Braylon Mullins (2025) SG - to UConn

[Chris007]

20 minutes ago, Scotty R said:

I know Mullins is a very good player but is he worth all of this bidding if true. I know his dad is a police so are we offering him to be head of security or something like that

I think his dad could get something that's worth a few year's salary. So he could take more time off to coach his other sons and follow Braylon around the country playing. 

[cthomas]

23 minutes ago, Scotty R said:

I know Mullins is a very good player but is he worth all of this bidding if true. I know his dad is a police so are we offering him to be head of security or something like that

In my opinion this is completely out of control to the point of being ridiculous. My answer to the is he worth it question is, no.

[Stuhoo]

Sports is entertainment. Big time sports, the kind that sells 17,000– $100 seats x 20 home games and produces massive fuel to the local economy, is a big money proposition.

So yes; if the free market dictates  a potential key performer’s worth at a certain price level? That’s the actual worth. That worth can be magnified if very wealthy people are looking for a way to support their passion and are willing to throw big money at it, regardless of whether it’s a financially sound investment. And that is where Indiana Basketball is crushing it.

The challenge is how to best expend that high-money budget, and deciding whether the current staff is the right caretaker of the program.

[Scotty R]

32 minutes ago, cthomas said:

In my opinion this is completely out of control to the point of being ridiculous. My answer to the is he worth it question is, no.

I agree and every year of this keeps chipping away my enjoyment of college sports 

[Scotty R]

37 minutes ago, Chris007 said:

I think his dad could get something that's worth a few year's salary. So he could take more time off to coach his other sons and follow Braylon around the country playing. 

My brothers ex son son in law who said that UCONN was offering $750,000 also said before his UCONN visit that he was definitely going to IU. That visit changed some things and is making him think a little longer about UCONN.

[HinnyHoosier]

1 hour ago, Hoosierfanyuh said:

That specific guy changes his picks all the time. He put one in for Derik queen to IU at one point, not exaggerating 

I'm sure as a Maryland insider he also really hopes Mullins doesn't end up at IU anyway.

[cthomas]

44 minutes ago, Stuhoo said:

Sports is entertainment. Big time sports, the kind that sells 17,000– $100 seats x 20 home games and produces massive fuel to the local economy, is a big money proposition.

So yes; if the free market dictates  a potential key performer’s worth at a certain price level? That’s the actual worth. That worth can be magnified if very wealthy people are looking for a way to support their passion and are willing to throw big money at it, regardless of whether it’s a financially sound investment. And that is where Indiana Basketball is crushing it.

The challenge is how to best expend that high-money budget, and deciding whether the current staff is the right caretaker of the program.

I understand the reality in today's world. I don't have any influence on, but I don't have to like it. Giving everything a dollar value just doesn't align with my 60's values. And by the way, GET OFF MY LAWN!

[RaceToTheTop]

1 hour ago, cthomas said:

In my opinion this is completely out of control to the point of being ridiculous. My answer to the is he worth it question is, no.

It ain't my money.  If someone is willing to pony up huge NIL money, I'd say it's worth it.  Because again....not my money.

You can be upset about where NIL has taken the game, but not to play that game now that it IS what the college landscape has went is just nuts.

[RaceToTheTop]

27 minutes ago, cthomas said:

I understand the reality in today's world. I don't have any influence on, but I don't have to like it. Giving everything a dollar value just doesn't align with my 60's values. And by the way, GET OFF MY LAWN!

Suspending kids for allowing their pictures to be in a charity calendar didn't align with my values either.  A lot of where college basketball ended up today is due to the NCAA's failure to change their rigid rules in the past.  They forced this into the courts.

[cthomas]

2 minutes ago, RaceToTheTop said:

Suspending kids for allowing their pictures to be in a charity calendar didn't align with my values either.  A lot of where college basketball ended up today is due to the NCAA's failure to change their rigid rules in the past.  They forced this into the courts.

Absolutely right. The NCAA has been mostly a worthless organization. Honestly, something new is needed to deal with the new reality. In my delusional world I thought that there were good guys and bad guys. Now I know that there were just varying shades of gray. The marketplace is seriously messed up in terms of how it values different occupations in my opinion. The money going to anyone to play a game or coach a game does t mesh with the needs of our world. Just my opinion, nothing else.

[RaceToTheTop]

2 hours ago, Hoosier Guy said:

That’s ridiculous.  That makes crystal ball picks worthless.  These “experts” just wait until the last minute when it’s known by everyone.  That’s stupid that anyone can change a pick at the last second.  That’s why it’s pointless.

