From mid to major: Transfers move up for a chance to be there in March

Lindsay Schnell, USA TODAY Sports Published 9:56 a.m. ET Jan. 26, 2018 | Updated 10:02 a.m. ET Jan. 26, 2018

SportsPulse: USA TODAY Sports Lindsay Schnell and Scott Gleeson discuss what sets the Sonners freshman apart. USA TODAY Sports

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — James Daniel has had his share of memorable moments in a basketball career filled with success, but ask the Tennessee guard, a graduate transfer from Howard, if he can pinpoint when he realized that Power Five basketball was different from mid-major hoops, and he just starts laughing.

“Did I have a ‘What did I get myself into?’ moment? Of course I did!” Daniel told USA TODAY Sports. “You know, everybody tells you that all the great coaches have a little crazy in them but man, coach (Rick) Barnes, he can be tough.”

The Vols, ranked No. 21 in the latest USA TODAY Coaches Poll, had been going hard for a couple of hours in a preseason practice and thought they were about to wrap up. Then Barnes ordered them to the sideline and called out “17!” a sideline-to-sideline sprint they repeated 17 times. When they were done, he yelled the number again.

“Coach Barnes and his intensity, that was my welcome to the Power Five moment,” Daniel laughed.

But it’s what he came here for: to be pushed outside his comfort zone and held to a higher standard. The hope is that his sacrifice comes with deep run in the NCAA Tournament.

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Though Daniel is a graduate transfer — which means he received his undergraduate degree at a previous university and was therefore immediately eligible to play instead of sitting out a year — he is one of the dozens of transfers in college men's basketball, a growing trend that has drawn criticism from pundits and mid-major coaches alike. Some call it an epidemic.

Critics say it’s unfair that players can suddenly abandon the small mid-major that was loyal to them initially and helped developed his skills. Why should a Power Five reap the benefits of someone else’s work? Mid-majors aren’t supposed to serve as farm systems, after all. It can destroy a mid-major’s depth, and throw off its recruiting plan. On the flip side, transfers usually are willing to sacrifice personal glory to help a (different) team — and isn’t that what coaches always preach?

“If you transfer to a perennial top 30 program … it’s just going to be a lot harder, and guys know that,” Cincinnati coach Mick Cronin said. “Yeah, there are perks — you’re playing on ESPN, flying on charters, playing in front of packed arenas … But they’re signing on for more work and harder work, and you admire the kid who wants to challenge himself.”

Regardless of who’s right and who’s wrong in the debate — and players who spoke with USA TODAY Sports point out that coaches aren’t typically held in contempt when they move up for a bigger and better opportunities — the transition from Big Man On Campus to Guy Just Trying To Contribute takes time.

At Howard, Daniel led the NCAA in scoring during the 2015-16 season, averaging 27.1 points. He arrived in Knoxville as the NCAA’s No. 2 active scorer, totaling 1,933 points in three years at Howard (he’s currently at 2,052). A 6-foot, 172-pound guard, Daniel got a ball screen almost every possession at Howard, and was often left to create his own shot. At Tennessee, he’s not a starter. For the first time in Daniel’s career, he has more assists (67) than made field goals (35).

“You never really know what you’re getting yourself into when you transfer,” Daniel said. “Of course I thought I’d be scoring more, but my role has been being more of a defensive presence, or handing out assists.”

Barnes said he anticipated Daniel could come in and add instant leadership — he’s the only senior on the Vols’ roster — while he felt out the SEC.

“At Howard it was, ‘If in doubt, shoot,’ ” Barnes said. “So, from that standpoint he’s still learning when he’s really open and when he’s not. When he takes good shots, he’s very effective … and when he wants to get engaged defensively, he can be a difference maker.”

So how big of a hit did his ego take in transferring to Tennessee? Daniel laughed at that question, too.

“I’ve already scored the ball,” he explained. “It’s not like I haven’t been able to that. I’m just ready to win.”

Daniel always believed he was good enough to play at the Power Five. He played AAU ball with guys such as Frank Mason (Kansas) and Andrew Rowsey (Marquette) and, “I’m thinking to myself the whole time, ‘I’m just as good or better than these guys.’ But we had a loaded (AAU) team, so nobody really got to shine if you weren’t going to those big camps.”

Though VCU came after him late, Daniel decided he’d stick with the school that had shown interest right away, and signed with Howard. A few years later, he wondered if there was something bigger for him.

Getting an opportunity

Auburn's Desean Murray can relate. A Stanley, N.C., native, Murray grew up a Tar Heels fan, dreaming of the day he’d get a call from Roy Williams with an offer to wear Carolina blue.

But that never happened. Worried he might not have any offers come the spring of his senior year, Murray signed with Presbyterian College in Clinton, S.C., in the fall.

