Olivier Hanlan Staying at BC
Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Hallelujah.
Since hiring new Head Coach Jim Christian, there has been a exodus of talent from Chestnut Hill. Early last week, Ryan Anderson announced he would be transferring from BC for his fourth and final year of NCAA eligibility. Later in the week, Joe Rahon also reportedly asked for his transfer though nothing has been confirmed.
But some good news this week! Olivier Hanlan sent a text out to reporters earlier today saying that he will be returning to BC and will play for Coach Jim Christian.
Despite his team’s pathetic performance last year, Hanlan is undoubtedly the Eagles best player, a prolific scorer and will go down as an all-time great Eagle if he can help bring our program back to a respectable level of play.
I understand the following will probably be the stupidest thing I’ve written here (and there’s a lot to choose from; for example, the time I called the writer from the Globe an idiot for saying Anderson and Rahon would transfer. Saaaaaawing and a miss!), but I am not a man who hides his feelings well so I am just going to let it flow: I don’t think I could ever root for a school like Kentucky or Duke filled with one and dones. Ryan Anderson’s decision to transfer really bugged me for some reason. Personally, it’s the best decision for him and he handled it with grace and class. But I can’t fathom how someone could commit to a school and commit to doing everything they can to contribute to a program’s success and bolt before the job is done. Again, I don’t fault Anderson for it, but it still bugged me. You chose to become part of our family. And then you leave when we need you the most? It’s common practice in today’s NCAA but it leaves a sour taste in my mouth.
It’s a selfish thought, but it’s a thought nonetheless. I’m very happy to see Hanlan at least come back for his Junior Year. I do not expect he would have been drafted in the first round of this year’s packed NBA Draft, so I’m not sure his move is out of his love BC. His advisers rightfully calculated that if Hanlan can put up points (on this team there will be plenty to go around) and lead BC to at least double digit wins (can it get worse than 8 wins? It can’t right?) his draft prospect will rise dramatically.
It will be interesting to see how Hanlan will perform without Anderson and Rahon but count me intrigued. A summer of hard work and a new offensive scheme could lead to big things for Olivier Hanlan in the 2014-2015 season.
Could.