Crystal Balls are really starting to be a thing of the past.....a lot of the most knowledgeable insiders out there have stopped bothering giving them.  It's why you don't see many.  So when you see a guy you haven't heard of give one out early it's usually to try to catch lightning in a bottle knowing that if something changes they can simply change their pick and it doesn't effect their prediction total.  And the numbers in terms of 'average days correct' on 247 aren't accurate.  The Maryland insider is listed at something like '203 average days correct', but take a look at 2025 recruits he's 'predicted':

• Kareem Staggs to Georgia on 10/8 -- he announced for Georgia same day
• Jaden Toombs to SMU on 9/25 -- he announced SMU same day
• Simon Walker to Auburn on 9'24 -- he announced Auburn two days later
• Darius Adams to U Conn  on 9/24 -- he announced U Conn on 9/30
• Derek Dixon to UNC on 9/24 -- committed to UNC on 9/27
• London JEmison to Alabama on 9/17 -- committed on 9/21
• Chance Mallory to Virginia on 9/17 -- committed on 9/20
• Keyshaun Tillery to Cincinnati on 9/17 -- committed on 9/20
• Jayden Forsythe to Xavier on 9/17 -- committed five hours later
• Mason Blackwood to Penn State on 9/16 -- committed on 9/18
• Jermaine O'Neal to SMU on 9/16 -- committed on 9/18
• Adlan Elamin to Utah State on 9/14 -- committed on 9/16
• Hudson Greer to Creighton on 9/13 -- committed five hours later
• Christian Jeffery to Maryland on 9/12 -- committed on 10/2
• Austin Willford to St Joseph's on 9/11 -- committed two hours later
• Matt Gilhool to LSU on 9/9 -- committed next day
• Omari WItherspoon to Pitt on 9/5 -- committed 9/11
• Ryan Crotty to Oklahoma State on 9/5 -- committed next day
• Silas Barksdale to VCU on 9/4 -- committed next day
• Alex Smith to Ohio State on 9/2 -- committed within an hour (247 does not count this as a correct call -- they call anything within an hour a 'zero zone' pick)
• Matthew Able to Miami on 8/29 -- committed next day
• Nyk Lewis to Xavier on 8/27 -- committed on 8/29
• Malachi Moreno to UK on 8/14 -- committed on 8/16
• Darius Acuff to to Arkansas on 7/26 -- committed same day
• NIgel James to Marquette on 7/16 -- committed four hours later
• Akbar Waheed to BC on 7/15 -- committed next day

So let's examine his 26 predictions -- which to be fair, were all correct:

8 of his predictions committed the same day he prediction;  4 committed the next day.  So that's 12 of the 26 'predictions' which at that point had to be obvious ones from just reading the internet.  Only ONE player committed later than a week after he made his pick and that was a player who committed to Maryland -- the team he covers.

His average days correct on picks other than the single player to Maryland for the class of 2025 is 1.6 days.  So I wouldn't worry about his pick now -- if he still saying U Conn the morning of October 23rd, maybe.  But with his pick history, I wouldn't be too concerned with picks two weeks prior to an announcement. 

[RaceToTheTop]

3 hours ago, Hoosierfanyuh said:

That specific guy changes his picks all the time. He put one in for Derik queen to IU at one point, not exaggerating 

Don't doubt you one bit, but I"m having trouble finding when a predictor changes their pick.  Did you find that or remember that?

[HoosierHoopster]

1 hour ago, RaceToTheTop said:

Suspending kids for allowing their pictures to be in a charity calendar didn't align with my values either.  A lot of where college basketball ended up today is due to the NCAA's failure to change their rigid rules in the past.  They forced this into the courts.

Dead on. Or bumper stickers. Or t-shirts. It was mind numbingly ridiculous.

[Stromboli]

Maybe time to dust off the ol’ BTB account to weigh in!

 

Hey friendos, hope you’ve all been well. Kinda exciting season coming up, I hope to spend more time on here with you all. But for now…

 

These kids deserve to be compensated commensurate with the value they provide. Frankly they have been taken advantage of for way too long. You don’t need to look very hard to find studies discussing some of the darker sides of this imbalance. I won’t get to that. 
 

But I will repost the article that changed my mind. Really fast, my career pretty routinely requires the hiring of high level CPA’s to valuate the worth of an individual. It seems difficult and like pseudoscience until you get into it. It’s fairly reliable, and the professionals that do this work are very, very smart. 
 

So, people have tried to shed light on this issue of compensating college athletes doing these kind of value analyses; basically what is the value that a D-I basketball player brings to his university. 
 

Linking what at this point is an outdated study, but still useful for our needs, Yahoo found that the average IU men’s basketball player provides a value of $870,000 per year. And before you say “yeah but IU is the one giving him the stage and opportunity to be seen,” that is accounted for, with the university already assumed to get 51% of the total value. 
 

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/average-university-louisville-basketball-player-192239747.html

A local 5 star like Braylon or a Trayce or a Romeo obviously rockets that number higher. Why should the talent not be compensated? Who do you think should receive that value the athlete generates? Remember, the school already gets theirs. The science dept and journalism and Kinsey are all the proverbial boats rising with this tide. Why should Braylon, an adult entertainer selling tickets and jerseys and proving podcast fodder and (ahem) forum hits and TV deals not get paid?

