David Skara is transferring...

[NativeCheesehead]

Doesn't really matter who it is. I'm with nkvu, at some point you have to grow up. Someone should tell him the story of Oumar and how well that whole situation worked for him.

[M]

That is good to hear!

[covufan]

Speculate on because I had ZERO to do with it.

Great to hear!

Miss your open gym reports.

[covufan]

This is speculation, but I believe that many of the multitude of transfers in NCAA Division I basketball are because of some adult that was in the ear of a player during HS/AAU years, and is still telling that player 'you can get more playing time elsewhere', 'you should transfer', etc.  I think these young men (kids still in some regard) are very short sighted - and are missing the opportunity of a lifetime.  Receiving a quality education in exchange for basketball skills is still a rare item - just look at the number of students across the US in colleges that are not receiving any sport related scholarships.  Think long term, not selfishly next season.  Most college coaches (not all but most) are in the profession to win, but also to develop the whole person - both on the court and in the classroom.  There are only a handful of players that will be drafted in the top half of the first round, thereby guaranteeing some level of lifetime comfort, $$-wise.  All of the other players at the 350+ Division I NCAA basketball schools will need to work very hard to continue playing after college.  Alec is a great example of working hard, both on the court and in the classroom.  He has put himself in the position of being evaluated for the NBA draft, and potentially transferring to power program to gain more experience against players of or near NBA talent.  The rest will need to use the life skills learned at the college level, including the degree field, working with others, working in a team environment, communicating in both written and verbal situations, etc. 

I wish Skara the best in whatever he decides.  I wish that he would/could sit down with some former players at the collegiate level that may have had a similar choice, and try to find those people that are looking out for his long term best interests.  I can't tell him (or anyone) what to do; I'd only suggest that he looks at all of the pros and cons of the situation, the short term and long term benefits/cons with each choice, and then look really hard at the potential agendas of those involved - What is VU's agenda?  What is Coach Lottich's agenda?  What other agendas are there?

He will have similar decisions in the future.

[VULB#62]

Speculate on because I had ZERO to do with it.

Great to hear!

Miss your open gym reports.

Whew!

[wh]

There are adults that David is close to that were hoping to get on the new VU staff, when they didn't they encouraged David to leave.

Supposedly, the culprit(s) is (are) someone who David has a trusting relationship with and who feels jilted that he (they) didn't get an assistant position.  You can probably count the "persons of interest" on one hand that fit that definition. It's just a matter of time until we find out who it is (they are).   

[chef]

Wow...it had nothing to do with Chris. He's to classy. I was referring to others.

[FWalum]

Speculate on because I had ZERO to do with it.

I think you win the award for fewest posts with the most likes! 

And by the way, you were dead on with your assessment of Skara.

[valpopal]

What happened to this? I know things change but I'm hoping its not true.

[tweet]718186117175123968[/tweet]

Apparently, Skara was with his advisers a couple of days after Paul's tweet. After that gathering, David decided to ask for his release and transfer. I will not suggest what was said to him or even if it was what influenced him, but something obviously changed his mind. I know who was with David, and Chris Artis was not among them. Anything more would be speculation, and I look forward for further clarification from Oren, Chef, or others.

[historyman]

It's been forever since I posted on this board, but I've been lurking for the past few weeks and decided it's time to come back. All I can ask when I hear this news is why? Where could he go where opportunity will be greater for him? Maybe he wants more PT....

A board legend returns!!

Thanks! It's been fun reading all of the posts during this transition time. In fact, so much so I just had to break my silence.

Well, LAA tee da!   

[VU2014]

It wasn't Chris. This is complete speculation then maybe it was someone at Don Bosco Prep IN. I believe he went there or played there at one point.

Paul Oren's tweet was on April 7th at Lottich's press conference that he was at:
https://twitter.com/NWIOren/status/718186117175123968

Skara met or at least talked with Don Bosco Prep IN Coaches on April 9th:
https://twitter.com/DonBoscoHoops/status/718885289096306688

http://donboscoprephoops.com/staff.html

Don Bosco Prep IN Coaches:
-Founder David Maravilla
In 1990 Dave Maravilla founded International Sport Management. ISM became a prominent player in the world of International Basketball signing over 500 professional basketball contracts over a twenty-four year period.
After selling the International Sport Management agency in 2013. Dave undertook a ambitious new project that would benefit many aspiring college players both in the Midwest and globally.
With a strong sense for player evaluations and great personal relationships with many college basketball coaches that span more then Two decades, Dave has a built in network that will provide the necessary Division One exposure to student athletes at Don Bosco Prep.
In doing so, Dave has created a veteran staff with NCAA and Olympic coaching experience. A staff that will provide Don Bosco Prep's student athletes high level preparation and exposure in College facilities that few if any in the prep basketball world can match.

-Head Coach Jason Hawkins
-Dave Maravilla Assisstant Coach (he's also a player agent...) http://basketball.realgm.com/info/agent_clients/Dave-Maravilla/183
-Eric Stanley - Assisstant Coach https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-stanley-38396b4b
-Luka Mirkovic - Assisstant Coach (he just start as an assistant here in 2015. Former Northwestern player grad 2012)

[valpotx]

I thought that looked like JHawk.  My guess is that it isn't him either, as he always seemed to be a classy guy as well.  I am with others on this board though, when you mention that as a 19-20 year old man, if they aren't your parents, what do they matter regarding YOUR college choice?

[covufan]

Speculate on because I had ZERO to do with it.

I think you win the award for fewest posts with the most likes! 

And by the way, you were dead on with your assessment of Skara.

I didn't realize it had been so long since CA posted - so long in fact that his last post was on the old board!

