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THE PORTAL IS OPEN BABY LET’S GO
After a week of pause, welcome back to “Probing The Portal.” A lot has changed since the last time we spoke — Micah Shrewsberry is the head coach at Notre Dame now, while Penn State hired Mike Rhoades to take over the program. As we talked about yesterday, the Nittany Lions could be looking at double-digit scholarships available, meaning that the transfer portal should be *quite* active over the next couple weeks.
I’ll be updating this list as Rhoades gets started at Penn State and begins to contact potential transfers. But in the meantime, let’s first look at what Rhoades was up to down at VCU when it came to the transfer portal. These are all names that were confirmed to be contacted by VCU while Rhoades was there.
ZACH HICKS
School/Hometown: Temple (Camden, NJ)
Eligibility Remaining: 2 years
Height/Weight: 6-foot-7, 185 pounds
Hicks was one of the Temple kids that the Shrewsberry regime was involved with too. He’s a lanky wing that rips threes offensively, though he’s limited as mostly a stationary shooter. Unlike Funk, he’s not going to be flying around screens, but he does give you a bit more size and length defensively.
LEO O’BOYLE
School/Hometown: Lafayette (Scranton, PA)
Eligibility Remaining: 1 year
Height/Weight: 6-foot-7, 210 pounds
Really good shooter, though like Hicks, is pretty much standstill and doesn’t do much beyond that. Don’t know if he’s ideally the athlete you want as a starter, but could be a nice bench option as a forward or big wing that can really space the floor. The career 37.5% from three and 81% from the line are encouraging shooting splits.
MYLES STUTE
School/Hometown: Vanderbilt (Washington D.C.)
Eligibility Remaining: 2 years
Height/Weight: 6-foot-7, 215 pounds
Sensing a theme with Rhoades’ targets at VCU? Because Stute is another good shooter. He offers you a bit higher upside though, as he shows a bit more chops for shooting off movement. Also, a better athlete than some of the other targets. Not a perfect comp, but a bit Myles Dread-like perhaps?
TYLER NICKEL
School/Hometown: North Carolina (Harrisonburg, VA)
Eligibility Remaining: 3 years
Height/Weight: 6-foot-7, 220 pounds
Didn’t get much run at North Carolina this past season, but he was a Top 100 prospect in the 2022 who was ultra-productive in high school, scoring 2,909 points at East Rockingham High School in Virginia. Good shooter as evidenced by the 84.2% free throw shooting percentage, but it didn’t follow from the rest of the field. Still, there’s upside as an all-around scorer and certainly as a shooter.
EJ JARVIS
School/Hometown: Yale (Washington D.C.)
Eligibility Remaining: 1 year
Height/Weight: 6-foot-8, 220 pounds
Nice all-around game for a jumbo forward/center — can score facing up or with his back to the basket. Good size and looks to have a long wingspan. Will be able to stick athletically in the Big Ten. Improving jumper — started taking some catch-and-shoot threes — but key word is “improving.” Don’t know if that 40.6% from three is truly indicative of his stroke, but again, he improved a lot in the last year.
JAELYN WITHERS
School/Hometown: Louisville (Charlotte, NC)
Eligibility Remaining: 2 years
Height/Weight: 6-foot-9, 220 pounds
Big kid with good length who could play a couple different roles at his next stop. The development as a shooter is particularly nice since he can attack a bit as a driver as well. Bit of an odd career after starting off really well as a freshman, but Louisville as a program has been quite bad the last two seasons. No surprise he’s looking for a better situation.
STEVE SETTLE
School/Hometown: Howard (Glenarden, MD)
Eligibility Remaining: 2 years
Height/Weight: 6-foot-10, 180 pounds
Yes, 180 pounds at 6-foot-10. Really unique player given that frame and his shooting stroke. I do wish he was a tick of a better athlete, but his utilizes his length advantage well both offensively and defensively.
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By: Patrick Koerbler
Title: Probing The Portal: Who Was Mike Rhoades Targeting At VCU?
Sourced From: www.blackshoediaries.com/2023/3/30/23662531/probing-the-portal-who-was-mike-rhoades-targeting-at-vcu-penn-state-basketball-bsd
Published Date: Thu, 30 Mar 2023 14:55:00 +0000
