Hey, happy Good Friday everyone! Let’s check in with Aztecs Twitter on this solemn holiday to see if anything’s goin’ on.
Oh sweet Jesus.
OK, so it looks like the cupboard Steve Fisher left for Brian Dutcher is not going to be as fully stocked as previously assumed! Particularly in the front court.
This comes as a legitemate shock, especially after the other rumored possible transfers, Jeremy Hemsley and Malik Pope, reaffirmed their commitment to the program after Fisher’s retirment. But maybe I should have been reading the social media tea leaves all along.
Whatever the reason, losing Zylan hurts a lot.
Even for a player who still looked raw and was fairly inconsistent as a sophomore in 2016-17, Cheatham was still a necessary component to whatever success the team did have. He had a great motor and there was no denying the tools. I thought he was going to blossom into a star. He still might, just not here.
So now we’ve got Malik Pope playing the 5 and, what? Hope redshirt freshman wing Jalen McDaniels plays bigger than his wiry frame suggests? Or that Nolan Narain shows rapid, rapid improvement? Or that a graduate transfer unicorn or three appears from the ether?
The U-T story, while not quoting Zylan, has some interesting nuggets, including the expectation that Grand Canyon University might be his potential landing spot. On a related note, I just threw up a little.
The only silver lining is that transfers have hit the entire Mountain West like a bout of sweating sickness in 15th century London. New Mexico is probably now randomly drafting chemistry students against their will just to be able to hold intra-squad scrimmages. So I guess despite this, we’re still in good position to win the conference. And get a 15 seed, I guess?
Whatever. Thank you for being a good Aztec, Zylan. I liked your effort and enthusiasm and you were my wife’s favorite player (she’s going to be crushed about this btw). We wish you well in all your future endeavors, wherever they may be.
Maybe reconsider Grand Canyon, though. That would be gross.
KABEER THIRTY 