I think we are seeing the transfer portal has completely change roster construction. Especially with COVID years giving players another year of eligibility. Good transfers almost seem like a more effective way of getting good quicker for mid-major and mid-level power teams (especially this year). The teams bringing in the very top level freshman prospects can usually get immediate returns (and they can also fill in top level transfers where they want), but in the case of a mediocre mid-major it is almost working just as well or better in some cases to bring in players from other programs who want a better opportunity to showcase what they can do.
Every team still has to recruit freshman and try to develop players, but the transfers have definitely added a new wrinkle as to how to build a team. This year's Towson team is actually a solid blend of both. We brought in Charles Thompson, Jason Gibson and Nick Timberlake as freshmen and they have all been good to solid, but last year there was too much being asked of them. Bringing in Holden, Nolan Jr., Paar and Rizzuto has allowed them to focus more on their roles. It is also been nice to see Juwan Gray make the most of his extra year when he has been on the court.
I wouldn't give Pat Skerry full credit for having wonderful foresight to make this happen, but he definitely pieced together the parts very well this year. It doesn't matter how we get the talent, we just need to keep adding it to the program. I think Skerry has done a good of this for most of his time here. What he hasn't been good at is fitting the right pieces together, and having a successfully philosophy to have them thrive.
This team is constructed well, and hopefully Skerry is learning lessons he can carry forward. Of course, there is still a long way to go to label this year a full success, and even if we continue at this high level in the regular-season Pat still has the crappy postseason monkey to get off his back. That being said, I am enjoying the journey of watching this team and I do feel like they have the potential to do something special this year.