EJ to the portal

NAIA All-Star · 04-11-2022, 08:31 AM

Put it in the transfer portal thread but figured it deserved it's own thread.

Back to Cali, I assume

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BoulderSooner · 04-11-2022, 08:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NAIA All-Star

Put it in the transfer portal thread but figured it deserved it's own thread.

Back to Cali, I assume

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wow .. this was what lots of us thought was going to happen ... then it seemed like OU had convinced him to stay ...

and now he has gone back to his original plan ..

i wish him the best

WichitaSooner · 04-11-2022, 08:42 AM

Will be interesting to see where he lands. If he thinks he will be able to go to a good team and be The Man, I think he is in for a surprise. If he is willing to go somewhere and play defense and be a third or fourth option offensively, he may find a good landing spot.

WichitaSooner · 04-11-2022, 08:45 AM

Also, not surprising, but ridiculous that no OU writer has tweeted this out yet.

WTSooner · 04-11-2022, 08:46 AM

Well.....bye!

I know a lot of you are higher on the kid than I am, but I think he is somewhat easily replaceable. JMO.

Sooner04 · 04-11-2022, 08:48 AM

Let the infusion of talent commence!

OUSKINS · 04-11-2022, 08:49 AM

I view this as fairly significant bad news. Unless Moser has something major coming in the portal, it would appear he is running into some brick walls in terms of recruiting elite talent— that in of itself isn’t anything earth shattering as it’s been our struggle here for awhile, but if we can’t keep the guys that develop into good players within the system, then we are in a major trouble.

WTSooner · 04-11-2022, 08:55 AM

I don't understand our fans. They blame our lack of success largely on lack of talent and lack of athleticism, then want to run it back with the exact same team plus some freshman.

I'm not sure who we're going to end up with, but I'd be pretty willing to bet our three starting guards at the end of next season will be better than the combination of Goldwire, Mo, and Harkless.

You can't run the Moser offense and be successful with a player like Harkless.

Stikboy · 04-11-2022, 08:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OUSKINS

I view this as fairly significant bad news. Unless Moser has something major coming in the portal, it would appear he is running into some brick walls in terms of recruiting elite talent— that in of itself isn’t anything earth shattering as it’s been our struggle here for awhile, but if we can’t keep the guys that develop into good players within the system, then we are in a major trouble.

Crap! I think you're right. Dildy just followed me on twitter. I was wondering who the guy with the OU shirt who was watching us play ball at church last night was.

Seriously I wish EJ well. I for one will miss his toughness, defense, rebounding, and overall dog mentality. Good luck EJ! Heal up and have a great last year..

rickjames · 04-11-2022, 09:00 AM

I’m not sad about this. We need better offensive players from the portal. Our offense was so stagnant and Harkless forced the issue too much.

BoulderSooner · 04-11-2022, 09:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OUSKINS

I view this as fairly significant bad news. Unless Moser has something major coming in the portal, it would appear he is running into some brick walls in terms of recruiting elite talent— that in of itself isn’t anything earth shattering as it’s been our struggle here for awhile, but if we can’t keep the guys that develop into good players within the system, then we are in a major trouble.

the sky is not falling ..

with out covid rules EJ would not have been back either way ..

the 3 freshman coming in are all very very good players .

hoopsaustin · 04-11-2022, 09:11 AM

I'm torn on this one. When he plays within his role, he is valuable to the team. But i think that he wants to be the guy more than anything and that being the case, i think this could qualify for addition by subtraction. We need to lock up some portal guys tho.

AdaSooner · 04-11-2022, 09:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WTSooner

I don't understand our fans. They blame our lack of success largely on lack of talent and lack of athleticism, then want to run it back with the exact same team plus some freshman.

I'm not sure who we're going to end up with, but I'd be pretty willing to bet our three starting guards at the end of next season will be better than the combination of Goldwire, Mo, and Harkless.

You can't run the Moser offense and be successful with a player like Harkless.

I would agree with you if Mo was not on the list. He might be somewhat limited due to his size, but it will not be easy to replace him with a player who can fill it up from deep the way he does. He also found ways to get open in the latter part of the season. I’ll be thrilled if he decides to come back!

Still, I wouldn’t trade the three freshmen coming in next season for any player moving on from this year’s team. Some may call me crazy, but I honestly believe they will prove me right by conference time. Any player OU signs out of the portal will be a bonus in my book.

skyvue · 04-11-2022, 09:26 AM

I'm not the least bit torn. EJ is a terrific defender and plays all out. There are games we'd have lost without him and while yes, he had some bad games, overall he was a plus player who competed with passion and fire.

