Big Ten Discussion

Maybe someone there will actually pass him the ball.

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Martin has to be among the top 5 dirtiest coaches at this point.

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It would be a huge loss but Iowa is an intriguing team that was really young this year. Iā€™m not sold on them being good next year because I donā€™t know that I trust Fran, but there are some pieces there.

A very reliable source told me Mark Smith is transferring from Illinois. MSU a very likely landing spot.

https://www.illinoisloyalty.com/Forums/showthread.php?t=24383&page=5

Illinois message boards appear to be corroborating that. Tough hit for Illinois

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Tough hit indeed, that absolutely sucks for a coach trying to pick up pieces that were completely shattered when he came in. So hard to do when you donā€™t have committed players on your roster. I canā€™t even imagine how much more difficult our rebuild would have been if a freshman Manny Harris had transferred after our terrible 2008 year. While Smith obviously wasnā€™t as important to his team it still sucks.

Why didnā€™t he just commit to them last year? Think they were a finalist for him IIRC

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Probably liked Izzo/MSU more (I remember there was a lot of talk that he was definitely gonna commit to MSU at the time) but decided he wanted to stay in state due to state pride/closeness to home/etc.

Then, he probably decided this year that he really hates Underwood and canā€™t deal with it anymore I guess.

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I believe it came down to Illinois and MSU, although I could be wrong. Kentucky sniffed around but Iā€™m not sure there was anything real there.

He must be convinced that any brouhaha over the Bridges familyā€™s $40 meal of ketchup packets is the extent of the wrongdoing at MSU.

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Not knowing what happened between closed-doors, Smith had an objectively terrible season. Regardless of whatā€™s true or not, it wouldnā€™t shock me if a kid who had nothing but success as a HS and AAU player, suddenly faced with a failure, pointed the finger at his new coach, especially if there was any personality conflict involved. Also, just by watching the guy on the sidelines, Iā€™d conservatively say that playing for Underwood takes a certain kind of personality.

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Michigan collectively did an outstanding job of not picking up dribble in the lane, unless shooting. Everybody was in on the act from Wagner to Simpson. I was thinking watching the game, whoa, this is different. They play so fast when doing this; joy to watch; and it decreased turnovers.

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I want some insight on Davis, Teske, Wagner making each other better through daily competition. Has Coach Beilein addressed this at length at any point? Iā€™d love th hear all parties involved take.

Big Ten transfer rules dictate Smith would sit out a year and lose a year of eligibility. Not sure that would be a good move for Smith or MSU.

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100% agree. Lots more talk of him going to SLU or Missouri too. Not exactly sure where he will end up.

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According to random Illinois fans on the internet, they think Finke is gone too and that Leron Black will put his name in the NBA draft and play overseas if not. Itā€™s too bad that random 5 star combo guard they have already signed his LOI.

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In other news, Brad Davison of Wisconsin underwent shoulder surgery today.

Itā€™s about timeā€¦ I canā€™t imagine playing through what he did.

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Why are all these people leaving Illinios? Is Underwood really that difficult to deal with? I get establishing your own program and your gonna rub some people the wrong way, but this seems a bit extreme