Jalen Pickett Chooses New School

While it’s hard for Siena to lose Jalen Pickett, it’s a great opportunity for Pickett to play in the Big Ten at Penn State. The transfer portal has not been kind to head coaches around the country, but we can all agree Pickett is better than the caliber of player in the MAAC Conference, and he wants a chance to showcase his talents at the next level, and you can’t blame him. I don’t think it helps him get to the NBA any faster, but to play against better competition on a bigger stage, is one I completely understand.

It is a solid move of course and we talked about it in the segment above. For the highlights, read below:

• Pickett had several other opportunities including two teams who were in the Elite last season in the Michigan Wolverines and Oregon State Beavers. Clearly he was a coveted player in the transfer portal.
• We also can never blame a player for wanting to play at the next level and he was clearly a player that had dominated the MAAC over the last couple of seasons.
• We have seen Don Carey have some success in the Big East with Georgetown last year. Siena missed Carey but they are able to move on and find good replacements. We all have faith that Coach Carm can do the same moving forward heading into the 2021-22 season.
• And it does sound like Carm has it figured out in terms of the players he was able to commit to Siena through the portal.