Stories of the NCAA transfer portal and Name, Image, and Likeness are getting more bizarre. The latest example is the recruitment of K-State target Antoine Davis. Davis entered the transfer portal from Detroit-Mercy after playing four seasons and finishing 3rd in the NCAA in scoring last season. He broke Stephen Curry’s freshman 3-point record, so obviously the guy can score. He averaged 24.6 points a game in his four year career and became the first four-time All-Horizon League player.

It was an odd choice to enter the portal in the first place since he plays at Detroit-Mercy where his father, Mike, is the head coach. At the time, Mike told reporters that Antoine wanted to explore if there were any possible NIL opportunities for him. So he decided to play the field and see what was out there. Here is a timeline of the last four weeks or so of his recruitment from the time he announced his transfer to the time he committed….

April 14, 2022 – Antoine Davis enters the transfer portal with this announcement.

“Dear Titan Fam, I have decided to enter the transfer portal. I will always remember the University of Detroit Mercy and what it has done for me. I wouldn’t be in this position without the University giving me an opportunity as a student-athlete. I was honored to be a Titan and play in the Horizon League against great players and coaches, and I loved every second of being coached by my dad and brother. I also want to thank our fans. I have loved everything Detroit Mercy has provided me from basketball to my education. I will always be a Titan.”

That sure sounds like an official goodbye message to me. Well, except for the “I will always be a Titan” part. It turns out that he did a good job of foreshadowing.

April 15, 2022 – Jeff Goodman tweeted and Antoine Davis retweeted that Davis had drawn interest from Kansas, Kentucky, Memphis, Auburn, Maryland, Alabama, Purdue, Ohio State, LSU, K-State, Georgetown, Georgia Tech, South Carolina, Cincinnati, Hofstra, Minnesota, and UCF. Whew!

April 17, 2022 – Jon Rothstein tweeted and Antoine Davis retweeted that Davis planned to visit Maryland, K-State, and Georgetown, per Mike Davis. Rothstein also tweeted that Davis would take an unofficial visit to Cincinnati and take two more visits. I don’t think the visit to Cincinnati and the other visits ever happened.

April 20, 2022 – Davis visits Maryland.

April 21, 2022 – Davis tweeted and thanked Maryland for having him on the “amazing visit.”

April 21, 2022 – Davis tweeted that he was visiting Georgetown.

April 22, 2022 – Davis tweeted that he was visiting K-State “today and tomorrow.”

April 23, 2022 – Davis tweeted that Manhattan was “the best visit that I went on.”

April 24, 2022 – Davis tweeted his top five: Maryland, K-State, Georgetown, BYU, and Detroit-Mercy.

April 28, 2022 – Davis tweeted that he was visiting BYU.

May 5, 2022 – Davis tweeted that he was making his announcement the following Monday.

May 9, 2022 – Jeff Goodman tweeted and Antoine Davis retweeted that Davis had agreed to a one-year Name, Image, and Likeness agreement with a Chinese company called GlowBalls.

May 9, 2022 – Davis tweeted that he was returning to Detroit-Mercy for his final season.

May 9, 2022 – Adam Zagoria tweeted that he talked to Mike Davis, who told him that the NIL deal Antoine signed is worth six figures.

After all of that interest and those campus visits, Davis decided to stay at Detroit-Mercy? I don’t fault him for exploring his options, but I found the entire process ridiculous. Could Davis have made this NIL deal without entering the transfer portal and wasting the time of the coaching staffs at Maryland, K-State, Georgetown, and BYU? It is anyone’s guess, but it sure sounds like he could have. Maybe he was looking for a bigger deal at the schools he visited and didn’t find it. From the outside looking in, it appears to me that he wasted a lot of time and effort of the coaching staffs that he stiffed in the end. At least he got to go on a vacation around the country while he was shopping for NIL deals. Hey, I wish him the best, but the best I can call this entire process is….absurd.