College Football has yet to start and while it is still the goal to play, 2020 has a weird way of changing plans. With that being said, schools and the NCAA are going to have start looking ahead with college basketball scheduled to start in just two months.
Good ol’ Jeff Goodman, of Watch Stadium, polled over 250 Division 1 athletic directors on their confidence of the upcoming college basketball season during the COVID-19 pandemic. Here are the six questions they asked.
What’s your level of confidence that we have any kind of college basketball regular season?
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When a collection of 258 athletic directors are over 96% confident that college basketball will happen, that is a good sign and good reason for optimism. Yet, there is no idea on what exactly the season will look like.
While multiple options are being explored, at the end of the day, no decision will be made until college football starts and there is a sample size to base a decision on.
What’s your level of confidence that we have an NCAA Tournament?
Money. Money. Money. We all need it, and now more than ever so does the NCAA.
After missing out on over $1 billion in revenue from last year’s NCAA tournament, the NCAA simply cannot afford to miss it for a second consecutive year. Whether there are 32 teams or 68, a tournament will be played. The primary concern is that if the tournament field is limited, how do you select teams.
Do you favor a ‘bubble’ for games?
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Considering how well the bubble has gone for the NBA, I am a bit surprised that the ADs are not in favor of such a plan. With that being said, I don’t believe it is possible for college baseketball and for two reasons.
First, it is extremely costly. The NBA’s bubble had an estimated cost of $150 million, and most conferences simply do not have that money.
Second, how can you make 18-22 years old students follow protocol when they are not being compensated? You can’t. Unlike professional sports, student-athletes are not being compensated for their risk.
What’s the biggest obstacle to having a college basketball season?
Once again, it comes down to money. It is much more expensive to test thousands of athletes than hundreds. The Power-Five and Big East schools could probably make it work financially, but there are 26 more Division 1 basketball conferences that couldn’t.
According to one AD, “If we can get it, and get the results back within minutes, or even hours and it’s only $5 or so, I think that will allow us to have a season. If not, I just don’t see it.”
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Which scheduling format do you prefer for the season?
As anticipated, the two most popular options are either starting on Thanksgiving or starting in January. With the school schedule this year, students at most schools will not return after Thanksgiving break until the Spring semester. Getting rid of the student population eliminates a lot of risk and .
The argument for starting in January, is the hope for a vaccine. Medical experts are predicting a vaccine to be approved in December, which could create a slow return to normalcy.
If I were a betting man, I believe the most likely scenario is that teams will play a limited regular-season schedule from Thanksgiving to Christmas, and they will start conference play in January. I believe this scenario minimizes the risk and liability for the schools and the NCAA.
There may be teams that do play 30 regular-season games, while others play 10 games, but it looks like college basketball will happen one way or another. The biggest reason, the NCAA needs money.
Following another flurry of transfer portal additions in his second year at the helm, it appears that Mark Pope and staff are satisfied with their sophomore haul. The portal in Lexington may be officially closed for the 2025-26′ season.
Right after Kentucky received the surprising commitment of Denzel Aberdeen, Matt Norlander, an analyst for CBS Sports, posted the following on X (Twitter):
“Barring any portal defections, Kentucky has ended its pursuits of all other portal targets, sources told CBS Sports. Getting Aberdeen today [April 21] meant they’ve moved off Andrej Stojakovic, Rylan Griffen, etc. Otega Oweh going through pre-draft process-but I expect him back in Lex”.
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With the addition of Aberdeen, the Wildcats’ roster ballooned to near-max capacity for next season. Seeing two of the team’s walk-on players, Grant Darbyshire and Walker Horn, enter the transfer portal seemed to all but confirm this suspicion, too.
Losing One of Our Own
That is, until last night. With less than two hours remaining for players to do so, Travis Perry shocked much of the Big Blue Nation by throwing his name into the hat. This came just weeks after a string of comments from the Kentucky-native point guard seemed to confirm his return for a sophomore season.
Though all the same, given Kentucky’s bulk of back-court additions this offseason, his departure makes sense for the sake of playing time alone. The Lyon King will be sorely missed.
So while the Kentucky staff may still be very much content with their current roster, with hundreds of players remaining in the portal and an unexpected spot on the roster coming open, another grab is far from out of the question.
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Who Coach Pope and company would go after is entirely unclear, as that potential player would likely have to accept a minimized role off the bench for a stretch of his time in Lexington. If anything, the logical replacement would be a direct fill-in at the PG2/PG3 spot in Perry’s absence.
Either way, the ‘Cats are set to come into next season as one of the most exciting teams in college basketball with a ceiling far out of view. Mark Pope continues to prove his prowess in the transfer market, too, easing the worries of Wildcats fans and closing the door on many supposed “insiders” who’ve spent the last month suggesting otherwise.
The transfer portal has been kind to Kentucky in the Mark Pope era. Last season, the staff was able to build a Sweet Sixteen roster almost exclusively from the portal, and this offseason have put together a top-five portal class.
While the portal giveth, it also taketh. Just hours before the deadline to enter, Kentucky native and fan favorite Travis Perry has entered the transfer portal, per multiple reports.
Coming to Kentucky as the state’s all-time high-school scoring record holder, fans were excited to see how his career would unfold in Lexington.
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Not expecting to play much freshman, he was called upon due to injuries and played some key minutes for the Wildcats into the postseason. He averaged 2.7 PPG and .6 APG on 32% shooting from three.
Looking at the depth chart, it was difficult to see where Perry would get much playing time next season, leading to his decision to enter the portal.
Perry has yet to release an official statement, but all the best to him in his future.
Another day, another “boom.” Denzel Aberdeen has officially committed to Kentucky for the 2025-26’ season.
A soon-to-be senior guard fresh off his championship win with Florida, Aberdeen spent his first three years of eligibility in Gainesville. Now, following an apparent conflict in the Gators’ rotation, he’s swapped teams in the southeast.
At 6 ‘5”, 190, Aberdeen spent much of this past season beating defenders off the dribble and making them pay at the rim. His speed and size made him a nightmare off the bench for opposing teams, and for the short stretch of play that he started during the year, Florida didn’t miss a beat.
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In 19 minutes, Aberdeen averaged 8 points, two rebounds and one assist per game. His consistent contribution to the Gators’ title run made him one of the most coveted transfers in the cycle this season, and given his big blue commitment just days after entering the portal, Mark Pope clearly wasted no time in Kentucky’s pursuit.
Aberdeen slots in as yet another addition to what was already one of the strongest portal classes going into next season. His SEC experience and combo-guard intangibles make Aberdeen one of the most exciting portal players to come through Lexington in a long while, reinforcing Kentucky’s back court to what may be the final degree.
Whether or not Mark Pope is officially done for next season, nobody is sure, but this commitment only further cements the fact that he knows exactly what he’s doing. Just like the fanbase behind him, Coach Pope seems to never sleep.