There was a time when college athletes were part of the school community. They attended classes (usually) and lived in the dorms, frats and apartments like the rest of the mere mortals. They had benefits like training tables and tutors, but for the most part, they rubbed elbows with the rest of us. These days, not so much, in the revenue sports. Sad.
I don’t think Andrej is transferring wouldn’t make sense. Plus, if you look at his recent post on Instagram I think he hinted at coming back to cal… or maybe it’s a stretch lol. Look at the song choice that Andrej chose to use for his Instagram reel post 👀👀🤔… perhaps??
Disappointing development to say the least. We probably couldn’t match the dollars and other conditions, but it really sucks to lose a guy with so much upside.
I’m not going to jump to conclusions. Year 2 of Madsen started with so much promise but didn’t live up to the hype. But on a macro level, did better than year 1.
I’m hoping that Madsens character, energy and enthusiasm will produce a better team next year despite this significant loss.
Recruiting tactic needs to focus on west coast, California and local talent. There’s plenty up nearby talent. Chico State has an excellent guard from Bay Area that Bears should look into.
Nice! I love the size and shooting, especially at the position…guys that can consistently score the basketball at multiple levels are always welcome, and the 6’2” can hopefully defend a little better.
My only concern AK would be whether Jojo has the athleticism to be as effective at this level? Thought that was an area we struggled with last year when backcourt transfers from the WAC, Southern and the AAC really struggled to win ballgames against good P5 teams. That said, guys that can hit shots and defend can play, regardless of pedigree…shooters are valuable!
Just look at UCSD. Undersized at the 4 / 5, but tall enough at 1-3 (which I think is more important in modern basketball). No one had the athleticism to keep up with Michigan, but they were extremely well-coached, played team defense, and made their shots (eventually).
It's a mistake to draft players of Wilkinson's caliber, Just like Mendoza in FB. Every one of these players will hit the portal after one year. We will find portal players who are a cut below what we lost. Unless we find an AD with imagination, we will continue to be a stepping stone program (in both BB and FB).
That's not true. We still need those players to put us over the cusp, just need to treat them as one-and-done players. If we have a strong core behind them, they can pull us over the top. But they won't stick around full a complete rebuild.
Cal is going to be stepping stone program, but I disagree with we've gotten raw ends of the deal from the portal. Also, Mendoza had no offers other than Yale coming out of high school. Apparently we were the only D1 program who saw his "caliber".
It depends on the donors, fluctuates some, and often is not widely public knowledge.
There are rumblings that Cal’s NIL budget, while not at the Duke/UNC levels, are nonetheless expected to be in a “very respectable neighborhood” amongst ACC schools…having more $ is always welcome, but their NIL is certainly not a weakness.
If Coach can keep Andrej and a few other current pieces in the fold, turn Wilkinson’s NIL $ into a legit, ACC-caliber big that can shoot and defend, while upgrading the backcourt even just slightly from 3 and on D, they could easily improve next year…
I’m just waiting for a transfer fee rule like in soccer. Since we aren’t going back to the old ways, let’s at least make these losses a little less painful for the non-blue blood programs that will get hit year after year with this situation.
I don't know how we're gonna break this cycle. Feels like the two paths to success are to build a program by getting kids just talented and committed enough to build a semi-consistent roster or throw bags at kids. We seem unable to do either.
Love Madsen but found this year very disappointing from a coaching staff standpoint….while you could argue that they took an incremental step forward from last year despite injuries because of the increased depth, they nonetheless finished 15th in a weak ACC. Sure, there’s only so much you can do with a rotation that consisted mostly of role players and mid-major guys that largely struggled v P5 competition, but at the end of day he had 2 NBA-caliber guys and they should have been better as a team.
If you’re gonna build a program with guys that are a notch below from a talent perspective, you have to execute much better than they did. And you have to shoot the ball just a helluva lot better.
I'm with you. I would have guessed we'd have been a few games ahead of where we were last year. And the team didn't improve over the course of the year. The program still doesn't really have an identity. Program building is not just on the head coach of course, but it's hard not to see what Dennis Gates and Todd Golden have done at their respective programs and wonder what might have been if we had pivoted from Fox earlier as we all begged of Knowlton.
I think Madsen can get us to be able to hang offensively with most P5 teams…hell one more shooter this year and we probably win a couple more games and that’s a .500 club and progress. Rytis and Campbell both taking major steps back in the shooting department with the jump up to the ACC was disappointing.
But if this program is gonna even sniff the Bubble, we gotta be physically and mentally tougher and simply have to defend better…and that’s the identity you’ve referenced. This program is going to have to hang its hat on something - it needs to be defense, IMO. You can count on one hand the amount of 2H stops this team got in crucial situations of L’s with the game on the line v Mizzou, Ga Tech, ND, etc.
