mickey one

Also from the article: CTM said she was eager and excited to meet the challenge of putting together this year's team. You would expect that from her and her competitive instincts. It should be an interesting year.

Fascinating article. This year was a little extreme with so many people leaving at once, but CTM makes it clear that this is the new way, i.e. dealing with agents, having recruits declare what their monetary expectations are, players literally GETTING PAID MONEY TO PLAY! In the old days, it was illegal; now it is the rule. Will high school recruits in the future (and not just portal transfers) all have agents? Will college basketball "stratify", with the Big Powers going all in on the $20 m., and lower level teams spending way less, or even remaining amateurs with no NIL?

I think Zania was a big pick-up. She was hot stuff coming out of high school, and has big upside (probably required NIL). Jade Ondineme would qualify as an "athletic upgrade", no? For "a sure thing", if you mean Olivia Miles, I don't know if that's really a good player to pursue. Big ego, one year, not building a team. With the new NIL universe, "sure thing" players are going to require big money, will demand PT, and won't stick around unless they win an NCAA championship, and might not be easy to coach (can you imagine benching Olivia Miles, after you pay her $1 m?). Seems like the "Belichick model" of identifying lower-cost or underappreciated talent to get under the salary cap is the way to go, if possible.

Greener pastures for them. Smaller stage, where they will probably be able to contribute more. It will be interesting to watch them this year.

Why would they want to come back? They found greener pastures, and I hope they thrive there.

Have enough to work with in a transition year. See who develops/steps up.

This "Rodriguez watch" is getting pretty anti-climactic. Personally, I'm interested to see if Caffey and Makalusky can make all-Freshmen Big 10, if they get a decent chance to play.

I don't see anything on the internet, including from Talia Goodman. Either a false alarm, or someone has an inside scoop.

Rodriguez certainly looks like she has a lot of talent and potential, but to the extent it has come down to Iowa & Indiana for her, it doesn't seem like a "sure thing" that she would break into the starting lineup at either place. At IU, you've got some considerable talent, some of it proven, some of it potential--like Beaumont, Caffey, Makalusky, Stotijn, Kiaku, Spreen, not to mention Ciezki; and then at least 2 bigs, be that Zania, Edessa, et al. Like with Kayleigh Heckel considering UConn--"are you sure you are going to break into the starting lineup there?". Good for IU to have the extra competition. Few positions nailed down in front of her at this point, so it depends on her confidence to compete for it.

I think the WNBA is pretty worthless--I could not tell you the teams' names and don't care who wins. April Reese said she did not make enough money to pay her rent. I think it's a mistake to regard it as some kind of "benchmark" as to a basketball player's ultimate worth (people talk that way sometimes). I think college basketball is now the ultimate forum for women's basketball (esp. with the new NIL rules). IMHO. As to Holmes, unbelievable talent. If she wants to continue in B-Ball at some level, I'm sure that will be possible for her. I will remember all the games where IU needed a bucket, and she delivered. Didn't seem possible, but she made it happen. Amazingly deadly shooter around the rim, and played with such determination.

Zania Edessa Faith Sydney Jade Somebody needs to step up. Go for it! Striplin last year was fearless--we need more of that. Good thing about Jade: her team won the JUCO national championship last year, and she was a starter.

Sleeper?

Apparently, NCAA schools can spend up to $23.1 m./year as a cap (Sports Illustrated says $20.5 m). I don't know how IU has decided to spend that, or how different teams (like football, men's and women's basketball) can compete within the school for that money. ["NCAA schools will be able to spend a maximum of $23.1 million each year, and that cap will increase on a yearly basis during the ten-year-long settlement agreement. The spending limit is based on a formula that gives NCAA athletes 22% of the money the average power conference school makes from media rights deals, ticket sales, and sponsorships. Time will tell if this settlement raises more questions than answers for NCAA schools." From McCarter & English attorney website.]

No one would be here if they were not a fan. The question is how NIL/portal has transformed college basketball. It looks like a team would need at least about $5 to $10 m. per year to be competitive at the highest level, on the women's side. Does IU have it? How does it get it? How will it be distributed? Keep in mind that even in professional sports, it is not open-ended bidding for players. There is the draft, and then structured contracts depending on your level in the draft, and salary caps for each team. If professional sports teams did not have those features, teams would probably be bankrupted by out-of-control bidding wars. It is only when players hit free agency that bidding wars erupt. How is all this even possible for professional sports? Collective bargaining agreements (CBA) between the owners and players' unions impose order on what could be chaos and bankruptcy. Just turn on ESPN--all the commentators are expert in salary cap discussions, how much the "hit" is for signing a player, etc. It is part and parcel of professional sports. Is any such thing as a CBA necessary or even possible at the college level? If the NCAA does not impose some kind of order and fairness on the process, could it turn into the "Wild West" when it comes to bidding and money in college athletics?