Speculation: Why Would Seth Allen Want To Transfer?

Feb 10, 2014; Charlottesville, VA, USA; Maryland Terrapins head coach Mark Turgeon gestures from the bench against the Virginia Cavaliers at John Paul Jones Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

Because there is nothing set in stone at this point, this is an issue that everyone probably needs to tread lightly on. There’s no point bad-mouthing a kid for a decision no one even knows he’s made yet. Coach Turgeon has come out and denied that Allen or Charles Mitchell is leaving, and while he did the same thing with Nick Faust, it’s probably better to err on the side of caution and believe him than it is to make the dangerous assumption that he’s feeding fans malarkey.

That said, one has to wonder why exactly Seth Allen would be leaving when ~1,000+ minutes in the Terps back court have opened up with the departure of Nick Faust and Roddy Peters from the program. Allen was poised to play a whole lot of minutes his junior year for the Terps, and would presumably get to rule the roost as a shooting guard or point guard. Even though the incoming freshman class featured three backcourt players, none of them were likely going to challenge Allen for the starting 1 or 2 on the Terps court.

So why would a rumor about Seth Allen transferring even pop up? One reason could be that Allen, or perhaps someone in his camp, sees a potential conflict between the arrival of All-American freshman Melo Trimble and himself. Now that Peters is gone, Trimble is going to come in and be the point guard of the future for Maryland; that much was almost guaranteed once those transfers were announced. Trimble and Allen are around the same height, same weight, and play in a pretty similar fashion to one another, and how they play on the court together remains to be seen.

Trimble is a somewhat better passer, has better handle, and is less inclined to eat up a lot of shots for himself. Still, perhaps Allen felt that he should have been the primary ball handler on the court for the Terps. After all, Maryland was a much better team with him at the helm last year and having a freshman get the nod at the point guard spot over a junior could be seen as a slight. If Allen is looking logically at his NBA prospects, he’s only going to be drafted if he can prove he’s a point guard. There’s no if, and’s, or but’s about that. Players at his height don’t make it to the NBA as shooting guards.

Melo Trimble could affect Allen’s best route to the NBA drastically, which is why this feels like the most logical line of thinking and, really, the only one that makes even an iota of sense.

Still, others have speculated that Allen and Coach Turgeon have some sort of dissonance brewing. Perhaps there were promises made during Allen’s recruitment that aren’t being fulfilled, or that some of Allen’s friends have left the team, it has upset him, and he’s leaving for that reason. To be honest, even entertaining this idea is ridiculous. Not only is Allen not that kind of person, but by most accounts he and Coach Turgeon are not at odds. I won’t pretend to know Allen personally, but I do know that unless he’s been pulling the wool over everyone’s eyes for the better part of two seasons, him leaving would not be because of a rift between Turgeon and himself.

Finally, the idea that Allen is intimidated by some of the new additions presence has been thrown out there. This one seems possible, but not really likely. Allen is a competitor who has had to work through injury, being a low ranked recruit coming out of high school, and physical shortcomings to get where he is. Allen isn’t likely one to shy away from a little competition, and even though the recruits coming in are heralded, they still aren’t an established presence. Allen knows the minutes are there for him to excel, and he’s worked hard enough to have earned them playing for a coach who saw potential in him when not a ton of folks did. Leaving that because of some newer guy doesn’t make much sense, even if the minutes look less certain his senior year.