 

I fully understand that it would be nice if Indiana kids just, gosh darn it, wanted to play basketball for their state school. It’s a fun little romantic concept with pep rallies and red barns with a hoop and dad teaching son to shoot a free throw. But this is big, big business, the money is generated, and it will go to someone regardless. If it’s not to the individual responsible for creating it, I can’t see that as anything but unjust enrichment. 
 

Yeah, the negotiations give a nasty feel to the entire transaction. But it’s not like anyone is offering to overpay the athletes. Ultimately, they are the ones getting taken advantage of. 

[RaceToTheTop]

50 minutes ago, cthomas said:

Absolutely right. The NCAA has been mostly a worthless organization. Honestly, something new is needed to deal with the new reality. In my delusional world I thought that there were good guys and bad guys. Now I know that there were just varying shades of gray. The marketplace is seriously messed up in terms of how it values different occupations in my opinion. The money going to anyone to play a game or coach a game does t mesh with the needs of our world. Just my opinion, nothing else.

I used to feel the same way but ultimately the marketplace is what the marketplace is.  If someone is willing to pay an 18 year old kid $1 million +, they are worth it.....for the simple reason that someone is willing to pay it.  I'm a teacher, don't get paid much and certainly am getting paid less than many kids I taught in high school as soon as they graduate college and have their first job.  But it is what it is and while I can fight for my and other teacher's salaries to increase, I can't begrudge someone else getting paid.

[Uspshoosier]

1 minute ago, Stromboli said:

 

Maybe time to dust off the ol’ BTB account to weigh in!

 

Glad  to hear from you my friend.  Hope you are doing well 

[Stuhoo]

1 minute ago, Stromboli said:

Maybe time to dust off the ol’ BTB account to weigh in!

 

Hey friendos, hope you’ve all been well. Kinda exciting season coming up, I hope to spend more time on here with you all. But for now…

 

These kids deserve to be compensated commensurate with the value they provide. Frankly they have been taken advantage of for way too long. You don’t need to look very hard to find studies discussing some of the darker sides of this imbalance. I won’t get to that. 
 

But I will repost the article that changed my mind. Really fast, my career pretty routinely requires the hiring of high level CPA’s to valuate the worth of an individual. It seems difficult and like pseudoscience until you get into it. It’s fairly reliable, and the professionals that do this work are very, very smart. 
 

So, people have tried to shed light on this issue of compensating college athletes doing these kind of value analyses; basically what is the value that a D-I basketball player brings to his university. 
 

Linking what at this point is an outdated study, but still useful for our needs, Yahoo found that the average IU men’s basketball player provides a value of $870,000 per year. And before you say “yeah but IU is the one giving him the stage and opportunity to be seen,” that is accounted for, with the university already assumed to get 51% of the total value. 
 

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/average-university-louisville-basketball-player-192239747.html

A local 5 star like Braylon or a Trayce or a Romeo obviously rockets that number higher. Why should the talent not be compensated? Who do you think should receive that value the athlete generates? Remember, the school already gets theirs. The science dept and journalism and Kinsey are all the proverbial boats rising with this tide. Why should Braylon, an adult entertainer selling tickets and jerseys and proving podcast fodder and (ahem) forum hits and TV deals not get paid?

 

I fully understand that it would be nice if Indiana kids just, gosh darn it, wanted to play basketball for their state school. It’s a fun little romantic concept with pep rallies and red barns with a hoop and dad teaching son to shoot a free throw. But this is big, big business, the money is generated, and it will go to someone regardless. If it’s not to the individual responsible for creating it, I can’t see that as anything but unjust enrichment. 
 

Yeah, the negotiations give a nasty feel to the entire transaction. But it’s not like anyone is offering to overpay the athletes. Ultimately, they are the ones getting taken advantage of. 

Geez.. if you’re gonna be all smart and rational and such, you should probably post more often.

[Demo]

3 minutes ago, Stromboli said:

Maybe time to dust off the ol’ BTB account to weigh in!

 

Hey friendos, hope you’ve all been well. Kinda exciting season coming up, I hope to spend more time on here with you all. But for now…

 

These kids deserve to be compensated commensurate with the value they provide. Frankly they have been taken advantage of for way too long. You don’t need to look very hard to find studies discussing some of the darker sides of this imbalance. I won’t get to that. 
 

But I will repost the article that changed my mind. Really fast, my career pretty routinely requires the hiring of high level CPA’s to valuate the worth of an individual. It seems difficult and like pseudoscience until you get into it. It’s fairly reliable, and the professionals that do this work are very, very smart. 
 

