Tuesday, March 18, 2025
Seth Joba enters the transfer portal
The offseason has officially begin with the first portal activity for Vermont. Seth Joba has entered the portal after two seasons with the Cats. Joba struggled to crack the rotation and it makes sense that he would be exploring his options. He is a talented player who I think could be productive with the right fit. I wish him well and hope he finds the program he is looking for. His decision to move on continues a portal era trend of Vermont struggling to consistently find and develop post players. In the portal era, the Cats have been kinda stuck in the middle, with portal big men almost always going to a higher level and high school big men not being quite ready to be big contributors. Due to graduation and the portal, it is going to be a new era across the America East and for Vermont. This is going to be a big year for the Cats on the recruiting trail with minutes and spots up for grabs. With the offensive struggles this season, Vermont is certainly going to focus on that side of the ball in the offseason. The portal officially opens on Monday and I can't wait to see what players end up where.
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Not a surprise - Hope he lands in a good spot. Hope we can recruit a true post scoring big man - something the Cats have lacked since Coppenrath? (Davis was good - but more of a stretch than post player)
ReplyDeleteGood luck Seth. Wish you the best. Agreed - lots of big men minutes available!
ReplyDeleteAny thoughts on possibly slightly adjusting how they coach, value, and fit in their younger big men? Defense is top priority in Beckers system but it seems that maybe they can adjust this strategy for not only big men but all freshman/sophomores. Ra kpedi and Perry smith come to mind of big guys that ended up being solid contributors in mid major programs. I wish Seth best of luck and I think he should have played more minutes at the expense of some defensive breakdowns because he definitely seemed to give it 100% effort when he was in the game, trying not to screw up. Blake this yr too showed too many flashes of great play offensively to not have been given more minutes on a team that struggled nightly to score. We’ll see what happens but it looks like they may be approaching the portal looking for d2/3 bigs with a few yrs under their belt. Quite honestly I’m worried about penciling in TJ long or Odom to contribute at levels they once played at…
ReplyDeleteIf we were able to land another Ryan Davis, that woud be incredible. In the NIL era, that's highly doubtful, unfortunately. As far as post players, I think we'll be looking to pick up someone from a lower college level (D2/D3, Juco).
ReplyDeleteJust remember that Davis was WAY overweight he was recruited (at about 300 lbs). It was Davis who put in the work to get into D1 shape.
DeleteNot sure how much Barnett will help. He played sparingly this year. Showed some good stuff in a couple games, but he's not going to be the answer for a big man who can score. His best game this year was 25 minutes of playing time and scoring 15 - but it was against Plattsburgh State. If they can find some other big, he will be a reserve. That's a big if, though. Vermont has trouble getting bigs and keeping them.
ReplyDeleteIf Barnett isn't the answer at center Shy Odom isn't either. He's too small at 6'6" to play center. He would be a wing assuming he's healthy. That's a big assumption - back injuries can be hard to overcome.
ReplyDeleteBarnett a power forward - rebound/defense/hustle
DeleteI have hopes for Barnett. He only needs to learn not to foul and he can be a good defender and rebounder. He can set screens and has a nice little hook to score inside. Not everyone needs to shoot it for 22 feet. Odom showed me nothing. Too small. Too slow. No lift. Doesn't defend. A good start for him would be to get in shape.
ReplyDeleteI'm looking at Barnett and Alamutu as the only playable frontline players. They need two or three more guys. The high school kids they'll be in on will be raw and skinny and won't be able to contribute much. Decent D1 players in the portal will command NIL money. I guess Juco and D2? I'm not expecting much. I can only guess the other programs at this level are having the same problems.
This is a shame. At this point you have to blame Becker. Seth Joba, Perry Smith, and Jorge Ochoa all had 10+ D1 offers out of high school. You can’t blame the player anymore, Becker has failed all three of them. He never allowed these young forwards to grow. All of them were always taken out of the game after one mistake. He needs to reconsider how he coaches these young players.
