In the ever-evolving landscape of college basketball, the transfer portal has become a revolving door, spinning faster than ever for players from historically Black colleges and universities. The college sports transfer portal—the system that allows NCAA athletes to more seamlessly change schools and earn potentially more NIL money—has changed the face of college sports since first put in place in 2018. Small schools frequently lose talent to bigger schools. Nowhere is this talent drain more evident than in the MEAC, where this past season’s brightest stars have all but vanished overnight. 

Of the MEAC’s All-Conference selections with remaining eligibility, only one has not entered the transfer portal (Coppin State’s MEAC Defensive Player of the Year and third-team all-conference pick, Toby Nnadozie). It’s a stark reality that underscores the growing chasm between resource-strapped HBCU programs and the well-funded behemoths of the Power Four conferences.

Norfolk State head coach Robert Jones put it bluntly: “[Norfolk State] is now a glorified JUCO.” It wasn’t a slight against his players, his staff, or his program—Norfolk State has been a model of consistency in the MEAC. His words were an indictment of a system where money talks, and schools like his are left scrambling to retain talent in an era where big money gets what it wants.

HBCUs have long been fighting an uphill battle when it comes to resources, but the emergence of NIL has only widened the gap. Programs that once thrived on developing hidden gems into stars now find themselves serving as stepping stones. When a player at Norfolk State, Howard, or North Carolina Central, for instance, proves themselves, they become prime targets for schools that can offer bigger NIL deals, better facilities, and the kind of national exposure that HBCUs, through little fault of their own, struggle to provide.

This isn’t just about losing games; it’s about losing identity. HBCU basketball has always been about resilience, about making the most out of less. But what happens when “less” becomes untenable? When mid-major powerhouses are reduced to farm systems, feeding talent into a machine that benefits the already dominant?

Jones and his peers are no longer just coaching basketball; they’re fighting for survival in a system that increasingly leaves them behind. Until HBCUs find a way to level the NIL playing field, the reality is grim: their best players will continue to be plucked away, leaving programs in perpetual rebuild mode, fighting to stay relevant in a game that has capped their potential.