McDonald's Nuggets: Transfer portal, Cole Anthony, more
RANKINGS: 2019 Rivals150 | 2019 Team rankings | 2019 Position rankings
Dan McDonald is back with his weekend primer, McDonald's Nuggets. This week’s edition shares thoughts on the transfer process, prediction on Cole Anthony and more.
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WHAT'S ON MY MIND? The transfer market
Consider me a fan of the new and heavily talked about “transfer portal.” As somebody who went to three different schools before graduating, it would be pretty hypocritical of me to not be in favor of student-athletes having the ability to move around. My favorite aspect of the transfer portal is it no longer requires players to ask for a release to transfer, which inevitably leads to schools putting ridiculous restrictions on where the player can go, which in turn leads to media backlash and the school backing off the restrictions. It was a tired act, and I’m glad it’s over.
I’m also glad players finally have a little more power, for lack of a better word. Coaches can no longer control the entire process. That always felt like an unhealthy way of doing business, especially when a lot of those transfers were players that coaches signed knowing they probably weren’t good enough, but they needed to fill a spot. When they found a better player the other player became expendable. I just hope with these changes we don’t swing the pendulum too far in favor of the players to where players can dictate the whole process. I think the NCAA has made good progress in the transfer department, so let me be one of the few media members that you see giving props to the NCAA.
PREDICTION: Cole Anthony to North Carolina on Monday
Cole Anthony, the McDonald’s All-American Game MVP and one of the most highly recruited guards in the 2019 class, has set his announcement date for Monday. Georgetown, North Carolina, Notre Dame and Oregon are the four schools remaining on his list. For the last several months, this has felt like a battle between North Carolina and Oregon to land the top point guard in the class. My prediction is Anthony gives good news to Roy Williams and the Tar Heels on Monday.
RECRUITING NOTES: Under-the-radar prospects to watch
I made a three-hour drive up to Spartanburg, S.C., on Saturday afternoon to check out the Adidas Gauntlet regional for teams in the Southeast. I wanted to share some notes on prospects that caught my eye. The first full game I saw was Upward Stars against the Atlanta Celtics. The Upward Stars have two prospects that I think will see their stock rise over the next few months. Dillon Jones, a 6-foot-6 perimeter prospect from South Carolina, is a jack-of-all-trades type player. He’s probably best described as a cross between Grant Williams of Tennessee and Iowa State’s Talen Horton-Tucker. Jones gets a lot done and can play both inside and outside, depending on the match-up. He holds an early offer from South Carolina. Another prospect I liked was Myles Tate from the Upward Stars.
He’s a really quick point guard who can make plays, hit clutch shots and defends at a really high level. South Carolina also offered him and Clemson did as well on Tuesday night.
A couple 2021 prospects out of Georgia that I see breaking out this travel season are Peyton Daniels of SE United (formerly Stackhouse Elite) and Taihland Owens of the Atlanta Celtics. Daniels is a 6-foot-2 scoring machine who can also run the team as a point guard. He landed his first high-major offer from Georgia on Monday night. Owens is a 6-foot-4 wing who is just a really smooth scorer. He has deep range on his shot and has really good touch when it comes to finishing. Both should be Rivals150 prospects when we extend rankings in the 2021 class.
COMMITMENT OF THE WEEK: Harlond Beverly to the U
It was a rough year for Miami in a really tough ACC, but Jim Larranaga and his staff made their lives a little easier next season when they received a commitment from Harlond Beverly earlier this week. Beverly was one of the most highly ranked players still available nationally, and he is ready to come in and make a big impact for the Hurricanes right away next season. He’s likely a starter from day one in Coral Gables, and Miami also has two transfers in Kam McGusty and Rodney Miller becoming eligible this year. They should help the Canes move up in the ACC standings next season.
