That gesture was not viewed by me as a goodbye gesture. No more than a QB taking his O line out for dinner would be seen that way. All the talk was about how great a guy he is, his Gratitude Foundation, bla bla.
Cliff’s Decision Date is Sunday - Alabama
- Thread starter MadRU
- Start date
To each their own, either way it went down, it’s long in the rear view.
But the draft status of these players is pretty well known long before the deadline to withdraw. There is a lot of leadup to it. The decision to transfer came out of the blue.
You must not pay attention to the NIL market. Centers have been commanding the most money by far for each of the last two years.
Has nothing to do with cliffs talent and more to do with the lack of centers available.
Case in point we have brought in wings and guards who may have been more productive on paper but there are 100 more like them whereas finding a center who can play good defense and average a double double is really difficult
But again this is an example of how I think we will miss Cliff more than people realize or care to admit
100% agreed. I've never understood why players stay in so long.
Recruiting yes we can complain about that
I’m critiquing people criticizing who we get in the transfer portal because of lack of funds. That’s entirely different.
You’re a smart guy wouldn’t you agree that part of why we’re having trouble getting a transfer portal center is due to lack of $$$? My point is it’s unfair for a fan to complain about who we’re getting in the PORTAL if they don’t contribute to the main thing you need to succeed in the portal… which is $$$
Anybody complaining about how pike has recruited the HS landscape needs their head examined
I get your point but I don’t entirely agree. Did Pike overspend in the portal on reserves while he could have saved more for a talented 5 ?
And is Pike responsible for the crappy offense last year which kept us out of the tourney ? Winning grows NIL. Winning has to come first.
Had Bama and UConn not made the tourney and Final Four they wouldn’t have attracted so much NIL to rebuild with.
So it’s not as simple as ‘it’s the fans’ fault for not donating enough. I have no doubt that if the team won more, more would donate.
That’s how it goes, not the other way around. People get behind winners.
I’m not an expert on our NIL coffers but I would be willing to bet that even if we spent $0 on the other roster spots we wouldn’t have the 1+ million needed for a top tier center
And if we did have a million then we’d have 0 for the other roster spots
So again I agree with you but also disagree that it’s as simple as bench players vs a center
Considering Pike had to replace 5 players he's off base. The one thing that has hampered Pike most years is bench depth. Only a few years ago, the starters played 30+ minutes and there was no production from the bench.
Having a full roster that can be utilized in multiple ways is more than a top tier center with the amount of NIL that RU has to play with.
God forbid this kids actually get paid what they are worth. They’re professionals 100% and always have been.
I’m not against NIL, I’m 100% for it. And I rarely complain about or critique the players or coaches. I did that some when I was younger, but not any longer. And that wouldn’t change no matter how much I donate.
To me paying anyone 2 million without a contract is unstainable and dumb. I doubt the numbers being tossed about are as real or common as thought. And remember almost 40 % of those transferring don't even find a home. Things will change and anyway I'm supper excited about next year.
After telling Pike he was staying, Spencer abruptly leaves the weekend before Memorial Day weekend. That is effin late. Spencer totally blindsided Pike. Portal shooting guards are being taken left and right for two whole months before Spencer goes back on his word. The portal was already picked clean and Pike is handed the sh!t sandwich by Spencer causing Pike to scramble to try to replace his starting shooting guard and best scorer.
Spencer screwed Pike and Rutgers royally.
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^ ^^^ and THAT is why people bad mouth Cam for his transfer. NOT because he transferred “up”
There is not a player on the roster I wouldn't trade for Cliff next year.
That’s a difficult sentence to digest
. Not just the double negative but do you mean you wouldn’t trade someone from the past years’ roster or the current/ next year roster?
If the past roster I agree
but if the current roster are you saying you’d rather have Cliff than ace or dylan?
I get the sentiment. Need to wait to see who else Pike brings in and how big the dropoff is.
good points. we don’t know the payouts. it’s just my opinion NIL priority should be on the center more than three guys, two of whom won’t be starters. sure, we need bench players too but that’s where we should pinch pennies, especially we already have Lathan, Ogbole, Dortch, Grant and Davis in the fold. We do have a bench.
where I disagree is i think the three are making enough to affect what we can get. maybe not a million dollar center but someone who would have more impact and value
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next time i will opt for a triple negative to really confuse.
I REALLY value a shot blocking 5 and what Cliff can do defensively.
I also am worried/skeptical of a college freshman being a star in the B1G. You have to go a long way back to show one.
My conviction is moderately high on both fronts, but going 2 for 2 my conviction is low. I really want a shot blocking 5 to be brought in. If we don't it will be very interesting what happens to our D. We may get insight on how valuable Cliff and Myles were.
