So Long, Johnny Davis

 It really wasn't much of a surprise this week, the announcement coming from Johnny Davis that he would pass up his final two seasons of basketball for the Wisconsin Badgers and take his talents to the NBA.

This was considered by many a done deal all season long, though some of us (like me) were holding out hope that Johnny would return to the Cardinal & White for another season. I'm still not convinced that his body-type is ready for the NBA. Or that some of his skills couldn't use the polish that would come from an additional college season. Heck, overall maturity could be added on as well.

Technically, he still could come back -- as long as he doesn't retain an agent. And who knows, if he doesn't like where he's going to fall in the draft, he might.

But the odds are long that we've seen the last of him on the Kohl Center floor.

Can't blame this young man from La Crosse for taking his shot at the money. After all, athletes are just one serious injury away from losing that.

Thanks for a memorable season, Johnny. And best of luck with that pro career.

Talked about this in my last blog, but it bears repeating. The biography by Brett Christopherson, Over And Back: Mickey Crowe: The Strange And Troubled Life Of A Wisconsin High School Basketball Legend is worth-while reading.

It should be a cautionary tale for parents who push their talented children waaaaay too hard. Mickey's father and coach, Marty Crowe, did his uber-talented son no favors with his heavy-handed style of coaching. And trying to piggy-back a deal to the college level? Odds are, that just added to the son's turn to mental health problems along with his addictions to alcohol and drugs.

I give Mickey Crowe a lot of credit for essentially coming out of hiding and opening up, honestly detailing his issues.

The transfer portal for college athletes gets a lot of attention, especially when members of Wisconsin Badger athletic teams take advantage and leave.

I think the portal is a good thing, up to a point. Coaches, after all, have been free to leave for years. And if a coach is the main reason someone has chosen a program, the athlete should have the ability to pack the bags WITHOUT having to sit out a season.

The portal has been used to an extreme down in Baton Rouge, though. The program's coach was bounced late in the season due to infractions, and as of today 11 players have entered the transfer portal. That means there's not a single scholarship player left on the roster from this past season.

Makes the one or two players we've lost at Wisconsin seem pretty insignificant!