A forward who plays much bigger than his listed height of 6-3, Murray led the Big South in scoring as a sophomore, averaging 20.2 points. He doesn’t think it’s accurate to call him a late bloomer. “I was just given an opportunity to be dominant at Presbyterian,” he said. “In high school, most the five-star guys got the attention.”

And while he doesn’t blame college coaches, Murray does think they in general put pressure on players to sign early. That means players who didn’t get much exposure — and could benefit from being seen their senior high school season — commit to a smaller school when maybe they could play at a higher level if they waited.

“Coaches are looking at a bunch of other people, too, so if you wait they (on you) they might lose their backup option, too,” Murray said.

In some ways, Murray thinks that makes it more fun. There are so many kids trying to play college basketball, proving you’re wanted by someone early is a sign of success.

Murray felt comfortable the first time he played pick up with his new teammates, and has been surprised at all the space he’s had: At Presbyterian, Murray got double and triple-teamed every time he touched the ball. But at Auburn, because so many other players are a scoring threat, opposing teams have to guard everybody, which gives Murray more room to work. As a starter for the No. 19 Tigers, Murray averages 10.8 points and 7.3 rebounds in about 23 minutes per game. Being “the man” is fun, he said — but winning is better.

Taking the next step

Some players transfer knowing they will need to score for their new team.

Oregon’s Elijah Brown, a graduate transfer from New Mexico who started his career at Butler, went to Eugene with the understanding that he needed to put the ball in the basket. Brown, the son of Warriors assistant Mike Brown, led New Mexico in scoring both his sophomore (21.7 points) and junior (18.9) years.

The Ducks lost their five top scorers from last year’s Final Four team, and restocked their roster with a mix of freshmen and transfers.

Besides Brown, they welcomed Mikyle McIntosh, a 6-7 forward from Illinois State. In his last three games, McIntosh has averaged 16.3 points and 8.3 rebounds, surprising numbers considering he averaged 12.5 points and 5.6 rebounds for the 28-7 Redbirds last season.

McIntosh said Oregon coaches told him in the recruiting process they envisioned him playing mostly in the paint but wanted him to stretch bigger defenders out the perimeter, too. At Illinois State, McIntosh came off his share of ball screens. At Oregon, he’s rarely isolated.

Playing in the Pac-12 has allowed McIntosh the chance to check items off his hoops-themed bucket list, like attending a game in the McKale Center, where Arizona fans create one of the rowdiest environments in the country. Except instead of just attending, he played there, scoring 20 points and grabbing seven rebounds in a 90-83 loss.

“I don’t want people to think I hated my old school or despised my old coaching staff or anything,” McIntosh said. “This transfer was nothing about them, those are my guys. I just felt like personally, I needed to challenge myself and take the next step.”

Eyeing the NCAA tournament

Cane Broome has no regrets about how he found his way to Cincinnati. It was a circuitous path, and included stops at high school, prep school and Sacred Heart before finally settling on the Bearcats. And yes, he’d absolutely do it all over again.

“Sacred Heart, that was a big part of me finding myself as a basketball, player,” said Broome, who comes off the bench for No. 8 Cincinnati and averages 8.6 points and 3.4 assists.

A 6-foot guard from East Hartford, Conn., Broome said he had interest from a handful of schools — Boston College, San Francisco, Providence and St. Bonaventure, to name a few — coming out of high school, but didn’t have the grades. A year at Saint Thomas More prep fixed that, and when college hoops finally rolled around, Broome knew he wanted to go somewhere and play right away. Sacred Heart of the Northeast Conference gave him that opportunity.

And he didn’t just play — he played, and scored, a lot. Broome averaged 23.1 points a game for the Pioneers, earning the 2016 conference player of the year honors. And while he enjoyed Sacred Heart — and especially loved being close to his family — he noticed that in the locker room, no one ever talked about NBA aspirations or deep NCAA tournament runs. He craved both those things.

“At the end of the day, basketball is still basketball, but here, everyone expects you to win — coaches, teammates, alums, fans, people you walk by on campus,” Broome said. “The pressure, that’s the big difference.”

Broome likes that at Cincinnati, he doesn’t have to score the ball to feel like he’s contributing. If the team needed him to go out and get 20 one night, he believes he could do it. But he doesn’t feel the need to prove that to anyone.

“Whether it’s a different level or not, I already got 1,000 points. I achieved that,” he said. “I’d rather come here and be just a contributor but be on a team that has a chance to go far and win a national championship.”

For transfers, that’s a common desire — one they hope isn’t held against them.

Utah Utes guard Sedrick Barefield (0) reacts after making a three-point basket over Arizona State Sun Devils guard Remy Martin (1) during overtime at Wells-Fargo Arena. Joe Camporeale, USA TODAY Sports

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From mid to major: Transfers move up for a chance to be there in March

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From mid to major: Transfers move up for a chance to be there in March

Getting an opportunity

Taking the next step

Eyeing the NCAA tournament

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