Comments from Notae and Musselman regarding the potential future of Notae/Toney and how they're handling Senior Day tomorrow...
arkansas.rivals.com
FAYETTEVILLE — Something that used to be pretty cut-and-dry, Senior Day has taken on another level of nuance in the post-pandemic era of college sports.
With the NCAA granting an additional year of eligibility to all sports impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, coaches have been forced to decide how to recognize seniors who could potentially return for an extra season.
Football coach Sam Pittman opted to honor everyone, even if it means getting a second Senior Day, but basketball coach Eric Musselman is taking the complete opposite approach for the Razorbacks’ home finale in 2022.
After discussing it with his three seniors with no remaining eligibility, Stanley Umude, Trey Wade and Chris Lykes, Musselman said they will not have a ceremony before or after Wednesday’s game against LSU.
“What I have done is I’ve had conversations with Stanley, Trey and Chris,” Musselman said. “We’re all just going to focus on LSU. I think that’s where we are right now. It’s a huge game — as are both games and then the remainder of what happens after.”
Because it is definitely the last home game for those three guys, Musselman said he wanted to leave that decision up to them. They’ll still get their framed jerseys, but it’ll just come at a later date after the season.
Opting for that route was probably made easier by the fact that Arkansas’ last game was such a big event and likely served as a better Senior Day considering it was a Saturday and against No. 6 Kentucky.
“Almost all of them had family members, AAU coaches, their inner circle at the Kentucky game because of the weekend,” Musselman said. “Now with this being a midweek game, almost all of their family members and stuff have gone home, as well.”
Two names noticeably absent from Musselman’s above comments are JD Notae and Au’Diese Toney. Although both are listed as seniors on the Razorbacks’ roster, they have the option of returning to Arkansas as super seniors next season.
Notae is a fifth-year senior who spent two years at Jacksonville before transferring to Arkansas. He redshirted his season in Fayetteville because of old transfer rules and is now in his second year of actually playing for the Razorbacks — including the 2020-21 season that was essentially a free year from the NCAA.
Toney is a true senior who played three years at Pittsburgh before transferring to Arkansas for what would normally be his final year of eligibility. However, he played in 2020-21, so he is eligible to play an extra year.
Whether or not they take advantage of their bonus year has not yet been decided. In fact, Musselman said he won’t even talk to Notae and Toney about that until after the season.
“I’m not going to have conversations with anyone, whether it’s someone who’s got eligibility, someone who’s eligibility (is up), until the season is over,” Musselman said. “That’s the appropriate time to have those discussions. Right now, there’s still a body of work ahead of us.”
Notae is taking the lead from his head coach and waiting until the offseason to make any decisions regarding his future.
“I’ve just been trying to stay focused on this season and just what that holds, and just keep on keeping that the main focus and just go day by day,” Notae said. “I’m just worried about this year and what we can do this year.”
When the time does come to have those conversations, Musselman said he will treat it like previous underclassmen weighing their professional options — guys like Mason Jones, Isaiah Joe and Moses Moody.
With so many NBA connections between himself and his assistants, Musselman will make sure both of them can make an informed decision.
“I do think that I’m going to get as much information as possible for those guys, and I want what is best for them,” Musselman said. “Nobody knows better than I do and some of the guys on our staff that have been at the next level when that time is right.”
An example he brought up during Monday’s press conference were the Martin twins — Cody and Caleb — during his time at Nevada.
The brothers tested the NBA Draft waters following their first season with the Wolf Pack, in which Caleb was named the MWC Player of the Year and Cody was named the MWC Defensive Player of the Year, and even participated in the combine, but ultimately decided to return to school for another year.
Those decisions were questioned by some because of their age, but Musselman said they ended up benefitting greatly from the extra season of college basketball. Cody became a better shooter and Caleb improved defensively, helping them stick in the NBA despite being a second-round pick and undrafted free agent, respectively.
Of course, Musselman has also coached players who moved on to professional leagues other than the NBA. Two of them were recently back in Fayetteville, as Jimmy Whitt Jr. and Jalen Tate were recognized during the Kentucky game.
Whitt exhausted his eligibility by playing his final season at Arkansas and is currently in the G-League, while Tate technically could have returned for another year before going overseas to play professionally.
“Jalen has gone to Germany and he’s gone to Sweden,” Musselman said. “It’s not easy, so I think that’s good for all of us to see the makeup of how hard it truly is. It’s not about playing at the next level, it’s about making a career out of it.”
Musselman said it’s sometimes best for players to start their pro careers, such as when he had a super short conversation with Moses Moody and his father about becoming a one-and-done because he was projected to be a lottery pick, but there are other times it’s best to return to school.
He’s already described the Martin twins’ decision to come back to Nevada as “genius,” but just how smart it was will become evident this summer, when they’re set to be free agents.
Although Musselman hasn’t specifically discussed which side of the coin he believes Notae and Toney are on, he has hinted at both players having specific areas of their game that could evolve.
Several times throughout the season, he’s mentioned that all of Toney’s production on the offensive end comes without the benefit of set plays, but rather from his instincts and cleaning up offensive boards, while Notae is continuing to develop his point guard skillset to compliment his elite scoring ability.
“To come out early and get cut, or to play in the G League or to go to Europe, that's not helping your longevity as an NBA player,” Musselman said. “Sometimes having an extra year and growing your game can lead to what's happened with the Martin twins, and those two kids listened and believed in the input that we gave them.”
Whether it’s the final home game for just the three seniors or all five, Arkansas’ last game inside Bud Walton Arena this season is scheduled for 8 p.m. CT Wednesday against LSU. The game will be televised on ESPN2.
