Joshua Ola-Joseph Enters Transfer Portal










Someone in another thread used this already but I think he's a lot like Henley. It's going to take the right coach, the right system and for him to buy into a role but he could be a nice piece. But on the flip side of that, if those things don't align he's kind of a wasted roster spot.

Him and Betts have been CBJs two biggest misses. Between the talent and lack of production/growth he really missed on them badly.
 





Someone in another thread used this already but I think he's a lot like Henley. It's going to take the right coach, the right system and for him to buy into a role but he could be a nice piece. But on the flip side of that, if those things don't align he's kind of a wasted roster spot.

Him and Betts have been CBJs two biggest misses. Between the talent and lack of production/growth he really missed on them badly.

Hard for me to see JOJ as a true "miss" because he did contribute and have some good games here. I think one would have to call Betts a miss to this point but I guess we'll see in the future if he stays. Certainly we could put together a longer list of misses from Ben's three years.
 





This is why the, wait til his first class are upperclassmen, is just spin BS. 60% of his first class has been a total bust. And Carrington basically regressed this year.
Depending on your opinion, this is either his zeroth or second class, but absolutely not his first.
 

This is why the, wait til his first class are upperclassmen, is just spin BS. 60% of his first class has been a total bust. And Carrington basically regressed this year.
Carrington is still a stud defensively, hes not a box score type player, but he was a big part in what they did this year.
 

Sad to see but understandable. Guy always seemed to give it his all on the court, and by all accounts is a good kid. Best of luck JOJ! Thanks for everything.
Best of luck to JOJ, seems like a good kid. That said, with his ability if he had been "giving it his all" he would not have lost the playing time. He has fantastic raw ability but he cannot seem to make it translate into being a good two way player. He was not good on defense and did not know where to be on offense. He only seemed to shine when he had the ball in his hands. I hope the lights go on for him somewhere. Recall that when he went to prep school he was getting 10 minutes a game- so he probably ran up against the same issues there. He was a good risk to take- it just didn't pan out.
 

Unfortunate... I liked him!
2 things I care about: What is best for the Gophers so we can grow as a program and win more games. #2. What is best for the player. To me this is a win win (or could be). I hope that JOJ finds a better situation for him as a player. Maybe an energy 4 in the MV or some other non P6 conference. Best of luck to him. For Ben and the gophers this is a chance to bring in a better fit for the current roster. Good luck in the portal fishing Ben and good luck to you JOJ.
 

Best of luck to JOJ, seems like a good kid. That said, with his ability if he had been "giving it his all" he would not have lost the playing time. He has fantastic raw ability but he cannot seem to make it translate into being a good two way player. He was not good on defense and did not know where to be on offense. He only seemed to shine when he had the ball in his hands. I hope the lights go on for him somewhere. Recall that when he went to prep school he was getting 10 minutes a game- so he probably ran up against the same issues there. He was a good risk to take- it just didn't pan out.

Would JOJ been offered a scholarship if we wasn't from Minnesota given the very same thing appeared to happen to him in prep school? Was it a good risk to take? Sometimes we get too enamored with Minnesota kids. I doubt he would have been offered a scholarship if he was from somewhere else. In that sense, it's not a good risk to take.

But hopefully he finds somewhere he can play.
 

Hard for me to see JOJ as a true "miss" because he did contribute and have some good games here. I think one would have to call Betts a miss to this point but I guess we'll see in the future if he stays. Certainly we could put together a longer list of misses from Ben's three years.
To me those 2 have been on scholarship for 2 years each and at the end of year 2 both played 0 minutes in games that mattered. That to me is the definition of a miss.
 

Someone in another thread used this already but I think he's a lot like Henley. It's going to take the right coach, the right system and for him to buy into a role but he could be a nice piece. But on the flip side of that, if those things don't align he's kind of a wasted roster spot.

Him and Betts have been CBJs two biggest misses. Between the talent and lack of production/growth he really missed on them badly.
Calling Betts a miss because he redshirted last year and sat behind players older than him his 1st year is hilarious.
 

Would JOJ been offered a scholarship if we wasn't from Minnesota given the very same thing appeared to happen to him in prep school? Was it a good risk to take? Sometimes we get too enamored with Minnesota kids. I doubt he would have been offered a scholarship if he was from somewhere else. In that sense, it's not a good risk to take.

But hopefully he finds somewhere he can play.
I think that the athleticism was so high that they just thought they would give it a go.

I take these ratings systems with a grain of salt but the Evan Miya site ranks each player on offense and defense. JOJ was our lowest rated player in the top 9 for the Gophers. 2nd worst on defense (behind Christie) and third worst on offense. The Evan Miya site is free unless you ask to tighten down on the stats- then it is premium. Hawkins rated the highest- then Fox, then Garcia, Mitchell and Payne. Christie ranked as our 6th best player in this format. Fox was our best defender- then Carrington. Hawkins was our third worst defender. The stats just show we didn't have a single two way player highly ranked on both ends of the court.
 

Hard for me to see JOJ as a true "miss" because he did contribute and have some good games here. I think one would have to call Betts a miss to this point but I guess we'll see in the future if he stays. Certainly we could put together a longer list of misses from Ben's three years.
So the reports of Betts dominating Battle in practice weren't true? I'm shocked.
 



Best of luck to him, hope he finds somewhere where he can shine. Enjoyed watching him play, but far too often looked lost on offense and struggled on defense. Think the lack of improvement on awareness and consistent effort lead to his decline in minutes. Especially when these are Fox two biggest attributes. Overall I think opening a scholarship that could go to Andrew Morgan (fingers crossed) would be a big all around improvement from a fit standpoint.
 

To me those 2 have been on scholarship for 2 years each and at the end of year 2 both played 0 minutes in games that mattered. That to me is the definition of a miss.

All games matter. JOJ scored in double figures in 13 games and 6 of those were Big Ten games. He was perhaps the most valuable player in our first conference win (the big comeback against Nebraska) and was instrumental in beating Penn State on the road.
 

Best of luck to him, hope he finds somewhere where he can shine. Enjoyed watching him play, but far too often looked lost on offense and struggled on defense. Think the lack of improvement on awareness and consistent effort lead to his decline in minutes. Especially when these are Fox two biggest attributes. Overall I think opening a scholarship that could go to Andrew Morgan (fingers crossed) would be a big all around improvement from a fit standpoint.

I still expect more than one open scholarship (maybe not more than two though).
 






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