This year, the portal is especially crazy because every player got an extra year of eligibility, so you're seeing a LOT of guys who'd have to leave school for good just hopping into the portal to get a free grad degree. Which makes total sense.

That said, the transfer portal was increasing annually. It's for the same reason that one-and-dones increase annually. Kids these days are increasingly aware that *they* provide value to the program-- that, sure, programs give them opportunities, connections, etc., but just like some kids leave early without draft guarantees because fuck it, they can get paid somewhere, these kids are transferring because fuck it, why spend another year stuck in a bad situation just because "this school offered you a scholarship, so you owe them"? The school can choose to cut you, bench you, take your scholarship whenever they want. Look out for yourself.

I think people are overly concerned about the transfer portal. The previous system involved making players sit a year if they wanted to get out of a bad situation, which never felt right. Additionally, the NCAA would choose seemingly at random certain students for instant eligibility. Others might not hear they're eligible until the middle of a season... or they'd never hear at all. So the current system is *infinitely* better than this pile of horseshit.

There are just so many reasons for a kid to need a fresh start. The old-school talking heads talk about the whole "adversity builds character" thing, blah blah blah... but sometimes it just doesn't, lol. Sometimes it just ruins a potential pro's development, sometimes it ruins an athlete's love of the game. Yeah, some kids transfer because their parents want them to get more minutes instantly, sure, and yeah, maybe those kids would benefit from the tough love that program stability brings... but they're not the majority.

All of this, imo, can be solved with the implementation of Name Image Likeness. If you stay at one school and ingratiate yourself to your community, that provides obvious financial opportunities for you. There's serious potential upside if you're The Guy at a mid-major vs. the 8th-9th man at a blue blood that loves you when you commit but then views you as a disappointment. That, too, would change the game for the better.