Hog Calls

One man’s opinion for 2022-23 Hogs

FAYETTEVILLE -- Here's a prediction for the Razorbacks' 2022-2023 basketball season.

At some point in the November/December nonconference and perhaps several games into the SEC season, Arkansas Coach Eric Musselman will lament his transfers just aren't consistently grasping it all like his previous transfers did.

That's based on 2020-2021 grad transfers Justin Smith and Jalen Tate, certainly very good helping Musselman's second season coaching the Razorbacks surprisingly ascend to a NCAA Tournament Elite Eight, 25-8 campaign. Retrospectively, they seemed even better at Musselman's 2021-2022 December/early January recollections than they were their lone Arkansas season.

Of course then the Hogs had lost 5 of 6 including to Hofstra in North Little Rock plus wallowed 0-3 in the SEC.

Au'Diese Toney, the grad transfer via the University of Pittsburgh, and Stanley Umude, the grad transfer via the University of South Dakota, and via University of Miami grad transfer Chris Lykes, had flashed some fine early season moments but seemed largely back to Square One as the SEC began.

We know how it ended. The 28-9 Hogs again attained the Elite Eight. Toney and Umude became standout starters with Toney defensively deemed among Arkansas' best ever.

Lykes became the free throw shooting off the bench spark at critical times.

They and turned pro All-American guard JD Notae, originally joining Musselman's 2019-2020 Razorbacks redshirting as a transfer from Jacksonville, are poster examples of ultra-successful transfers.

But with all it took time. Giddy with consecutive Elite Eights and automatically expecting even better with this highly rated recruited class of projected freshman phenoms and four immediately eligible transfer big men, Razorbacks fans need cautiously to remember some rough patches doubtlessly loom.

VANOVER'S MIGHT HAVE BEEN

This week's move to the transfer portal by Arkansas senior-to-be center Connor Vanover becomes another example why Congress proposes looking into the capriciously unfair practices by NCAA.

Pre transfer portal, transfers from one Division 1 school to another had to redshirt unless transferring under special circumstances.

Gabe Osabuohien, inherited by Musselman from the Mike Anderson regime and transferring with Musselman's blessing to West Virginia, was granted immediate 2019-2020 WVU eligibility with the coaching change.

Vanover, a Little Rock native, played his 2018-2019 freshman year at the University of California for Coach Wyking Jones.

Cal fired Jones. Vanover, with his grandmother ill in Arkansas, wanted to play for the UA where Musselman wanted him, especially with Vanover standing 7-3.

Adrio Bailey, the tallest starter Musselman inherited, stood 6-6.

Vanover could have stood out but the NCAA made him sit and redshirt.

By 2019-2020 Musselman signed the more athletically gifted 6-10 Jaylin Williams, All-SEC in 2021-2022 now pondering options.

After his early-season 2020-2021 starting role, Vanover's playing time dwindled to entirely benched this season's last 19 games. Connor is in the transfer portal now, wished good luck by all as one who never complained though NCAA deprived the year he likely would have played considerably.

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