I think the one trend we've had over two years with Madsen that I desperately hope doesn't solidify in a 3rd year is a complete lack of guard play & recruitment. It hurt us last season when we didn't have a ball handler for have the year until Tyson learned the skill set. It hurt us this year because while Blacksher and Campbell have the skill set, they were both undersized and massive defensive liabilities. I think Madsen *can* teach defense. Outside of those two, the last 3 of our starting 5 were defensive standouts.
We desperately need our two commits from last year to pan out immediately so we can use Wilkinson's NIL to fill out the rest of the depth & roster.
Also, I really hope we get away from such heavy dependence on iso offenses.
Andrej won't be a lottery pick, but I think can be a solid NBA depth piece. He can score at all levels, and is athletic enough to defend NBA-caliber college players. And his defensive IQ is pretty damn high. If I were him, I might consider testing the draft this year because I'm not entirely sure how much more development Cal can offer him -- the faster he can get into an NBA level development program, the better...and I'm sure his dad makes it easier for some team to give him a shot. The only thing staying could really do is give him a shot at a full season without injury to increase his draft stock as much as possible.
Wilkinson's size is a problem. He's listed as 6-1, but I bet he's more like 5-10. There are a few miniature guys in the league like Skoot and Daveon Michell, but those guys are increasingly rare and seldom productive nowadays with so much size at every position. My guess is he makes most of his $ in college bouncing between programs and finds himself overseas eventually. But I can't see him getting anything other than a two-way deal in the NBA. Andrej has more potential, but he's in an odd spot in that he's probably not ready, but you also don't want to stick around too long. My guess is he makes himself eligible for the draft and sees where it goes. I don't think he has much to gain from jumping to another program, but I've been wrong before and will probably be proven wrong again given the luck of this program.
There was a time when college athletes were part of the school community. They attended classes (usually) and lived in the dorms, frats and apartments like the rest of the mere mortals. They had benefits like training tables and tutors, but for the most part, they rubbed elbows with the rest of us. These days, not so much, in the revenue sports. Sad.
I don’t think Andrej is transferring wouldn’t make sense. Plus, if you look at his recent post on Instagram I think he hinted at coming back to cal… or maybe it’s a stretch lol. Look at the song choice that Andrej chose to use for his Instagram reel post 👀👀🤔… perhaps??
Just lost JOJ too, along with Omot.
Impossible to rebuild a program and forge any new roster identity when you are replacing 9 scholarship players every year.
Disappointing development to say the least. We probably couldn’t match the dollars and other conditions, but it really sucks to lose a guy with so much upside.
I’m not going to jump to conclusions. Year 2 of Madsen started with so much promise but didn’t live up to the hype. But on a macro level, did better than year 1.
I’m hoping that Madsens character, energy and enthusiasm will produce a better team next year despite this significant loss.
Recruiting tactic needs to focus on west coast, California and local talent. There’s plenty up nearby talent. Chico State has an excellent guard from Bay Area that Bears should look into.
Some really good players in the portal.
1. Retain Andrej
2. Land a quality big that can shoot and defend.
3. Land a quality PG that can shoot and defend.
#3 could be a local guard on the Chico State roster.
The kid from Oakland?
Jojo
https://chicowildcats.com/news/2025/3/11/guided-by-two-new-leaders-mens-basketball-returns-to-ncaa-tournament.aspx
Nice! I love the size and shooting, especially at the position…guys that can consistently score the basketball at multiple levels are always welcome, and the 6’2” can hopefully defend a little better.
My only concern AK would be whether Jojo has the athleticism to be as effective at this level? Thought that was an area we struggled with last year when backcourt transfers from the WAC, Southern and the AAC really struggled to win ballgames against good P5 teams. That said, guys that can hit shots and defend can play, regardless of pedigree…shooters are valuable!
Just look at UCSD. Undersized at the 4 / 5, but tall enough at 1-3 (which I think is more important in modern basketball). No one had the athleticism to keep up with Michigan, but they were extremely well-coached, played team defense, and made their shots (eventually).
It's a mistake to draft players of Wilkinson's caliber, Just like Mendoza in FB. Every one of these players will hit the portal after one year. We will find portal players who are a cut below what we lost. Unless we find an AD with imagination, we will continue to be a stepping stone program (in both BB and FB).
That's not true. We still need those players to put us over the cusp, just need to treat them as one-and-done players. If we have a strong core behind them, they can pull us over the top. But they won't stick around full a complete rebuild.
Cal is going to be stepping stone program, but I disagree with we've gotten raw ends of the deal from the portal. Also, Mendoza had no offers other than Yale coming out of high school. Apparently we were the only D1 program who saw his "caliber".
Expected, but still hurts, ugh.... back to the portal to reload
How much NIL does Madsen have to spend each year?
