Well, let me tell ya somethin’ about this here fighting illini basketball transfer portal thing. It’s a real head-scratcher, that’s for sure. Seems like every day there’s another young fella packin’ his bags and headin’ off somewhere new. This transfer portal, it’s like a revolving door at the general store, folks comin’ and goin’ all the time.
This year, I heard tell that a whole bunch of them Illinois boys, they up and left. Ten of ’em, can you believe it? Enyce Sledge, Chase Canada, Cal Swanson, Kevin Wigenton, Hunter Whitenack, Declan Duley, Kenari Wilcher, Donovan Leary, and that Henry Boyer, all gone, like that. Just poof! Makes your head spin, don’t it?
And that’s not all. There was this other fella, AJ Storr, from Wisconsin. He’s a good player, they say. Well, he was supposed to come to Illinois, but then he changed his mind and went to Kansas. Fickle, these young’uns. One minute they’re here, the next they’re there. It’s all this newfangled rule about transferrin’. Back in my day, you stayed put. You picked a place and you stuck with it, come rain or shine. But not now. Now, they can just jump ship whenever they feel like it. No waitin’ a year, nothing.
And then there are those fellas, Dain Dainja, Sencire Harris, and Amani Hansberry, they followed their coach. Chester Frazier, I think his name was. Went to West Virginia. Like birds of a feather, they flock together, I reckon.
Now, they say Illinois needs another big fella, another frontcourt player. Don’t know what that means exactly, but I reckon they need someone who’s tall and strong, can throw that ball around good. They got three new ones comin’ in, though. Jake Davis, Tre White, those are the names I heard. Hope they’re good. Hope they can fill the shoes of those other boys who left.
It’s like a whole new team every year, ain’t it? It’s a sight to behold, all these young men, bouncin’ around from one school to another. This basketball thing, it’s a crazy world. They get paid to play, I hear. Back in my day, we played for the fun of it. Played in the dirt, scraped our knees, and didn’t think twice about it.
- Enyce Sledge – gone
- Chase Canada – gone
- Cal Swanson – gone
- Kevin Wigenton – gone
- Hunter Whitenack – gone
That transfer portal, it’s somethin’ else. It’s like a big ol’ swap meet. You trade this player for that player, and hope you get a good deal. But sometimes, you end up with a lemon. And then what? You’re stuck with ’em. It’s a gamble, that’s what it is. A big ol’ gamble.
This here Illinois Fighting Illini team, they had a good year, 9-3, I heard. That’s a good number. I think so. I guess that means they won more than they lost. But then this transfer portal comes along and shakes things up. It’s like a tornado, tearin’ through town and leavin’ a mess in its wake. That’s the way I see it.
And they talk about this Citrus Bowl and South Carolina. Sounds like a fancy fruit salad to me. But I guess it’s a big game. A big deal. These young fellas, they travel all over the country, playin’ this game. It’s a different world, that’s for sure.
I keep hearin’ about 2024 college basketball players and this transfer portal. Seems like it’s all anyone talks about these days. It’s the latest thing, I reckon. Like hula hoops and those yo-yos. Everyone’s gotta have one.
- Declan Duley – gone
- Kenari Wilcher – gone
- Donovan Leary – gone
- Henry Boyer – gone
And then there’s the 2023 college basketball players, they’re in the transfer portal, too. It’s never-endin’, I tell ya. Like a merry-go-round that just keeps spinnin’ and spinnin’. Makes you dizzy just thinkin’ about it.
They even got a name for it, this portal tracker. Sounds like somethin’ out of a space movie. Keepin’ track of all these players, comin’ and goin’. It’s all very complicated. Too complicated for me, I reckon. They talk about orange and blue. I guess those are the school colors. Seems like a lot of fuss over a game, if you ask me.
But that’s the way of the world, I suppose. Always changin’. Nothin’ stays the same for long. Just gotta roll with the punches, I guess. That’s what I always say. Just gotta roll with the punches. This fighting illini basketball transfer portal is here to stay, it looks like. We’ll just have to see what happens next. It’s like watchin’ a soap opera, ain’t it? Always some new drama unfoldin’.