McDonald's Nuggets: No 'bad' jobs; transfer rule

This week’s in McDonald's Nuggets, we offer an idea for an alternative postseason, another update on an available forward in Georgia, the Team of the Week and more gambling picks.

Three-Point Play: JT Thor, transfers, Brandon Murray

2020 Rankings: Rivals150 | Team | Position

2021 Rankings: Rivals150 | Position

2022 Rankings: Top 75

We’re about a month away from the end of the season for the majority of high-major basketball programs, which means we’re about a month away from this year’s coaching carousel starting up. You’ll see schools at the bottom of whatever league they are in get rid of the coach because he’s not winning and that will be followed by those in the media calling that school’s head coaching position a “bad job.”

As I watched 13th ranked Penn State go into Purdue, which is a tough place to play even in a down year, and win comfortably over the Boilermakers, it brought me back to a thought I’ve had for a few years now that really felt justified in last year’s Final Four. There really isn’t a “bad job” at the highest level of college basketball.

There are obviously jobs like Duke, Kansas, Kentucky and North Carolina that are elite jobs and there are several others with built-in advantages, but I’m of the belief you can win anywhere in college basketball. If I’m not mistaken, every high-major school is paying its coach around $2 million per year or in a lot of cases well beyond that number. Assistants are very well-compensated. Recruits seem to be more willing than ever to go away for school.

The creation of the transfer portal and the rise in graduate transfers has been highly beneficial for tons of programs. Some schools with lower academic restrictions have even nailed the junior college market. There are a number of ways to get quality players and win.

As I mentioned, Penn State is ranked No. 13 right now as we’re just about a month out from Selection Sunday. Texas Tech played in last year’s national championship game. South Carolina reached the Final Four a few years ago. Bruce Pearl has energized Auburn and made it a yearly contender. Tony Bennett took Washington State to the Sweet 16. If all that can happen, I’m convinced you can win anywhere at the highest level if a school hires the right coach and supports him. And this might be a crazy thought to fans around the country, but sometimes that also requires patience, too (see Penn State).

I have another topic that can’t wait until next week to discuss. With Mel Tucker leaving Colorado to be the new football coach at Michigan State after both signing periods and after saying he wasn’t leaving, there has been discussion again about what rights the players should have regarding being able to get out letters of intent and current players transferring.

Let me start with this: People need to get over the fact that student-athletes and coaches are not equal. They just aren’t and shouldn’t be, and they certainly don’t have the same rights. That’s called life and having a boss.

The usual lazy argument is that if a coach can leave when he wants, why can’t student-athletes? This is an easy one. It’s in a coach’s contract, just like it is with student-athletes, about what needs to happen for the coach to leave. In most cases, it means paying a significant buyout. For student-athletes, unless he has graduated or has special circumstances in his life, the scholarship they sign says they must sit out a year to transfer.

All that being said, I do believe the rule needs to be tweaked by the NCAA. This isn’t a proposal that has never been floated out by anyone, but I believe all student-athletes should be able to transfer once without having to sit out. That should be a rule with ZERO exceptions on the second transfer if it happens.

One reason I’m in favor of this is because the college decision is the first really big life decision for most people and it can be very stressful, especially when prospects can have family, coaches, trainers, friends at school and anybody else in their life trying to influence the decision. You also have some coaches misleading the prospect. Sometimes you screw it up. After you go through it once, you’re much more prepared to handle it the second time around and can do a better job keeping your circle tight.

The other reason I’m in favor of it is a lot of times college coaches will encourage players to transfer because they aren’t good enough. That shouldn’t mean the player has to sit out a year.

I’m a firm believer that coaches like Tucker should be able to leave for a job that doubles their salary and gives them a better chance to win. More power to him. I’m also a firm believer that athletes should have a little freedom to improve their lives as well.

Last Friday night, Syracuse scored an early commitment from Dior Johnson, the top guard in the 2022 class out of California. This is huge for Syracuse for a few different reasons. The Orange hadn't secured a five-star commitment since Chris McCullough in the 2014 class, so this helps generate a little buzz around the program. With Johnson, a New York native who grew up a huge Carmelo Anthony fan, locked in early, he’s made it known he plans to help Jim Boeheim and his staff recruit others to join him. He’s the type of kid that could attract other top talent to come play with him. And lastly, he’s just a really good player. He’s a ridiculously talented scorer, but he’s also playmaker for others.

On Saturday, it was Florida State’s turn to reel in an early commitment in the 2021 class with Bryce McGowens choosing the Seminoles. He fits the mold of players that have had a ton of success under Leonard Hamilton in Tallahassee. He’s a long, bouncy athlete that can really shoot the ball. Florida State fended off several ACC and SEC programs to make McGowens its first commitment in the 2021 class.

With a HOT 4-1 last Friday night, we’re up over .500 for the year at 18-17. Let’s ride this momentum into some more winnings this week.

Let’s start off with some MACtion and take Buffalo (+2) on the road at Toledo. The Bulls have been pretty good in away games during conference play, and I think they steal one here. I also like the UNDER 153 here. I think both of these teams can score, but that’s a lot of points to ask for.

We’ve done pretty well in the Ivy League, so let’s go back for more here. It’s a little risky, but let’s roll with Harvard (-13.5) at home against Cornell. Tommy Amaker’s team has been good to us and won’t let us down here coming off a loss. When the two last-place teams in a league play, I just say take the points. That means we’re taking Columbia (+6) at Dartmouth tonight. Lastly, take St. Bonaventure (-4) at home against Davidson. The Bonnies have won five straight and are playing really well right now.