It depends on the donors, fluctuates some, and often is not widely public knowledge.
There are rumblings that Cal’s NIL budget, while not at the Duke/UNC levels, are nonetheless expected to be in a “very respectable neighborhood” amongst ACC schools…having more $ is always welcome, but their NIL is certainly not a weakness.
If Coach can keep Andrej and a few other current pieces in the fold, turn Wilkinson’s NIL $ into a legit, ACC-caliber big that can shoot and defend, while upgrading the backcourt even just slightly from 3 and on D, they could easily improve next year…
It was pretty obvious that this would happen as the season progressed.
Is it time to hire Jason Kidd as GM?
Way past.
I’m just waiting for a transfer fee rule like in soccer. Since we aren’t going back to the old ways, let’s at least make these losses a little less painful for the non-blue blood programs that will get hit year after year with this situation.
The portal giveth, the portal taketh away......
I don't know how we're gonna break this cycle. Feels like the two paths to success are to build a program by getting kids just talented and committed enough to build a semi-consistent roster or throw bags at kids. We seem unable to do either.
Love Madsen but found this year very disappointing from a coaching staff standpoint….while you could argue that they took an incremental step forward from last year despite injuries because of the increased depth, they nonetheless finished 15th in a weak ACC. Sure, there’s only so much you can do with a rotation that consisted mostly of role players and mid-major guys that largely struggled v P5 competition, but at the end of day he had 2 NBA-caliber guys and they should have been better as a team.
If you’re gonna build a program with guys that are a notch below from a talent perspective, you have to execute much better than they did. And you have to shoot the ball just a helluva lot better.
I'm with you. I would have guessed we'd have been a few games ahead of where we were last year. And the team didn't improve over the course of the year. The program still doesn't really have an identity. Program building is not just on the head coach of course, but it's hard not to see what Dennis Gates and Todd Golden have done at their respective programs and wonder what might have been if we had pivoted from Fox earlier as we all begged of Knowlton.
Agree 100%.
I think Madsen can get us to be able to hang offensively with most P5 teams…hell one more shooter this year and we probably win a couple more games and that’s a .500 club and progress. Rytis and Campbell both taking major steps back in the shooting department with the jump up to the ACC was disappointing.
But if this program is gonna even sniff the Bubble, we gotta be physically and mentally tougher and simply have to defend better…and that’s the identity you’ve referenced. This program is going to have to hang its hat on something - it needs to be defense, IMO. You can count on one hand the amount of 2H stops this team got in crucial situations of L’s with the game on the line v Mizzou, Ga Tech, ND, etc.
I think the one trend we've had over two years with Madsen that I desperately hope doesn't solidify in a 3rd year is a complete lack of guard play & recruitment. It hurt us last season when we didn't have a ball handler for have the year until Tyson learned the skill set. It hurt us this year because while Blacksher and Campbell have the skill set, they were both undersized and massive defensive liabilities. I think Madsen *can* teach defense. Outside of those two, the last 3 of our starting 5 were defensive standouts.
We desperately need our two commits from last year to pan out immediately so we can use Wilkinson's NIL to fill out the rest of the depth & roster.
Also, I really hope we get away from such heavy dependence on iso offenses.
I'm not sure Andrej is NBA caliber. Not sure Jeremiah is either, but may be closer than Andrej.
Andrej won't be a lottery pick, but I think can be a solid NBA depth piece. He can score at all levels, and is athletic enough to defend NBA-caliber college players. And his defensive IQ is pretty damn high. If I were him, I might consider testing the draft this year because I'm not entirely sure how much more development Cal can offer him -- the faster he can get into an NBA level development program, the better...and I'm sure his dad makes it easier for some team to give him a shot. The only thing staying could really do is give him a shot at a full season without injury to increase his draft stock as much as possible.
I’m betting both find a way onto an NBA roster at some point in their careers.
Regardless, teams with guys like that probably shouldn’t be losing at home to Cornell or bad Va Tech/Syracuse teams.
Wilkinson's size is a problem. He's listed as 6-1, but I bet he's more like 5-10. There are a few miniature guys in the league like Skoot and Daveon Michell, but those guys are increasingly rare and seldom productive nowadays with so much size at every position. My guess is he makes most of his $ in college bouncing between programs and finds himself overseas eventually. But I can't see him getting anything other than a two-way deal in the NBA. Andrej has more potential, but he's in an odd spot in that he's probably not ready, but you also don't want to stick around too long. My guess is he makes himself eligible for the draft and sees where it goes. I don't think he has much to gain from jumping to another program, but I've been wrong before and will probably be proven wrong again given the luck of this program.
Wilkinson’s athleticism is the key - he is just so raw. If he goes and establishes himself as a legit PG, things could get interesting.
Both he and Andrej are admittedly at best 2nd rounders tho.
Well this sucks.