Transfers 2020

[govalpogo]

Well...looks like the transition and dunk game will not suffer much with JFL's departure.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=64&v=YvxJjZ1frVk&feature=emb_logo

Welcome Goodnews!

[govalpogo]

Also, that spot did not take long to fill!  Less than a week!

[hailcrusaders]

Followed K a bit in high school. Exciting player!

[crusader05]

Based on Oren's Twitter feed Goodnews high school coach played with Lottich in Japan. 

Also looks like he had other mid-majors interested in him including Grand Canyon

[vu72]

Perhaps I missed it somewhere along the line but I never heard of this guy.  Somebody please fill us in.

I happen to know probably the best prep evaluator and AAU guy in Minnesota.  I just sent him a message.  We'll see what he says.

[mj]

JFL to DePaul...

[vu72]

Javon to DePaul!

[GoVU]

Goodnews is 6'6"? I like the added height

[VUGrad1314]

Top 100 shooting guard with three years of IMMEDIATE eligibility? SCORE! If we were forced to replace Javon this is the kind of player that I would imagine might be able to do it! This is very VERY promising news! Go Valpo! I BELIEVE!

[vu84v2]

Does Valpo signing Kpegeol preclude them from also having Ryan get another year?

By the way, ESPN lists JFL as the tenth best transfer in the country who will need to sit out a year.

[VUGrad1314]

Glad he truly stuck to his word and it wasn't a ploy just to get a hardship waiver. I wish him nothing but the best. Hopefully he's just the player the Blue Demons need to change their toxic culture. That team is a mess and needs all the help it can get. 

[vu72]

So this whole transfer thing and the worries around mid-major basketball may prove to be a non-factor after all. Consider we lost Javon, who moved "up" (though it could be argued not by much!--though clearly the new league is better) And we get Goodnews, who transferred down a notch, from K-State to Valpo.  Not trying to hard to compare the talents (that is to be seen at a later date), but rather to say that for every mid who pans out perhaps better than expected and moves "up", there will be a player who didn't pan out as expected and moves "down" to gain playing time. Valpo has had a bunch of talented guys who came here after starting out at a higher level.

[VUGrad1314]

Does Valpo signing Kpegeol preclude them from also having Ryan get another year? By the way, ESPN lists JFL as the tenth best transfer in the country who will need to sit out a year.

Yes it does. Unless Ryan walks on or we make someone else a walk on like Dan Muller did a few years ago at ISU when he recruited a bunch of transfers. (This has to be done with the player's consent though). But I don't see Ryan getting another year or if that's even in the works to be done. Does Ryan even want another year? Remember how he said that he was done after he got hurt if he couldn't have come back?

[mj]

This is a good signing for Valpo and Goodnews appears to be the kind of person who will fit the Valpo program. A lot of positive things being said about him by his former coaches. I like it.

[wh]

https://twitter.com/nwioren/status/1255947110920400897?s=21

A great teaser tweet by Paul Oren.

[VUBBFan]

Does Valpo signing Kpegeol preclude them from also having Ryan get another year? By the way, ESPN lists JFL as the tenth best transfer in the country who will need to sit out a year.

Yes it does. Unless Ryan walks on or we make someone else a walk on like Dan Muller did a few years ago at ISU when he recruited a bunch of transfers. (This has to be done with the player's consent though). But I don't see Ryan getting another year or if that's even in the works to be done. Does Ryan even want another year? Remember how he said that he was done after he got hurt if he couldn't have come back?

Ryan has used up all of his college eligibility. Sure he was injured or sat out parts of the seasons he played, but saw enough action each year to make each of those seasons a "full" season. So no matter what, he can not qualify  for anymore College basketball.

[SanityLost17]

Glad he truly stuck to his word and it wasn't a ploy just to get a hardship waiver. I wish him nothing but the best. Hopefully he's just the player the Blue Demons need to change their toxic culture. That team is a mess and needs all the help it can get.

He won't sit a year.  He will get a hardship waiver whatever it takes.    All my speculation.....
1.  Valpo was going to be better than Depaul next year FOR SURE with JFL.  If JFL sits for them next year I still think we will be better than Depaul.
2. He clearly wanted to get into the Big East but he could have done better than Depaul.  No way several Big East schools wouldn't want JFL.  If Butler had a spot and he called them, they would take him.  That means he chose Depaul knowing there was a good chance for a hardship waiver.  He gets the Big East and doesn't have to sit out a year.  Maybe didn't want Depaul, but that's just how it was gonna work.
3.  All this to say, his Grandmother might really have some issues but Valpo/Depaul isn't a far enough difference for that to really matter, not in the days of ZOOM meetings.   So this was about playing up a conference and not having to sit out.