Probably the greatest first post on this board!

[historyman]

Maybe David had been promised or was under the impression that the coach who asked for the asst job would join him at Valpo during his time there if David chose Valpo over other schools. When it was learned that the coach would not be following David on to Valpo then David made the decision to transfer to a school that his coach will be being hired. This has happened before and is not too uncommon. I believe Scott Drew was involved in one of these situations at Baylor with a coach named Tang or a similar name.


This of course is all guess work on my part and might explain the order of progression. 

[chef]

Let's end the speculation. David is very close with Dave Maravilla and Ivan Vujic. Maravilla was very influential in Vujic going to Valpo as well as Skara. When Vujic was not hired as an assistant coach, the dominoes fell and Skara asked for his release. There's obviously more to the story but that's the focal point behind Skara leaving. The shame of it is Skara had a great relationship with Matt Lottich and was extremely excited when Matt got the job.

[a3uge]

Skara is capable of making his own decisions in life - he's a big boy.

Even without coaching changes, players move and change their mind. I am disappointed and worried that there were three scholarships open when Bryce left, and the potential 5 were open if Alec and Jubril both graduated early. It's typical to see someone transfer each year, so keeping that many scholarships open was reckless and questionable.

We'd be lucky to come out of this with only 1 departure, and hopefully we can find some decent transfers to fill the remaining spots.

[covufan]

Where was Vujic coaching last season?  It says on his linkedin page that he is Director of Basketball Operations at DePaul, but he is not on DePaul's team website for 2015-16? 

I hope that both Vujic and Skara find what they are looking for in their basketball lives.

[VU2014]

Vujic got let go when Dave Leitao came back to take over the program. He was the Director of Basketball Operations and worked with the big men when oliver purnell was still there.

Just a really unfortunate situation for all involved. Looks like the Dave Maravilla good feelings are broken now. No more Don Bosco Prep IN for quite a while. Also never good to have hard feeling with past alumni/player. Hopefully the age old saying, "time heals all wounds" is true in this case. Hopefully it all works out for David.

[VU2014]

Looks like Dave Maravilla has give advice like "take the most play time" advice in the past to his former players. Articles from way back in 2002 (couldn't find the whole article): https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1N1-0FF67A1E986E4A73.html

Look for minutes, not just money

Post-Tribune (IN)
Post-Tribune (IN)
March 29, 2002 | Mike Hutton | Copyright

"Take the playing time, not the best contract. For Raitis Grafs that could mean either playing in Valparaiso or Europe, depending on who offers the junior best deal.

At least that's the advice Dave Maravilla, a sports agent for International Sports Management in Crown Point would give Grafs if he called wondering if he should turn pro.

Maravilla has represented former Valpo stars, including Zoran Viskovic and Ivan Vujic, now playing professionally in Germany and Belgium, respectively.

He has firsthand knowledge of what the Euro League is like.

Maravilla says Grafs probably wouldn't help his NBA chances if he was drafted this year by a high-end Euro team. ..."

[valpo4life]

Assuming everything is true, which I believe it is and have no reason to think otherwise. Maybe Lottich should go with the bold move and not grant him his release. Only down side is it would hurt David. But then again it creates a scenario where David goes to Vujic and says "hey, now I have to pay my way and sit out for a season. You going to pay for my school?". I don't know if that would help anything or not. It's just so selfish to tell a kid to leave a school he seemingly likes with a successful program because you're butthurt you weren't selected for a job that I'm sure had plenty of applicants to choose from.

[wh]

Where was Vujic coaching last season?  It says on his linkedin page that he is Director of Basketball Operations at DePaul, but he is not on DePaul's team website for 2015-16? 

I hope that both Vujic and Skara find what they are looking for in their basketball lives.

I wouldn't be so benevolent toward Vujic just yet.  He apparently is one of two offenders that lured Skara away.  It will be very interesting to see where Skara lands, and if Vujic or this other character end up playing some role there.  I smell a "tampering" rat, which is a serious NCAA violation.

As to holding Skara responsible for his actions, I get it.  That said, I see Skara like a 1st time drug user, and these conniving knuckleheads like professional drug pushers. The user gets a suspended sentence and community service time. The pushers that lured him into it need a bullet between the eyes. 

[valpotx]

This is just stupid.  If Vu had a major part in it, I lose all respect for him.  He was a fun-loving guy that would invite all Valpo fans to his apartment for parties after games.  My view of him is now completely negative. 

[chef]

I find no fault with Skara. He's a teenager living in a foreign country. I've never been through what's been going on in his life. I wish him the best. As for the roster, a spot was left open for Keith, who is more likely going to get another year than not. Thus, there would only have been one open scholarship, now there's two. The staff is out recruiting and I'd say overall the program is in great shape.

[nkvu]

I'm curious as to how many kids who transferred from Valpo really improved their situation. I'm not talking about the ones who went down to D-2 or NAIA. I've no problem with a kid who is not going to play going down a level or to a lower level D-1.  But the ones who would play if they stayed, how many went to similar level or higher level programs and really improved their situation?  Wood moved up to Michigan State and contributed but wasn't a star and didn't improve his chances for the NBA as far as I can tell. Edwards? Went to Arizona State I think but don't think he did much?  Going back a ways didn't Sylla transfer to Richmond and kind of disappear?  Not a very good track record to my mind.

Seems to me if you're getting pt at Valpo, unless you're POY Horizon League material you're not gonna improve your situation much by leaving. With rare exceptions there is a reason you're playing in the Horizon League and not the ACC.

[VU75]

Maybe Lottich should go with the bold move and not grant him his release

Do that and every rival school will use it against Valpo in recruiting.