‘Hoos will look to hire Dutcher if things go south, but San Diego State provides a glimmer of hope for schools hoping to maintain their identity. Defense, hustle and sacrifice come to mind as pillars of the Aztec program – not far from Virginia’s. The Flying Dutchman has recruited players from colleges such as Seattle, Oakland, Cal and TCU in recent seasons, turning them into national championship contenders with the Aztecs. Frequent portals can have their benefits if you find these hidden gems on the recruiting journey and, more importantly, if you keep them in-house for several years.

2. Iowa State, 66.7% since 2021-22 (40.7% previously)

The Cyclones faced a similar situation to Louisville following their 2-22 campaign in 2020-21. Coach TJ Otzelberger replaced a shaken Steve Prohm and immediately got Iowa State back on the winning path, implementing a tenacious defensive style and selecting lesser-known portals who would be ready – as in the system of Dutcher – about doing the little things right. That identity has yielded some incredibly impressive results during his three-year tenure, including a second-place regular-season finish in the Big 12 and a conference title last year.

Otzelberger established himself by “building the best defense in college basketball and finding hidden gems on the recruiting trail.” remarked CJ Moore of The Athletic. “He doesn’t want guys who prioritize NIL or want to be promised anything. He prefers to tell recruits the truth and then see if they agree with his assessment.

This sounds a bit like a tactic Bennett (and now, perhaps Sanchez) would appreciate in this landscape of financial madness. If you’re building a culture without NIL, you have to take a certain path forward – in this case, turning lesser-known talents into players who fit your system to the T.

1. Houston, 86.6% since 2021-22 (84.0% previously)

Consistency is key to coach Kelvin Sampson’s program. Thanks to a high-pressure defense, emphasis on physicality and deliberate selection of contributors through the portal, the Cougars have fought their way through regular seasons in both the American and now the Big 12. They don’t recruit at the level of a Duke or UConn, but Sampson doesn’t seem to care – they have a higher winning percentage over the last three years and their players are fully invested in a system that rewards effort and courage. Look no further than 6’1” Jamal Shead, the reigning National Defensive Player of the Year and the 191st overall prospect in his class coming out of high school.

Sampson, like the others below, took great care to retain players through their upperclassmen years; however, he will replace his stars (Shead and guard Marcus Sasser) with Portals if he feels it won’t sacrifice the defensive system. Oklahoma’s Milos Uzan now has the daunting task of replacing Shead, while former Baylor guard LJ Cryer has filled in admirably for Sasser.

NIL resources are not unlimited in Houston, but they are of course still necessary to attract recruits. Instead of relying on the gate and other promises, Sampson’s winning history should do enough to attract prospects willing to work defensively before joining the league. They are the antithesis of Alabama or Arkansas – both portal/NIL havens – and yet they bulldoze their way through the competition every year.

2. Purdue, 82.9% since 2021-22 (63.2% previously)

Arguably no one has done more with less in this decade than Purdue’s Matt Painter. After falling to Virginia in the Elite Eight in 2019, the Boilermakers responded with a National Championship Game appearance and back-to-back regular-season Big Ten titles over the past two years. Painter has only made two transfers since the NIL/portal frenzy began in 2021-22, and he has avoided portal exoduses as well.

Four-year center Zach Edey – ranked 75th at his position coming out of high school – won back-to-back National Player of the Year awards under Painter’s tutelage, and the 33rd ranked point guard prospect in 2022 – junior Braden Smith – is now the preseason favorite for Big Ten Player of the Year. Players simply develop in Purdue’s system.

Defense isn’t as big a strength for Purdue as it is for Iowa State and Marquette, but the Boilermakers have clearly adapted to a changing landscape by sticking to their ways. Does a program with high player retention, underrated recruiting classes and regular season success sound familiar? Painter is also the closest thing to a Bennett-type figure in college basketball.

3. Marquette, 71.4% since 2021-22 (60.4% previously)

A familiar face within Commonwealth, coach Shaka Smart has largely insulated himself from the changing landscape since taking the Marquette job three years ago. Only two transfers have been integrated into the Golden Eagles program during that span — double-digit scorer Darryl Morsell and NBA draft selection Olivier Maxence-Prosper — as Smart has successfully created a culture in which retention of players is the norm, not the anomaly. Another defensive-oriented coach, he made Marquette a Big East contender year after year and also produced NBA prospects.

Coincidentally, the defensive Today’s teams look eerily similar to the Virginia teams of Bennett’s early years. Sampson and Smart are very selective about transfers, like Painter at Purdue, because they rather value player development and the opportunity to separate their culture from that of transfer-heavy or money-motivated teams. It’s harder to turn lower-ranked players into offensive stars, but you can still win with a defensive mentality or a roster filled with players with experience in a certain role in a certain system.

All of this is to say that it is not impossible to create a unique culture within the NIL space. The new wave has certainly taken its toll on Bennett and has undeniably put a strain on the aforementioned coaches. However, an identity (like that of Bennett’s roster in the 2010s) goes a long way toward combatting the pay-to-play structure that currently dominates college sports.

It may take some time for Virginia to reposition itself as a national heavyweight, but there is hope for a light at the end of the tunnel.

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