HawgBeat - Unique Senior Day in store for Hogs vs. LSU as decisions loom
Wednesday will be the final home game for at least three Razorbacks, but possibly as many more.
arkansas.rivals.com
FAYETTEVILLE — Something that used to be pretty cut-and-dry, Senior Day has taken on another level of nuance in the post-pandemic era of college sports.
With the NCAA granting an additional year of eligibility to all sports impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, coaches have been forced to decide how to recognize seniors who could potentially return for an extra season.
Football coach Sam Pittman opted to honor everyone, even if it means getting a second Senior Day, but basketball coach Eric Musselman is taking the complete opposite approach for the Razorbacks’ home finale in 2022.
After discussing it with his three seniors with no remaining eligibility, Stanley Umude, Trey Wade and Chris Lykes, Musselman said they will not have a ceremony before or after Wednesday’s game against LSU.
“What I have done is I’ve had conversations with Stanley, Trey and Chris,” Musselman said. “We’re all just going to focus on LSU. I think that’s where we are right now. It’s a huge game — as are both games and then the remainder of what happens after.”
Because it is definitely the last home game for those three guys, Musselman said he wanted to leave that decision up to them. They’ll still get their framed jerseys, but it’ll just come at a later date after the season.
Opting for that route was probably made easier by the fact that Arkansas’ last game was such a big event and likely served as a better Senior Day considering it was a Saturday and against No. 6 Kentucky.
“Almost all of them had family members, AAU coaches, their inner circle at the Kentucky game because of the weekend,” Musselman said. “Now with this being a midweek game, almost all of their family members and stuff have gone home, as well.”
Two names noticeably absent from Musselman’s above comments are JD Notae and Au’Diese Toney. Although both are listed as seniors on the Razorbacks’ roster, they have the option of returning to Arkansas as super seniors next season.
Notae is a fifth-year senior who spent two years at Jacksonville before transferring to Arkansas. He redshirted his season in Fayetteville because of old transfer rules and is now in his second year of actually playing for the Razorbacks — including the 2020-21 season that was essentially a free year from the NCAA.
Toney is a true senior who played three years at Pittsburgh before transferring to Arkansas for what would normally be his final year of eligibility. However, he played in 2020-21, so he is eligible to play an extra year.
Whether or not they take advantage of their bonus year has not yet been decided. In fact, Musselman said he won’t even talk to Notae and Toney about that until after the season.
“I’m not going to have conversations with anyone, whether it’s someone who’s got eligibility, someone who’s eligibility (is up), until the season is over,” Musselman said. “That’s the appropriate time to have those discussions. Right now, there’s still a body of work ahead of us.”
Notae is taking the lead from his head coach and waiting until the offseason to make any decisions regarding his future.
“I’ve just been trying to stay focused on this season and just what that holds, and just keep on keeping that the main focus and just go day by day,” Notae said. “I’m just worried about this year and what we can do this year.”
When the time does come to have those conversations, Musselman said he will treat it like previous underclassmen weighing their professional options — guys like Mason Jones, Isaiah Joe and Moses Moody.
With so many NBA connections between himself and his assistants, Musselman will make sure both of them can make an informed decision.
“I do think that I’m going to get as much information as possible for those guys, and I want what is best for them,” Musselman said. “Nobody knows better than I do and some of the guys on our staff that have been at the next level when that time is right.”
An example he brought up during Monday’s press conference were the Martin twins — Cody and Caleb — during his time at Nevada.
The brothers tested the NBA Draft waters following their first season with the Wolf Pack, in which Caleb was named the MWC Player of the Year and Cody was named the MWC Defensive Player of the Year, and even participated in the combine, but ultimately decided to return to school for another year.
Those decisions were questioned by some because of their age, but Musselman said they ended up benefitting greatly from the extra season of college basketball. Cody became a better shooter and Caleb improved defensively, helping them stick in the NBA despite being a second-round pick and undrafted free agent, respectively.
Of course, Musselman has also coached players who moved on to professional leagues other than the NBA. Two of them were recently back in Fayetteville, as Jimmy Whitt Jr. and Jalen Tate were recognized during the Kentucky game.
Whitt exhausted his eligibility by playing his final season at Arkansas and is currently in the G-League, while Tate technically could have returned for another year before going overseas to play professionally.
“Jalen has gone to Germany and he’s gone to Sweden,” Musselman said. “It’s not easy, so I think that’s good for all of us to see the makeup of how hard it truly is. It’s not about playing at the next level, it’s about making a career out of it.”
Musselman said it’s sometimes best for players to start their pro careers, such as when he had a super short conversation with Moses Moody and his father about becoming a one-and-done because he was projected to be a lottery pick, but there are other times it’s best to return to school.
He’s already described the Martin twins’ decision to come back to Nevada as “genius,” but just how smart it was will become evident this summer, when they’re set to be free agents.
Although Musselman hasn’t specifically discussed which side of the coin he believes Notae and Toney are on, he has hinted at both players having specific areas of their game that could evolve.
Several times throughout the season, he’s mentioned that all of Toney’s production on the offensive end comes without the benefit of set plays, but rather from his instincts and cleaning up offensive boards, while Notae is continuing to develop his point guard skillset to compliment his elite scoring ability.
“To come out early and get cut, or to play in the G League or to go to Europe, that's not helping your longevity as an NBA player,” Musselman said. “Sometimes having an extra year and growing your game can lead to what's happened with the Martin twins, and those two kids listened and believed in the input that we gave them.”
Whether it’s the final home game for just the three seniors or all five, Arkansas’ last game inside Bud Walton Arena this season is scheduled for 8 p.m. CT Wednesday against LSU. The game will be televised on ESPN2.
