THIS is college basketball. Loyalty and development are superseded by MONEY. Very rarely do players now want to run WITH the dogs. Expect more head scratching moves by these young people. When performance for pay contracts roll out across wcbb we’ll see a change in transfer behavior but not until then.
Official Player Return/Departure Thread
- Thread starter Carolina151
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Ok, but if Lanie transfers to VT or something like that I’m going to be pretty disappointed
So what you are saying is we are getting Sarah Strong. Yes!!!!!
So what you are saying is we are getting Sarah Strong. Yes!!
Very good shooter, but we need some athleticism in that backcourt and on the wing. Nivar won’t be missed offensively, but her ability to guard on the perimeter will be sorely missed. We need two Nivar defensively!
I think it will be UVA for Lanie but it is just a guess. UVA has a big donor now for WBB according to the talking heads.
I do not think VT is rolling in NIL $$ like some.
We can go with Kate, Elina/Reniya, Nyla, Taliyah Ciera and be real good
Or we can go bigger with Kate, Nyla B(2G), Taliyah(3Wing), Ciera(4F) Bofia/Thomas/portal and be real good.
We can still be a top 10 team maybe top 5 depending on how portal season goes.
I hate Lanie is gone but we are still going to be a great team.
I do not think VT is rolling in NIL $$ like some.
We can go with Kate, Elina/Reniya, Nyla, Taliyah Ciera and be real good
Or we can go bigger with Kate, Nyla B(2G), Taliyah(3Wing), Ciera(4F) Bofia/Thomas/portal and be real good.
We can still be a top 10 team maybe top 5 depending on how portal season goes.
I hate Lanie is gone but we are still going to be a great team.
Just did nit expect this one at all. Very disappointed but now hit the portal and find a gem.
Believe the rumor is Alexis Ohanian is the one cutting checks
Would this be considered tampering reaching out to agent or player before even entering portal? I mean we all know it happens regardless.
R.L. Bynum (@r.l.bynum) on Threads
Dynamic guard Lanie Grant committed to UNC at 14 and skipped her senior season in high school to come to Carolina early, but has decided to enter the transfer portal after two seasons in Chapel Hill. https://tarheeltribune.com/2026/04/01/unc-guard-lanie-grant-to-enter-the-transfer-portal/www.threads.com
As others have mentioned, UVA had a substantial gift to its WBB program by the Reddit co-founder Ohanian and husband of Serena Williams. A multi-year gift. It is why Kymora Johnson remained at UVA last year. His quote, "“It’s time to bring the nation’s best hoops talent to Charlottesville and win some championships in the next four years.” It was the largest donation in women's sports in UVA history.
That commitment? ~800K per year straight to the WBB program. Over $3 million over the next 4 years. UVA can pull just about anyone they want. And that doesn't include other donors who have made substantial contributions towards NIL. They are loaded.
This is an article from last year:
In an email on April 9, Banghart asked UNC Athletic Director Bubba Cunningham for more money for this year.
“Can I get more for this year? Used raised money until April 7 - then got $250 (sic) total to spend in portal,” Banghart wrote. “3 spots. Not enough. portal is $500K $600K.”
The funds Banghart was asking Cunningham for are seemingly from the Old Well Management, a consolidation of two former UNC-affiliated NIL collectives that is now led by Kevin Rice.
“This would allow us to save our donor funds in our bench seat for when we need them AFTER the settlement is signed,” Banghart wrote. “We’d like a ‘no strings attached’ agreement to use … for any transfers we sign between now and the official house settlement signing.”
It’s unclear if that money faucet was turned on for the women’s basketball team, as no reply from Cunningham to this email was included in the batch of documents SB Nation received from UNC’s public records office. However, the Tar Heels did land two notable transfers during the offseason, adding Louisville starting forward Nyla Harris and UCLA guard Elina Aarnisalo.
Still, even if Banghart was granted $600,000 in NIL funds to boost her roster, one longtime Power 4 assistant coach characterized that spending budget to SB Nation as being in the “lower tier.” An agent in the sport was a bit more optimistic about the number, saying it was “middle of the pack” in the Power 4.
Banghart ended the email with this: “REV SHARE next year. Need 1.5 million.”
www.sbnation.com
If you want to be a Top 5 program-- you have to have donor and university support to get there and SUSTAIN it.
In an email on April 9, Banghart asked UNC Athletic Director Bubba Cunningham for more money for this year.
“Can I get more for this year? Used raised money until April 7 - then got $250 (sic) total to spend in portal,” Banghart wrote. “3 spots. Not enough. portal is $500K $600K.”
The funds Banghart was asking Cunningham for are seemingly from the Old Well Management, a consolidation of two former UNC-affiliated NIL collectives that is now led by Kevin Rice.
“This would allow us to save our donor funds in our bench seat for when we need them AFTER the settlement is signed,” Banghart wrote. “We’d like a ‘no strings attached’ agreement to use … for any transfers we sign between now and the official house settlement signing.”
It’s unclear if that money faucet was turned on for the women’s basketball team, as no reply from Cunningham to this email was included in the batch of documents SB Nation received from UNC’s public records office. However, the Tar Heels did land two notable transfers during the offseason, adding Louisville starting forward Nyla Harris and UCLA guard Elina Aarnisalo.
