HawgBeat - What type of transfers is Arkansas pursuing for this offseason?
Arkansas is going to hit the transfer portal hard again, but what kind of player are they looking for?
arkansas.rivals.com
It has almost been a week since the transfer portal fully opened up, and the Arkansas coaching staff has been busy contacting transfer recruits. It has become somewhat of a running joke among national college basketball journalists and fans across the country, as the Razorbacks have contacted over 30 players in the portal at the time of this article. Our official running list can be found here.
These contacts are not scholarship offers, though. The staff has said in the past that the initial contact period essentially serves multiple purposes: (1) to express interest in the player, (2) to gauge the player's interest in Arkansas/the coaching staff, and (3) get a feel for the player's attitude and mindset.
Also worth noting, the team has a support staff reaching out to portal players, as the staff is focused on getting prepped for a Sweet Sixteen.
"I don't know about everybody else, but we have GAs and everybody on there," Musselman said Wednesday. "Certainly with the way college basketball is going, you know, right now we're trying to get ready for Illinois, but there is also a whole other aspect of the portal.
"There's people in our conference doing home visits right now while we're trying to get ready to play and perform well in this tournament. So there's a reason for -- we try to be at the forefront of analytics, so we have a couple of guys on staff that do that. Certainly our GAs are really important to us as guys that can rebound for guys. But we have tried to model it much off how an NBA team does with specific roles and responsibilities."
Some of the contacts end up as one-offs that go nowhere, while others are lasting relationships that see the player committing to be a Razorback. The indication seems to be that the coaching staff is looking to land an experienced combo guard who can shoot a high percentage from the perimeter, a stretch four and a legitimate interior post as the team's primary needs for the upcoming season.
From there, the needs will adjust depending upon roster movement and team needs changing. The players the Razorbacks have contacted reflect this, too.
Of the 30+ players Arkansas has contacted so far, 13 of them shoot 36% or better from the three-point line, and most of those are guards. Additionally, it looks like the staff is seeking to address the free throw issues, as 17 of the available transfer contacts shoot 75% or better from the charity stripe.
Razorback head coach Eric Musselman has been known for his "pace and space" style of basketball since he took the Arkansas job, wanting enough size and athleticism to play positionless basketball. This year's team was built to be the perfect combination of that, but injuries prevented that from happening, but the transfer portal is another way to add size. Of the contacts, 22 are 6-foot-4 or taller and most can play multiple positions, exactly what Musselman looks for.
It is still early in the process and with the Razorbacks still being alive in the NCAA Tournament, it will be hard for them to visit these transfers while other schools already are. There is a bit of a disadvantage for the teams succeeding in post-season play with the portal opening up the week leading into March Madness, but winning on a national stage is as good a marketing strategy as any.
This all will be the most clear after the season ends and the roster movement is over, but for now, some names to watch:
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