In the immediate aftermath of the selection committee’s decision to exclude Oklahoma from the 2024 NCAA Tournament, the focus immediately shifted to the Sooners next move. Would they accept an invitation to play in the NIT? Or would they decline and end their season?
The answer came in a statement from Porter Moser posted on social media:
Thanks for a great season, Sooner Nation.
Sights set on 2024-25. pic.twitter.com/EZZyTcERSr
— Oklahoma Basketball (@OU_MBBall) March 18, 2024
After deliberating with the administration, the staff and the team, the Sooners declined an invitation to participate in the NIT. This decision ends Oklahoma’s up-and-down season.
Oklahoma now turns its sights on moving to the SEC next year.
Over the next few weeks, the No. 1 priority for the Sooners is assessing what players will be staying or going and figuring out a plan for constructing the roster for next year.
It seems a foregone conclusion that the Sooners will be active in the transfer portal. Hopefully, the Sooners will not have to replace seven players via the portal as they had to do last offseason.
The transfer portal opens on Monday. It’s hard to imagine the portal’s opening didn’t influence Oklahoma’s decision to pass on the NIT. The porter is a competitive time, and Oklahoma may need to focus more resources on it.
The Sooners will bring on board two high school recruits this year: four-star power forward Kuol Atak and three-star in-state combo guard Dayton Forsythe.