Danny Kanell and Raja Bell know a thing or two about the college transfer portal. They tackled the controversial subject on the latest episode of the "Kanell & Bell" podcast.
Kanell opened up the conversation by saying, "We've seen transferring become epidemic. It's free agency in the college landscape."
What concerns him about the process is when players transfer before they play an entire year at a school. Kanell says the adjustment can be difficult, with there being a vast difference in workload and preparation in college ball over high school, but sticking it out for one year is important.
Of course, there are reasons no player should be bound forever to a school, such as coaching and personnel changes. The two hosts agreed on that. Bell noted that he doesn't think because a kid makes a poor decision at 17-years-old he should be punished, but it shouldn't be like a free agency situation either.
Bell added that there's been a change in culture when it comes to picking a school. Years ago, he said, "you evaluated what was the best situation for you and you went to it." But a lot of times now it is about the biggest offer, according to Bell.
The process has now been given the name "transfer portal" and the two say a lot of young athletes find it cool to be recruited again. But with that, Kanell and Bell both believe that before going through any transfer process, athletes need to know their worth and be sure they will get another offer.
Kanell asked Bell if he thinks he made a mistake going to Boston University given that he transferred to FIU, but Bell said the transfer came after re-evaluating his situation. He was not able to get the exposure he felt he needed anymore after more dominate players were signed by BU and he left to play on a bigger platform, which eventually led to his NBA opportunity.
Kanell spoke on his experiences saying, "I never thought about transferring, I thought about quitting," adding that it wasn't his dying wish to play in the NFL.
The two agreed that things have changed a lot since they played in college, but there is not one answer when it comes to what young athletes should do if transferring becomes an option.