So, people have tried to shed light on this issue of compensating college athletes doing these kind of value analyses; basically what is the value that a D-I basketball player brings to his university. 
 

Linking what at this point is an outdated study, but still useful for our needs, Yahoo found that the average IU men’s basketball player provides a value of $870,000 per year. And before you say “yeah but IU is the one giving him the stage and opportunity to be seen,” that is accounted for, with the university already assumed to get 51% of the total value. 
 

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/average-university-louisville-basketball-player-192239747.html

A local 5 star like Braylon or a Trayce or a Romeo obviously rockets that number higher. Why should the talent not be compensated? Who do you think should receive that value the athlete generates? Remember, the school already gets theirs. The science dept and journalism and Kinsey are all the proverbial boats rising with this tide. Why should Braylon, an adult entertainer selling tickets and jerseys and proving podcast fodder and (ahem) forum hits and TV deals not get paid?

 

I fully understand that it would be nice if Indiana kids just, gosh darn it, wanted to play basketball for their state school. It’s a fun little romantic concept with pep rallies and red barns with a hoop and dad teaching son to shoot a free throw. But this is big, big business, the money is generated, and it will go to someone regardless. If it’s not to the individual responsible for creating it, I can’t see that as anything but unjust enrichment. 
 

Yeah, the negotiations give a nasty feel to the entire transaction. But it’s not like anyone is offering to overpay the athletes. Ultimately, they are the ones getting taken advantage of. 

The Man comes around. 

[Hoosier Guy]

13 minutes ago, RaceToTheTop said:

Crystal Balls are really starting to be a thing of the past.....a lot of the most knowledgeable insiders out there have stopped bothering giving them.  It's why you don't see many.  So when you see a guy you haven't heard of give one out early it's usually to try to catch lightning in a bottle knowing that if something changes they can simply change their pick and it doesn't effect their prediction total.  And the numbers in terms of 'average days correct' on 247 aren't accurate.  The Maryland insider is listed at something like '203 average days correct', but take a look at 2025 recruits he's 'predicted':

• Kareem Staggs to Georgia on 10/8 -- he announced for Georgia same day
• Jaden Toombs to SMU on 9/25 -- he announced SMU same day
• Simon Walker to Auburn on 9'24 -- he announced Auburn two days later
• Darius Adams to U Conn  on 9/24 -- he announced U Conn on 9/30
• Derek Dixon to UNC on 9/24 -- committed to UNC on 9/27
• London JEmison to Alabama on 9/17 -- committed on 9/21
• Chance Mallory to Virginia on 9/17 -- committed on 9/20
• Keyshaun Tillery to Cincinnati on 9/17 -- committed on 9/20
• Jayden Forsythe to Xavier on 9/17 -- committed five hours later
• Mason Blackwood to Penn State on 9/16 -- committed on 9/18
• Jermaine O'Neal to SMU on 9/16 -- committed on 9/18
• Adlan Elamin to Utah State on 9/14 -- committed on 9/16
• Hudson Greer to Creighton on 9/13 -- committed five hours later
• Christian Jeffery to Maryland on 9/12 -- committed on 10/2
• Austin Willford to St Joseph's on 9/11 -- committed two hours later
• Matt Gilhool to LSU on 9/9 -- committed next day
• Omari WItherspoon to Pitt on 9/5 -- committed 9/11
• Ryan Crotty to Oklahoma State on 9/5 -- committed next day
• Silas Barksdale to VCU on 9/4 -- committed next day
• Alex Smith to Ohio State on 9/2 -- committed within an hour (247 does not count this as a correct call -- they call anything within an hour a 'zero zone' pick)
• Matthew Able to Miami on 8/29 -- committed next day
• Nyk Lewis to Xavier on 8/27 -- committed on 8/29
• Malachi Moreno to UK on 8/14 -- committed on 8/16
• Darius Acuff to to Arkansas on 7/26 -- committed same day
• NIgel James to Marquette on 7/16 -- committed four hours later
• Akbar Waheed to BC on 7/15 -- committed next day

So let's examine his 26 predictions -- which to be fair, were all correct:

8 of his predictions committed the same day he prediction;  4 committed the next day.  So that's 12 of the 26 'predictions' which at that point had to be obvious ones from just reading the internet.  Only ONE player committed later than a week after he made his pick and that was a player who committed to Maryland -- the team he covers.

His average days correct on picks other than the single player to Maryland for the class of 2025 is 1.6 days.  So I wouldn't worry about his pick now -- if he still saying U Conn the morning of October 23rd, maybe.  But with his pick history, I wouldn't be too concerned with picks two weeks prior to an announcement. 

The only time to really worry about the crystal ball picks is the day of an announcement.  That’s when the cat gets out of the bag.

[Stromboli]

7 minutes ago, Uspshoosier said:

Glad  to hear from you my friend.  Hope you are doing well 

My guy! Same to you