Tag: Marvel Allen

LSU’s Xavier Pinson becomes next Tigers player to enter transfer portal

The Tigers have lost their starting backcourt duo from this past season to the transfer portal.

LSU continues to hemorrhage players in the wake of coach Will Wade’s firing. The Tigers lost every commit in both the 2022 and 2023 recruiting classes, and guard [autotag]Brandon Murray[/autotag] entered the transfer portal.

Now, LSU has another loss to replace as point guard [autotag]Xavier Pinson[/autotag] also entered the transfer portal on Thursday. Pinson is back in the portal after arriving in Baton Rouge this season as a transfer from Missouri.

In his lone season with the Tigers, Pinson started 27 of the 28 games he appeared in while averaging 9.8 points and 4.8 assists. Pinson is a senior but will use his one remaining year of eligibility due to COVID-19 elsewhere.

With the losses of Murray and Pinson, LSU now has to replace its entire starting backcourt. The Tigers will almost certainly have to hit the portal aggressively themselves, as their two signees in [autotag]Julian Phillips[/autotag] and [autotag]Devin Ree[/autotag] were released from their letters of intent, while hard commit [autotag]Yohan Traore[/autotag] backed off his pledge, too.

LSU also lost the commitment of its lone 2023 pledge, five-star point guard [autotag]Marvel Allen[/autotag].

Between the roster attrition and potential looming sanctions from the NCAA, this is certainly not an easy situation for new head coach [autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag] to walk into. His first priority will be to simply fill out a roster that has taken major losses in the week since the offseason began.

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Auburn hoops reaches out to former LSU commit

Marvel Allen has also heard from other SEC schools in Alabama, Arkansas, and Florida.

One of the best players in the 2023 recruiting class, Marvel Allen, backed off his pledge to LSU on Saturday. On3 reporter Joe Tipton reported that several teams had reached out to Allen. One of those teams was Auburn.

The Tigers have not officially extended an offer to the 2023 prospect. However, the talented shooting guard is likely to field an offer if he shows interest in Bruce Pearl and the rest of the coaching staff. Allen is ranked as a five-star by 247Sports rankings. They have him ranked as the 28th best player in the nation. Other programs like Florida, Georgia, Ohio State, and Penn State had extended him offers prior to his de-commitment.

The Tigers have yet to receive a commit in the 2023 class. If Allen were to receive an offer, the Tigers would certainly welcome a player of his caliber. An interesting thing to keep an eye on is also whether or not LSU commit Yohan Traore decides to back off his pledge. The two were both heading to Baton Rouge prior to Will Wade being fired. Traore was heavily recruited by Auburn before committing to LSU. With a year of high school still remaining for Allen, plenty could change.

The Tigers are in the midst of a compelling NCAA Tournament run at the present time, so they have to be eyeballing his recruitment for the future. This is definitely something that Auburn hoops fans should keep an eye on for the foreseeable future.

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LSU basketball recruiting is a mess. Where does it go from here?

LSU’s recruiting is in a really bad spot, and it might get worse before it gets better.

With the season now in the rearview mirror, LSU basketball enters a period of uncertainty. There’s not much anybody knows about where this program is headed, if anything at all.

Coaching changes always bring turnover and turmoil, but this one feels different. The way the Wade era ended paired together with looming NCAA sanctions has created an atmosphere of chaos.

LSU might have a hard time getting a coach to sign on, even if a loaded contract offer is put in front of them. The program could have even more trouble getting recruits. This is going to be a ground-up rebuild, even if the sanctions from the NCAA are mild.

Before the firing of Wade, LSU’s recruiting was in a great spot, maybe as good as it’s ever been. There were multiple five-stars poised to join the program, but now LSU has just one commit left in Yohan Traore, and Tigers fans shouldn’t hold their breath on that one either.

A couple of guys who have backed off their pledge have noted that Wade was the reason they wanted to come to Baton Rouge. Even if there wasn’t the drama with the NCAA, LSU was going to have a hard time holding this class together.

It might get worse before it gets better, so let’s look at who the Tigers have lost and where they can go from here.

Will Wade Fallout: Five-star point guard decommits from LSU

More bad news for LSU as five-star point guard decommits from the program.

As expected, there is more LSU fallout after the Will Wade firing and first-round exit from the NCAA Tournament.

On Saturday, 2023 five-star point guard commit Marvel Allen announced that he would reopen his recruitment and decommit from the Tigers.

“I committed to LSU because of my relationship with Coach Wade and Nickelberry,” Allen tweeted. “Thank you to the rest of the LSU coaching staff and the fans for th support they showed me throuout my time I was committed.

“(I) wasn’t expecting to come to this but I will be decommitting from LSU and reopening my recruitment to all programs. I’m looking forward to finding my new home.”

The five-star point guard was ranked as the No. 4 point guard and No. 18 overall recruit in the 2023 recruiting class according to 247Sports composite rankings. Prior to committing to Will Wade and LSU, Allen was considering teams such as Alabama and Ohio State among others.

The mass exodus continues after five-star Julian Phillips recently requested to be released from his national letter of intent. The administration is currently searching for their next head coach and have just one commit remaining in the 2022 cycle with five-star center Yahan Traore.

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LSU lands 5-star 2023 PG Marvel Allen

One of the best point guards in the class of 2023 is taking his talents to Baton Rouge.

One of the best point guards in the class of 2023 is taking his talents to Baton Rouge.

Five-star West Palm Beach (Fla.) Calvary Christian Academy point guard Marvel Allen committed to LSU on Friday, picking the Tigers over Alabama, Arizona State, Georgia State, Kansas, LSU, Maryland, Memphis, and Ohio State.

Allen cited his relationship with head coach Will Wade and style of play as the driving forces behind his commitment to LSU.

“I’m big on relationships,” Allen said on ESPN after committing. “And their playing style, I love playing defense and coach Wade let’s his guards ball out, so I felt like it was the best opportunity. Me and my family prayed, and it’s time to get to work.

“Coach Wade is a great coach. He flew down to my game and surprised me and I was shocked. He called me every day and talked to me outside the game of basketball, and he’s going to help me become a man. I’m all about structure and I feel like Will Wade can provide that for me.”

LSU is off to a red hot start on the court in 2021-22 and that success has carried over to the recruiting trail. Wade is no stranger to landing elite talent and Allen has the potential to be an impact floor general for him from day one.

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LSU lands 2023 five-star point guard Marvel Allen

Big time acquisition for Will Wade.

Another big win for LSU head basketball coach Will Wade on the recruiting trail. On Friday evening 2023 point guard Marvel Allen pledged to play for the Tigers.

Allen ranks as the No. 2 player in Florida and the No. 4 point guard in the country according to 247Sports composite rankings. He is among the 20 top-rated players in the nation. Allen is another player like Efton Reid who can come in and contribute immediately.

Allen is a scoring point guard that can contribute at all three levels. He shows off a variety of moves inside to finish at the rim. His size allows him to snag rebounds over small guards. Allen isn’t just an outside shorter either, he has a good mid-range shot as well. This allows him to attack defenses in a variety of ways.

On Friday night during the Vertical-Westtown basketball matchup on ESPN plus, Allen made his decision to play for Wade and the Tigers. He is also the first commitment of the 2023 cycle for Wade. That is a great starting point for the next recruiting cycle.

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