Chris Jans: Mississippi State's offseason has been 'fast and furious'

The college basketball season ended a month and a half ago but for many coaches it feels like the offseason has yet to arrive. The addition of the transfer portal, the upcoming NBA Draft deadline and other factors have left many scrambling.

As Mississippi State coach Chris Jans explained, it’s been a lot just to keep it all together.

“It’s been fast and furious. Lot of coaches have talked about the changes, and they’re real,” Jans said. “Just every day you wake up with a plan in mind and some days that plan gets thrown out the window pretty quickly. It literally is adjusting, on some days hourly, to what’s going on out there.”

In the wake of the 2022-23 season, the first for Chris with Mississippi State, roster management has taken center stage. Transfers are the most current demand for coaches.

To that end, Mississippi State watched two players depart for the transfer portal: forward Kimani Hamilton and guard Martavious Russell. Neither played a significant role for the Bulldogs in a run to the NCAA Tournament, with neither averaging more than seven minutes per game.

The departures left Mississippi State with some scholarship slots to fill.

“We’re no different than any other staff, we’re trying to manage it as best we can,” Jans said. “But there’s a lot of moving parts. It’s just different than it used to be back in the day. Everybody’s trying to figure it out and make good decisions along the way.”

The Bulldogs managed to beef up their roster via the transfer portal, too, taking Marshall guard Andrew Taylor and West Virginia center Jimmy Bell.

Taylor averaged 20.2 points, 4.7 rebounds and 4.7 assists this season for the Thundering Herd, while Bell averaged 4.8 points and 5.2 rebounds for the Mountaineers.

Then there’s the matter of the NBA Draft.

The deadline for college players to withdraw from the 2023 NBA Draft and still retain their collegiate eligibility is June 1. Star forward Tolu Smith is still weighing his options, and his decision will obviously alter Chris Jans and Mississippi State’s outlook for 2023-24 tremendously.

At some point Jans and other college basketball coaches will get to rest. Just not yet.

“Yeah, the offseason hasn’t started yet,” Jans said. “Hopefully it will soon in terms of slowing down and getting amped up for the guys to return for summer school and academics and getting back on the court and preparing for next season.”