I’ve been hearing the same thing every year since GW fired Mike Lonergqn.   The university is  perpetually telling us that they’re stepping-up their commitment to the program, and then they don’t.  It’s this continuum of unfulfilled promises that’s  particularly insulting.

College basketball is now professional sports with all the players 1 year contracts.  

Mid majors lke GW have to scrounge around the portal and pray for crumbs or for a good player wanting to reset for a year before moving on again.  

I have no idea why anyone would donate money to support a team like GW anymore because almost none of the players give a damn about the school, the free education or the fans.  Exactly why should a GW fan be loyal to a team when there is no reciprocity?

Gwmayhem wrote:

It's not difficult to embrace the notion that the money should always be grabbed when presented.  As I mentioned, if the Castro family isn't living comfortably and can really use the money right now, then of course they should accept a bigger offer.  There is no telling when an athlete's career may come to an end.

That all said, Rising's points on development are valid.  If Rafael's ambition is to play professionally, he may be better served playing 30 minutes a game at GW then running the risk of playing 8 minutes a game at Providence or somewhere comparable.

Even if a player's family is living comfortably, and all other things being equal, I can think of no reason to stay with a program if another is offering considerably more compensation. I feel this is especially true for mid-major players.  There's almost not downside to taking more money.  You might play fewer minutes but it won't hurt as long as you're not destined for the NBA.  And, if you're destined to play in the NBA, then you're going to play in important role for the better program and make more money at the same time.  NIL has changed things. I don't think it's good for us fans, but it's pretty good for the players, for the moment.  I don't have a problem with that but do think college ball is a whole lot less fun these days and that could eventually lead to a decline in the sport.  Some people think greed is good.

BGF, thank you for all your work transitioning the old board to your new board and also for all the work you did to try to keep the discussion civil and productive.  Also, good luck with the job move, which I hope goes smoothly and successfully.  

0509, thank you for taking on the effort to keep this board going and providing a place for people to come to enjoy GW basketball and for reading and learning what's new with the program.

Free Quebec wrote:

Gwmayhem wrote:

Unless anyone is unexpectedly leaving, let's stop talking to 6' 2" guys.  Max, Jacoi, Trey, Christian, Ty.  GW has already become Wingstop.

Not sure I agree. With James leaving, we have an opening for a high scoring, high usage guard.

CC's done a nice job recruiting (and retaining) combo guards already.  Assuming Jun, Jacoi, Max, Trey and Garrett all come back next season, and assuming Ty joins the team, I think another guard is the last thing we need to worry about now.

Gwmayhem wrote:

Oscar, like I said, anything is possible.  But, can you foresee a scenario where the school has made up its mind to fire Juwan at the end of this season, AND lets the long-time strength and conditioning coach (plus his top 50 recruit son) walk out the door?

GWmayhem, it's highly unlikely. I think the only ways this would happen is if Juwan's other violent encounter become public information or if Jace ends up causing an embarrassing problem that can't be contained.

Gwmayhem wrote:

The likely scenario is that if you are in your 30's or younger, you don't have much idea as to the enormous impact that Sports Illustrated had on sports journalism, and really on journalism in general.  If you are in your 40's, you may have some idea and if you're in your 50's or are older, you fully get it.  Like you got the magazine in the mail, most every Thursday, and woe be unto the letter carrier for being a day late or God forbid, missing an occasional issue altogether.  The magazine's reputation was crafted upon its exceptional photography but soon, the country's most talented sportswriters lined up to write for the publication.  Frank Deford.  Rick Reilly (the younger, very entertaining version).  Curry Kirkpatrick.  Peter King.  Steve Rushin.  Richard Deitsch (if you like the sports media stuff which I do), Dan Jenkins, Peter Gammons, Dr. Z, Alexander Wolff, Jack McCallum, Rick Telander, the occasional first-person piece by George Plimpton, and the "give yourself 30 minutes to read" essay from arguably the best of all of them, Gary Smith.

The bad news surrounding SI came well before Friday's announcement that the publication is on life support.  Frankly, it has felt this way for years.  Ownership changed hands and as happens way too often in business, maximizing profits became far more important than putting out a superior product.  Proofreaders and editors were let go.  Writers got their resumes together.  Reader habits turned to digital where SI was agonizingly slow to adapt.  The magazine changed it's schedule to every other week,  followed by some indecipherable schedule where you might get the magazine once or twice per month contingent upon the month, and then finally, to a monthly schedule. 

As a weekly publication, SI was never about providing a summary of the game; that's what newspapers were for.  But SI could walk you through what led up to a big game to the reactions given after the game was played.  That wa

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