Who went swimming?

Remember, you poke the bear, be ready to deal with the outcome.

Let's get to the latest college hoops news.

1. Who's in the NBA Draft waters?

Sunday was the deadline for college players to enter their names into the NBA Draft and still retain their eligibility. There's usually a flurry of activity as the deadline approaches, but with the transfer portal sucking up most of the college hoops coverage, it didn't have the same impact.

The most notable names that emerged in the last 36 hours included Creighton's Arthur Kaluma, Miami's Norchad Omier, Missouri's Kobe Brown and Dayton's DaRon Holmes, all of whom are retaining their college eligibility. Eastern Michigan's Emoni Bates also declared, but no indication if he plans to return to school.

When all the names surface, we'll likely have about 300 underclassmen going through the draft process, most of whom will return to school. (There were 283 submitted names last year.)

So where are certain players leaning? This tracker from Rookie Scale might be the best resource I've seen. It sorts the guys just testing things from those who are going pro no matter what and also includes which agency they've signed with.

Of the 179 names in that list thus far, 50 are listed as not returning to school. Barring injuries, there aren't many surprises among that group.

The NBA Draft combine is May 15-21. Players have until May 31 to withdraw their names.

The NBA Draft is June 22.

2. Bama backs off Jaykwon Walton

Last month, Jaykwon Walton announced his transfer to Alabama. On Saturday, the former Wichita State player was arrested in Tuscaloosa on a charge of second-degree possession of marijuana.

And now? Oats isn't messing around. He told Jeff Goodman on Monday that "Alabama is no longer recruiting Jaykwon Walton and he will not be a student-athlete at The University of Alabama."

A Tuscaloosa police report said Walton and Kameron Deshawn Harris were arrested after complaints about a large number of vehicles near an apartment complex. Officers approached a vehicle, smelled marijuana and questioned the two men. Walton told police there was a loaded firearm under his seat. Officers also indicated there were two more guns later found in the car, along with two baggies containing about 32 grams of marijuana.

Coincidently, the arrested occurred not far from where Jamea Harris was shot and killed on Jan. 15, an incident that involved former Alabama player Darius Miles and had Brandon Miller and Jaden Bradley as witnesses in the event.

Walton, a 6-7 wing who averaged 13.9 points and 5.3 rebounds per game last season, was seen as a potential starter for the Tide, who are coming off the best season in school history. They were 31-6 overall, swept the SEC titles and earned a 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

3. Zach Freemantle opts for a Xavier return, plus other moves

Zach Freemantle missed Xavier's final 15 games due to a foot injury, which included a run to the Big East Tournament title game and the program's first Sweet 16 since 2017.

Maybe that was part of Freemantle's calculus to return for the 2023-24 season.

The 6-9 senior averaged 15.2 points, 8.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 22 games, which included 21 starts. He was a key cog in the Musketeers' offense, and as long as the foot injury heals, he'll be their primary offensive weapon next season and a candidate for Big East Player of the Year.

Xavier also returns wing Jerome Hunter and adds four transfers.

Also back for more college hoops? TCU wing Chuck O'Bannon, who's a lock for the Perry Ellis Award, given annually to the player you can't believe is still playing college hoops.

There's a good reason you're thinking that with O'Bannon, though. He was a McDonald's All-American in 2017, meaning this will be his seventh season of college hoops.

O'Bannon, who averaged 7.7 ppg and 3.4 rpg last season, received medical redshirts in 2018-19, and 2019-20, and also gets the extra COVID year of eligibility. No word on the social security benefits.

Other notable moves from Monday:

• CJ Fredrick (Kentucky) will be at Cincinnati

• Quincy Guerrier (Oregon) is off to Illinois

• Shahada Wells (TCU) is reportedly headed to McNeese State

4. Sifting through the portal data

The transfer portal's a core component for any college program now. More than 1,400 players have entered this year's portal, meaning thousands have entered in the last decade.

How's all the activity worked out for the teams?

Well, stare at this graphic from SBUnfurled.

The methodology can be found here. Is it perfect? Probably not. But it's a fascinating deep dive into trends, even if they reinforce the common wisdom of the portal: up-transfers struggle because there's less playing time, while down-transfers can thrive because of opportunity.

5. Embrace the portal for attention it provides

Change is hard. That's the old adage, right? Changes in routine, work or life can be frustrating.

And when it comes to college sports, a place where fans traditionally could cheer for the same players for a few years, the transfer portal has been a big bucket of cold water, dumped on their fandom. (I grew up in Wyoming; text threads about Graham Ike over the weekend with old friends went in that direction.)

All that's understandable. But maybe embracing change is just what college hoops need.

As Mike DeCourcy writes at The Sporting News, the sport has a chance to turn the transfer portal season into a time where conversation commands interest in the sport, much like NBA Free agency is the time of year when optimism — "who'd we sign?" — drives fan interest, not disgust.

DeCourcy's prime example is UConn, which featured three transfers in its title run, but also notes that programs such as NC State returned to the tournament thanks to transfers.

It's certainly a glass-half-full point of view and one that wouldn't only be geared toward the power conference schools. As noted in the graphic in the previous headline, plenty of down transfers have an impact at new smaller schools. Drew Pember's a perfect example at UNC Asheville of how it can flourish.

The message boards already embrace this kind of thinking. The challenge will be getting casual fans to do the same.

To the point

Creighton point guard Ryan Nembhard is headed to Gonzaga. So why should Greg McDermott feel good about the 2023-24 season? Jeff Goodman, Rob Dauster and John Fanta discuss.

Subscribe to The Field of 68 on YouTube.

Links as you wonder what media news will hit today.

• New NCAA president Charlie Baker doesn't think student-athletes want to be employees. Does that matter?

• The NCAA is focused on monetizing the NCAA women's tourney to the fullest.

• Michigan will host Youngstown State in its 2023-24 non-conference slate. That's a dangerous buy game.

• The Big 12 is toying with a conference tip-off idea.

Thanks for reading The Field of 68 Daily! If you have a news tip or feedback, email us at [email protected].