The transfer portal of 2025 is still young but it already saw players who top scored for their respective teams make entry. The Marquette Golden Eagles will not be among them if Oso Ighodaro is to be asked.
Golden Eagles’ seniors – Kam Jones, Stevie Mitchell, and David Joplin – have used up all their eligibility years. They have no reason to come back but they have previously said how they are so attached to the team that going to another program feels like being put on adoption.
That’s basically how Ighodaro feels right now.
The two-time Second-team All-Big East member, now playing for the Phoenix Suns after getting picked 40th overall in the 2024 NBA draft, does not think Name, Image and Likeness or NIL is inviting enough to leave Marquette if ever he is in that situation.
“I was going to stay with coach no matter what,” Ighodaro said when asked about his opinion on the current NIL system that pays players higher than before.
He also thinks Marquette got a good thing going despite their early finish in the NCAA March Madness.
“We had a good thing going over there – we still do.”
Marquette Golden Eagles plans on transfer portal
What Ighodaro said is what Shaka Smart is thinking. He believes they got a good thing going in the program.
The Golden Eagles were upset by the New Mexico Lobos in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
Questions about their plans for the next season, especially with the exit of most of their starting unit, instantly came out.
Referencing the development of Ighodaro, Smart said they will prioritize the squad that they have instead of adding from the transfer portal.
However, he acknowledged that each transfer portal is different.
“It’s definitely going to stress-test our way of doing things. I tend to err on the side of really, really pouring into the guys we have and focusing on them,” he added.
“There’s a lot of reasons behind that that, again, we don’t necessarily have time to get into now. So, yes, we believe in our way of doing things.”
For more great Wisconsin sports content
Follow us @WiSportsHeroics for the latest and trending news about Packers, Brewers, Bucks, Marquette, and the rest of Wisconsin Sports. Stay updated by reading more of our Wisconsin Sports articles by clicking here and college basketball by clicking here!