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The answer is very simple. All of these kids desperately want to get to the NBA, and they all generally think they are better than they really are, and have a very difficult time accepting that they are not good enough to get drafted. They are all hoping a team will swoop in at the last minute to give them some hope they can get drafted.
Dang. I know I'm the ten billionth person to say this, but this is the season for Rutgers to go all out and grab a super-talented big at any costs (literally), or keep your veteran center around. I guess it's not as easy as it sounds.
I'm sure Coach Pikiell has a plan; he's a professional at this...
I'm sure Coach Pikiell has a plan; he's a professional at this...
go get paid used to mean leaving early for the pros which I was always fine with. If they want to move into a semi-pro or pro environment than I am fine with that too. Just stop the charade and we can just treat them as such. That's fine too but not everyone has to go along with it and continue to support it.
who's not rooting for the guy? Good for him. it is the concept/current environment I don't like not the player. However let's also not pretend Cliff hasn't been well treated during his college and time at Roselle C. We got plenty of people in the military that have skills and never see their wife and kids. They aren't "getting paid".
It's not totally under his control -- someone on the outside has to be willing to sign the kid he wants to an NIL deal and Pikiell is not supposed to be playing a direct role in that.
yeah I said bama's of the world so you can put OSU and UM and PSU in there. I mentioned them because that is where Cliff is going and I believe it was the reference.
My mention of higher level was in regards to "win at all cost". Not education, geography. But Mindset.
It was reported long ago on the premium side that his handler's were quoted that Cliff was going elsewhere as the season was coming to a close and Rutgers wasn't in consideration. He was going elsewhere. That was well before any NIL discussions or negotiation of late. It was reported on the premium side that Rutgers had all the NIL it needed. Is this some new news I missed that Cliff was willing to come back if Rutgers gave him x?
Wanting to go elsewhere and dis-satisfaction are not necessary the same. I wasn't suggesting he was dis-satisfied. I wouldn't know but didn't ever see or hear he was.
The point is moot. Everyone knew that RU wouldn't be able to match the 7 figure NIL. So RU was out of the picture right of the bat. IF RU had the ability to match the NIL then Cliff would have had to think about it and weigh loyalty (he was crying on senior night) vs. whatever else might be in his mind. But we'll never know because RU was never even in consideration or in the running due to NIL.
lol, yeah, I’m not trading away two sure fire lotto picks for Cliff. This is a decision you make with your head, not your heart.
Exactly - there are some schools out there with nearly unlimited funds. We didn’t have $1M+ to pay him. Pike is a good guy. He wants what’s best for guys like Cliff so I’m sure he understood that he had to leave. As for taking $1.4 M over 2 M, he also needs to make sure he plays with guys who complement his skills. His first contract in Europe will be influenced by how he does next season so… it’s important.
This. I don’t get why some folks just don’t understand. This doesn’t mean we have no NIL resources. Just not what the market calls for to pay one BIG man for a season over $1M. We probably could’ve come up with 500K but for Cliff that wasn’t going to be enough. Now, it’s a matter of spending wisely and it’s not even about budget resources only I’m sure Pike doesn’t want to overpay for a guy who isn’t necessarily going to be better than Somerville or Ogbole. That’s how resentments and bad chemistry develop. While we don’t get a report on what the NIL deals are I bet the details spread amongst the players.
Well I don't think he meant both.
I took to mean Dylan/Clif or Ace/Clif over Ace/Dylan and no Clif
Potentially a upgrade at Center in exchange for a downgrade.
But we'd still have one superstar guard/wing.
What are you talking about. Cliff's NIL agent already had intel on what he could make elsewhere and RU was never in the ballpark with it's NIL pool. Richie's made that clear from the get go. And yes then it escalate above those original amounts since it was near $1m originally.
I would not trade either Dylan or Ace. Not a chance. They are the whole reason this season is going to be insanely exciting. Could be one for the ages.
It’s OK to get a little excited Greene.
In reality with the exception of last year the past 5 years have been extremely exciting. Winning is exciting, but winning with core players you have been rooting for a few years is even more exciting.
There is a reason why Cliff has a $1.4M price tag.
D'Angelo Russell is the last B1G freshman to be on the 1st team all B1G team. That was a long time ago.
To put into context exactly how insane this is...
Assume Cliff is not a first round pick in 2025 (a very safe assumption IMO)...
Further assume that in 2025, he bucks the odds and makes an NBA roster, and receives a standard NBA contract, not a two-way...
Cliff would have to take a PAY CUT to play in the NBA.
I am not questioning the accuracy of these numbers. I am questioning the sustainability of a system that generates these numbers.