Still, even if Banghart was granted $600,000 in NIL funds to boost her roster, one longtime Power 4 assistant coach characterized that spending budget to SB Nation as being in the “lower tier.” An agent in the sport was a bit more optimistic about the number, saying it was “middle of the pack” in the Power 4.
Banghart ended the email with this: “REV SHARE next year. Need 1.5 million.”
NIL payroll for UNC men’s basketball is reportedly $14 million. What is the women’s team spending?
Documents obtained by SB Nation show what UNC’s women’s basketball coach Courtney Banghart is asking for after the House Settlement passes. It’s a fraction of what the football and men’s basketball teams will get.
www.sbnation.com
If you want to be a Top 5 program-- you have to have donor and university support to get there and SUSTAIN it.
This program has the potential to be one of the most successful on campus with the right backing. May be time to let Bubba/Steve know.
Really hate to lose Lanie - she really stepped up as the team's best spokesperson and a leader.
On the resources, it's tough to make the case for WBB when the attendance has been stagnant post-covid. The sport as a whole is drawing more eyeballs and more attention, but the local market for the team isn't getting that much bigger, even when the results on the court are pretty good.
On the resources, it's tough to make the case for WBB when the attendance has been stagnant post-covid. The sport as a whole is drawing more eyeballs and more attention, but the local market for the team isn't getting that much bigger, even when the results on the court are pretty good.
If you win more the attendance will increase. And how do you win more? Better resources. South Carolina is a good example of that. At UNC there is so much success for so many programs that a top 20 program is almost an after thought. Build it and they will come.
My *perception* is that attendance and student and local enthusiasm for this program was at its highest under Banghart when we were on the rise during the Deja/Utsby/KTW era. Seemed to drop off quite a bit since then. Part of it is having a star player who wants to be in the spotlight, has that swagger, and makes their teammates better and part of the hype train. Latta was the best at this. Style of play and personality are really important. Maybe Brooks, Henderson, and Harpring can bring this to the table (I hope), but I think Banghart needs to prioritize this in her recruiting. It’s a really tricky balance if one player outshines everyone else (or if there is a perception of that), so getting the right mix really matters. We need better support for this program though, period.
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Another remedy is for Carolina to beat a Top 10 team, and this will also excite the fan base. It's coming sooner than later for this to come to fruition.
I know you all are tired of hearing me say this but make it a happening for the students. Put them all together in the bleachers and let them go crazy. Put us old farts behind the basket if needed.
LG talk a very good game. If you listen to her words and comments she said she loved CB, Could not see her playing for any other coach, etc. As it turned out, that was a bunch of bull. There is a saying, Action speaks louder than words. The article stated that LG was at the top of opposing teams’ scouting reports for the second half of the season, many times getting face-guarded, making it difficult for her to get off her shot. I hate to see her go but at this point anybody can be replaced, just ask Tennessee. The flood gates are open at that school. There are some many players from that team who just entered the portal that we should be able to find someone to replace LG that is much taller, athletic, and can create their own shot. Go Heels!
Exactly 6 string. Put the students where they belong, front and center at midcourt. It is their teams
(Men and Women) Let them have some fun, be spontaneous. It should be about the players first the student second, Mom and Pop's after them.
When I was at UNC (73 grad) our student fanbase had all the bleachers behind the teams and half of the endzone to the left of the bleachers that is now opposite where the teams sit. Fans sat in the fancy seats that are now behind the bench. Probably done for TV.
The portal taketh, and the portal giveth (soon).
i'm confused by some of these reactions..this has been the reality of collegiate sports for a few years now. thought we all knew this? sucks but that's how it is.
UNC is not immune to it. Anyone can transfer. no player is safe. force yourself to have that mindset and you will be better off.
CB will adapt. just as she did when she lost KTW, Deja, Key, etc.
not the end of the world folks
UNC is not immune to it. Anyone can transfer. no player is safe. force yourself to have that mindset and you will be better off.
CB will adapt. just as she did when she lost KTW, Deja, Key, etc.
not the end of the world folks
This is a business. Money talks, and we cant hold that against anyone with the dollar amounts that we are talking about. She represented our school well, did everything right, and as far as well know is leaving the program in a professional manner.
These next two years could easily be Lanie Grant's highest earning potential in basketball. After these two years she will most likely be slogging through the grind in Europe. The next time she earns this much will only be if she has great success in her next profession.
This decision hurts my feelings. A lot. Losing Henderson, perhaps even more. As a fan I hate it. But this is the world we live in now. These women are just playing the game as it exists off the court and on.
Always a Tar Heel.
Future playing time is obvious and all hers next season with Nivar and Harris gone. She was basically penciled in as a starter if she could beat Hull and Queiroz. But toms of minutes regardless.
This season, she got what she earned. Unfortunately for her, we have a lot of really good players who slot into that 3/4 role.
I feel pretty confident that her decision to leave has nothing to do with how she was used and future fit on this team. If I am wrong, then that is on her.
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Agree to disagree about obvious future playing time as we don’t know who will be on the roster and CB (whom I fully support) certainly isn’t consistent with who plays how much game to game.
I so hoped we could keep Taliyah. I had her and Kate and Nyla as parts of the core of the team for next year and beyond.. C'est la vie.
This is rough. We really need some athleticism and physicality. Nivar, Henderson, and Harris leave a huge void in that department. Lanie may have been our best "basketball" player. Banghart and staff have their work cut out for them. I have faith, but no need to sugar coat this. Holding pattern until the portal officially opens and Banghart can work her magic.