1981 grad

Isn't an athletic scholarship a contract? It would not work if only one school used it because athletes would not sign with that school. However, it should be enforceable.

So Akron's next athletic scholarship should indicate that if a player jumps to a program for greater pay that Akron will get 20% of the amount that is greater than the fee the player is getting from Akron as a development fee. Sounds fair to me.

Can somebody name one Akron player who jumped to the next level and excelled at the next level? I just don't see Okonkwa, Nate or TJ excelling at the next level where they will be playing against bigger, faster, and more talented players each game. I think these players benefitted from weak MAC competition, Groce teamism, and years of good coaching. I really hope they succeed and enjoy great success. But my gut tells me they will have the Ali Ali experience their senior year and when they need film for Europe, if will be when they played for the Zips.

Seeing Nate get 1.5 million. Can anyone blame him for leaving and cashing in on his last year.

Do you think with Akron losing 2 players, we raised the amount of money we are paying our players to keep them in Akron?

I am sure if TJ reads that it will sure give him a reason to test the open market. That is the state of college basketball.

I hope he does well at Kansas State but my common sense tells me he will struggle against better competition on a daily basis. Obviously the coaches at K State must think he can play at that level.

Does anyone remember a time when the basketball board went nearly silent in March and April because the season had just ended and there really was not much discussion about Akron Basketball? Instead, people were posting about spring football and how the Zips were going to look next year.

Does anyone else think it is weird that we have had 3 players jump ship after Mahaffey from Ohio State joined the team. Is it possible that he got paid more than the other players on the team and that upset the other players and they decided to leave. No idea if this is true but just wonder why everyone waited so long to enter the transfer pool.

With Nate I guess "show me the money" beat out "teamism" It is obvious that Okonkwo decided to leave because he had another offer. Like Okowkwo, I thought we would see Nate landing immediately. Now I wonder whether he decided to test the market. If he does not have a landing spot, coaches will see the same thing that was pointed out by another poster, he has struggled against good teams. Ali Ali also struggled against elite competition before he transferred and never made it at the next level. Even though he left Akron, I would like to see Nate be successful but he will need to work hard to be successful at the next level. His three point shooting will need to improve and he must eliminate those crazy passes that we have seen from him the last 3 years. His defense is good but he will be playing against quicker players almost every day. The "Where are they now" thread looks like it will be busy next year.

I just looked at this profile and he has been battling injuries his entire career at Ohio State. High risk and high reward if he can stay healthy.

If a player wants out after commenting how much he loves Akron and appreciates the opportunity to play for Akron and competing in the NCAA tourney then he not the type of player we really want to keep. The agent makes more money if his player makes more money so the advice was probably get the most money you can since this is your senior year.

Much tougher competition than in the MAC. He is really going to have to improve his game to get significant playing time. Only time will tell.

Does anyone on this board have a clue on what happened in the last few weeks. Here is Okonkwo's quote in the Beacon at the end of March: “This season has been so much fun,” “I am so thankful to the coaching staff for giving me this opportunity to go out and be myself and bring the energy that is unique and bring hustle plays. I love doing that. I can’t thank Coach [John Groce] enough for the role he has given me. I will forever be in debt to him for that.” “I plan on staying here for as long as I possibly can,” “I love it here. I have no reason to leave. The coaching staff here, the atmosphere, it is everything you could want in a place. I am so thankful I came to Akron.”

If this is his decision to chase the money, it is a bad decision. Look how much Freeman improved from year to year under Groce's tutelage. I thought Okonkwo's game improved a great deal as the year progressed. Early in the season his offense was weak and he did improve as season progressed. He also became tougher under the boards. I was really looking forward to seeing how much better he was going to be during his senior season. This will be his 3rd team in 3 years.