I had an unfortunate feeling when he did not commit over the weekend during his visit.

I kinda wanted Cam Spencer but cannot complain about Edwards and the overall haul of Coach V. Still uncomfortable with the whole portal transfer thing. Turning the college game into more of a pro game ,personel wise. There is a reason I like college ball over pro ball. A loyalty to the school and the players that choose to play and be part of that community. Guess I am old school when now the phrase is ANY SCHOOL....going to go put on my Chuck Taylors, my LU cutoff sweatshirt, go out in the drive way and shoot some free throws and teach the grand daughter how to hit the baseline hook and think of the Ramblers playing Al McGuire and the Marquette Warriors at the Ampitheatre.

Generally I agree, the transfers thing makes me a bit uncomfortable strictly from an emotional investment perspective. The 4 year guys are always going to be the most special to me, but Aher, Braden, Clayton, Townes, Milt are all guys who are top tier Ramblers in my book despite coming in as transfers. I think the culture of the program is what you make of it and we seem pretty adept at creating that Loyola vibe even with folks who come in via non-traditional routes. I hope it stays that way and expect it will.

we haven't seen Loyola lose a key component yet

I don't recall a transfer leaving over unhappiness with the school/program. The decisions were over playing time. No one transferred up to a better conference or higher ranked school.

The program must be doing something right.

They have done a nice job of retooling.

They addressed the #1 need in getting bigger. They should be two deep at every position next year.

They will have the ability to put a big lineup on the court when they want or a small, quick group as the situation dictates.

College basketball is dominated by guards and we have very good, veteran play at the positions.

I expect this to be a very competitive group. They may not be able to win the A10, but I really expect them to be a top 4 team in the conference.

I agree. The addition of Golden and Alston has made me much more hopeful for next year. I hope to see Welch and Thomas step up and play big minutes next year

With the new transfer rules and not having to sit out only on the first transfer it would seem to me less likely a transfer leaves than an unhappy freshman.

If Welch plays big minutes, the team is in trouble. I'm hoping he can continue to be a great backup and that Alston is even half the player he was in D2.

I know a lot of people have been calling for Welch to play the 4, but I still think the 5 is his most natural position. He can play the 4 when we want to go big with his shooting ability, but I don’t think he has the handle or foot speed to play the 4 full-time in modern college basketball with so many teams playing 4-out.

Exactly! We haven't played with 2 bigs on the floor on offense since the early Porter years. Welch is clearly seen as a big and is a great energy guy for a few minutes off the bench. The only reason he would ever play the 4 last year is bc we had no depth behind Uguak. Now we have 3 athletic 6'7" players that can play the 4, so I see Welch only coming in at the 5.

Btw one of the ways UNC turned around their program this year was finally playing a modern offense with one big at a time.