DeleteAgree about Becker - excellent on the defensive end, but has failed 1. Utilizing/developing big men 2. Cultivating an offensive philosophy that expands beyond the 3-point small ball approach
DeleteBest case for next season... Blake and Barnett put the time in. Odom gets in great shape. TJ Long still has that 3 point shot... Blake penetrating with both TJs on the wing could be a good offense. Too many times we stood still this year. I'd love to see Sammy average 10 rebounds a game. it the portal for big man depth and hopefully one of the freshmen - Wesson or Momo can give solid minutes.
ReplyDeleteAnd Cats recruit a post big man
DeleteBecker plans to RS Momo.
DeleteThey failed him. Look at his Twitter and watch his practice highlights. He was never given the freedom to play like that in games. No wonder he wasn’t productive, they had him sitting in the corner the whole game. That wasn’t the player he was in high school, and clearly wasn’t the player he was in practice. Joba was not the problem, Becker was.
ReplyDeleteTo be honest, from the moment I started watching Seth’s recruiting tapes, his interviews before landing on campus, right through his time in VT, I never got any sense of joy, fire, passion. Very reserved. Seldom really engaged even in dramatic moments for his teammates. I do wish him well wherever he lands.
DeleteOkay… you could say the same thing about Tj Hurley. Doesn’t mean anything, that’s just his personality.
DeleteBecker & big men - a big problem
DeleteJust read that Sam Alamutu is in the portal...
ReplyDeleteOuch
Deletei heard that shy odom may be leaving aswell
DeleteThere is no team that will value Sam for 1 year left of eligibility than Vermont. If he were to leave a mistake part. If the report is true, I’m sure just exploring.
ReplyDeleteI don’t see Sam’s game fitting at a higher levels. His best games were at the end of the yr without bogues, and against ae foes. His strength will be neutralized at a higher level and his height will not allow him to play 3. He’s not a real guard in any sense. Doesn’t shoot well or handle the ball great…
DeleteWhy did Gavin Perryman leave the team? He just disappeared and was scrubbed from the team webpage. Is there a bigger problem with this team and Becker?
ReplyDeleteWhy was he on the team to begin with? Because he went to Texas? Chalk last yr up to a complete miss in the portal and hope we are learning and get more proficient at finding the right players…
DeleteI think Gavin saw that there was no role for him with the Cats and he wanted to maintain another year of eligibility, so he abruptly left the team.
DeleteWasnt going to classes, kicked off team
DeleteCurious how Perry Smith, Jorge Ochoa and Jackson Skipper performed since leaving UVM. Did any of them get minutes?
ReplyDeleteRE: Smith/Ochoa/Skipper - Stats are available at "Verbal Commits" - choose "Conferences" (left column - America East) drill into "Vermont" - has a link to all portal activity - links to all players. Smith, Ochoa & Skipper meager numbers, no loss to VT
DeleteSame with Georges Lefervbres - 6'9" - Ave 6.3 points at McGill U of Montreal
DeleteThere are no current players on the Cats roster I would shed a tear over transferring - Hurley & Alamutu included. Any transfer leaves open the possibility of fresh talent coming in to a winning program - I wouldn't mind seeing new faces invigorate Cat Country.
ReplyDeleteAlthough Blake & Barnett would be the biggest losses should they leave...
DeleteI'd love to see the TJs return, as well as Blake and Noah. Ditto the freshman. I'm surprised, not surprised, by Sam's portal entry. He wants to be something he isn't and it hurts the team! He's walking away from a starting role, ample minutes, so something's going on. Looking forward to Lee's analysis.
ReplyDeleteSammy red shirted so he has been here 4 years already. Maybe it is time? Maybe he wants to move on. But agreed - he has minutes, a role and would be a very solid Amercia East Player next season. If this report is in fact true and he does go elsewhere - wish him the best of luck. Always thought his goal for next season would be to make the All Defensive Team and lead the AE in rebounding.
ReplyDelete