I just don't know.  I think he will be there best player, but man....  I just don't know.   Depaul is....  man...  They are just sooo bad.   

[ValpoDad89]

Well Javon spoke the "truth" as DePaul plays 15 minutes away on the Dan Ryan from his home. Good for him and good for DePaul (I am an alum and former season ticket holder) but I think he would've been better served staying at Valpo...oh well.

The GOOD NEWS is we get Goodnews who fills a desperate need in the ever evolving college landscape and that's a shooter. We will have enough athleticism on the roster to the rim which will negate JFL to some extent.

What I will miss most of all is JFL's ability to anticipate the passing lanes on defense. He was one of the best I ever saw at that and why he was always considered one of the best defenders in the MVC. Plus he was pretty damn good on ball as well.

At the end of the day we are an MVC  top tier team, 'nuff said!!!

[valpotx]

I hope that Javon does well and furthers his career interests in this move, but wish nothing but the worst for the rest of the Depaul program

[FWalum]

Goodnews Kpegeol

Im going to hype the Ryan thing for all it's worth until it's no longer a thing.

Did you know?
Ryan was the top 3-pt. shooter in college basketball this year at 49.5% (47-95). He needed to play in 75% of his team's games to officially qualify, which he didn't reach (played in 18; needed 25). The official winner shot 47-something. That still doesn't change the fact that he's the best in D-1 among 4000+ players.

I assume you checked on the other non-qualifiers from each of the other 350-ish teams, too?

I never thought of that. Not that it matters now, but I just painstakingly went through the individual stats for 330+ D-1 programs and found 457 players who shot 50% or better from 3 but didn't qualify. I guess Ryan's accomplishment is no big deal after all.

How many of those took over 5 3's per game??? I think this would be a much better stat if it was measured by the number of shots taken either by the whole season or on a per game basis.  How many of those 457 players took 95 threes over the season or shot over 5.25 3's per game

[VUGrad1314]

Numbers and stats are interesting things. You can spin them and make them suit whatever narrative you're trying to convey. (Not that I'm accusing you of being beholden to any sort of narrative) but I need to say the context of those stats matters. I'm with FWAlum on this one. When evaluating shooters and shooting statistics volume matters a great deal. I have no doubt that most of those shooters are not high volume and even if they are they still probably don't come close to approaching Ryan's volume. That Fazekas was able to shoot that well on that kind of volume is very impressive and truly an accomplishment to be celebrated and acknowledged.

[bbtds]

Paul Oren
@NWIOren
·
6m
Kpegeol was rated as the No. 71 shooting guard in his class by  @247recruiting

I'm just dying for Pgmado to ask him how to pronounce his name. I'm starting to really feel sorry for talksalot and chef.

"Kpegeol to Ognacevic for the basket!" Yes!

[VUGrad1314]

I feel worst for Coach Lottich in all of this. He finally has the team trending in the right direction playing inspired basketball and primed to contend in the MVC with an amazing young core that is set to do well for multiple years. In short, it feels like he finally has his program built and out of the blue (demon) his best player transfers. Just more adversity for Coach Lottich. It looks as though he's recovered beautifully but I really hope we have a few terrific seasons in a row ahead of us. If anyone deserves that anywhere in the country it's Matt Lottich. He's been through so much that would probably have broken a lot of coaches and still he (and his team and coaching staff) fights like the dickens every single day on the court and on the recruiting trail. That is a testament to his character and to the character of the players. It is a testament to the program that he is building. I really respect him and feel that we are lucky to have a man like him in charge of our program.

[valpo64]

Well said!

[wh]

I feel worst for Coach Lottich in all of this. He finally has the team trending in the right direction playing inspired basketball and primed to contend in the MVC with an amazing young core that is set to do well for multiple years. In short, it feels like he finally has his program built and out of the blue (demon) his best player transfers. Just more adversity for Coach Lottich. It looks as though he's recovered beautifully but I really hope we have a few terrific seasons in a row ahead of us. If anyone deserves that anywhere in the country it's Matt Lottich. He's been through so much that would probably have broken a lot of coaches and still he (and his team and coaching staff) fights like the dickens every single day on the court and on the recruiting trail. That is a testament to his character and to the character of the players. It is a testament to the program that he is building. I really respect him and feel that we are lucky to have a man like him in charge of our program.

A home run tribute!