It's so easy to just say, "Hey, just get some guys in the portal." How did that work out for us last off-season? Who are we leading for this year? Who are we even in serious contention for?

We already had openings for portal players. Now we have one more. Who will fill those slots? And while I'm excited about the freshmen we have coming in, I learned long ago to never expect a true freshman to make major contributions or to fill a departing senior's shoes. That's asking for disappointment.

NorthCarolinaSooner · 04-11-2022, 09:27 AM

Everyone was wondering where we were getting scholarships to add talent......there you go.

For me....Herkless was good defensively....I was never a big fan of his offensive game. He was a very mediocre ball handler and his shooting left a lot to be desired.

I'm not hating on him but I think we can find pieces that fit our needs better with that scholarship. We have guys coming in that play the same position and can HOPEFULLY provide more offense....but we currently lack an athletic inside presence....hoping we fill that in the portal.

skyvue · 04-11-2022, 09:31 AM

I will add that plenty of posters here were fine with the departures we had last season and we were counting on the portal covering those losses, too. Didn't really work out.

soonerjunky · 04-11-2022, 09:32 AM

Not trying to bash the guy, but he was limited offensively and a turnover machine. Glad he's gone.

BoulderSooner · 04-11-2022, 09:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by skyvue

I will add that plenty of posters here were fine with the departures we had last season and we were counting on the portal covering those losses, too. Didn't really work out.

OU was a top 30 team in the nation so i would say they did

and for the record OU had terrible luck .. (in the bottom 300 teams)

skyvue · 04-11-2022, 09:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NorthCarolinaSooner

We have guys coming in that play the same position and can HOPEFULLY provide more offense

What we have is true freshmen coming in who will be trying to get their legs under them in D-1 ball. Oweh is the 72nd ranked player in his class, according to 247. Uzan is #52. Noland was #88, and though he certainly contributed this year, he hasn't been a difference maker yet and he caught grief from a number of posters on this board.

So expecting even top-100 freshmen to fill a senior's shoes, especially on defense, is asking a lot.

NorthCarolinaSooner · 04-11-2022, 09:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by skyvue

I will add that plenty of posters here were fine with the departures we had last season and we were counting on the portal covering those losses, too. Didn't really work out.

Does it really have to be said AGAIN...that Moser was late in the game coming in and HAD to fill spots??

He can be a little more picky about what he is getting and bringing in....PLUS he knows what the weaknesses and strengths of the guys here and the guys leaving. So it is likely a little different story this year than last.

NorthCarolinaSooner · 04-11-2022, 09:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by skyvue

What we have is true freshmen coming in who will be trying to get their legs under them in D-1 ball. Oweh is the 72nd ranked player in his class, according to 247. Uzan is #52. Noland was #88, and though he certainly contributed this year, he hasn't been a difference maker yet and he caught grief from a number of posters on this board.

So expecting even top-100 freshmen to fill a senior's shoes, especially on defense, is asking a lot.

are you just generally a pessimist? or do you just save it for this board?

BCSooners · 04-11-2022, 10:02 AM

Wish he’d stay, but that might change based on who the portal guys are.

oukyle · 04-11-2022, 10:10 AM

Harkless was a below average offensive player, decent rebounder, and plus defender. He was a below average shooter and very poor at taking care of the ball. You could certainly claim that shooting and turnovers are what hindered this team the most and as a Senior, he was awful at both.

Harkless is a decent player and will surely be a contributor elsewhere, but he needs to go somewhere where he is surrounded by good shooters and ballhandlers so that he can hide on offense.

I am looking forward to see how we can add a better fit through the portal or even more minutes to guys like Noland and Cortes.

Stikboy · 04-11-2022, 10:14 AM

What i'm wondering is...Did he want to leave, Moser convinced him to stay, and he changed his mind? Or...

Did Moser invite him to leave?

allday92 · 04-11-2022, 10:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WTSooner

I don't understand our fans. They blame our lack of success largely on lack of talent and lack of athleticism, then want to run it back with the exact same team plus some freshman.

I'm not sure who we're going to end up with, but I'd be pretty willing to bet our three starting guards at the end of next season will be better than the combination of Goldwire, Mo, and Harkless.

You can't run the Moser offense and be successful with a player like Harkless.

Agreed. I can't emphasize this enough.