Don't Let The Transactional Era Take Away From This Group's Impact; Column – Sports Illustrated

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NASHVILLE—Moments after families came out with locked arms, Tyler Nickel and company sauntered out of the Vanderbilt tunnel and listened as the contingent of Vanderbilt fans in the building let the loudest roar of the early portion of the night go. Perhaps Nickel’s numbers won’t end up on the first few pages in any program record books when this is all said and done, but his flowers were due. 
Nickel and Vanderbilt forward Devin McGlockton took a chance on this build two years ago when Mark Byington first took the Vanderbilt job. Nickel was the first non-James Madison player to choose this staff and this place. McGlockton wasn’t far behind. 
Those two players, in particular, took this place back to the NCAA Tournament and are about to do it again. They’ve helped to cultivate the culture that Byington and company wanted to instill within this program–which had lost its way prior to their arrivals. They’ve been two crucial members of the group that gave this program its pride back. 
The era of college sports that has overtaken college sports has decimated the idea that Vanderbilt’s senior day would include anything but a collection of players that started their college careers elsewhere, but it doesn’t mean that it can’t be impactful. That doesn’t mean that Nickel and McGlockton or anyone else honored on Wednesday is a heartless mercenary. 
“I know the transfer portal can be kind of like tricky with stuff like that of knowing or thinking ‘how much do they really care about the program, how much like how invested are they really?’” Nickel told Vandy on SI. “This group of guys really cares about each other and winning and Vanderbilt. I'll say I've been on other teams where there's been transfers or there's been people in situations that was not the priority. 
This environment is just so real and authentic and all these guys in this class are about it for the right reasons.”
Merely looking at previous stops and eligibility, Wednesday appeared to be a day of mercenaries taking a moment to do something that program stalwarts used to around these parts. There’s something beyond that at play here, though. 
Say what you will about this group and the fact that they’ve all made stops elsewhere, but they’ve been a part of making this place one with a winning culture. Look at the Gym on Wednesday night. 
The place wasn’t half empty. It was filled with a group of fans expecting Vanderbilt to win a game and talking about NCAA Tournament seeding rather than the coach’s job security. You couldn’t hear any individual voices from the press box. This isn’t quite the rockin’ Memorial Gymnasium that the legendary stories recall, but it’s getting closer. At the very least, this place cares about basketball again. 
Give Byington all the credit in the world for that, but also acknowledge that something like that wouldn’t have been possible without Nickel and McGlockton. Those two guys said a few springs ago that they believed they could come here and win despite nobody in recent memory doing it. They bought into a vision that had no proof of concept yet. Vanderbilt is better off for their bet on the program. 
“They're about all the right things,” Byington said. “I love coaching them. Vanderbilt should be proud of them. They care about their team, they care about winning. They'll sacrifice. They do everything right. And so, they had two years here and I think it's a memorable two years. Their ride's not over. I love those guys.” 
Nickel and McGlockton are the visionaries here that believed they could come in and be part of a culture change that ended up happening. They helped to create basketball culture on West End again. As a result, they shouldn’t be forgotten. Neither should Vanderbilt walk-ons Coleson Messer and Miles Keeffe–both of which are holdovers from the Jerry Stackhouse era. 
Vanderbilt first-year transfers Duke Miles, AK Okereke and Jalen Washington deserved the flowers they got on Wednesday night, as well. Nickel and McGlockton represented a changing culture and those three transfers are the reinforcements that elevated this from a bubble team to a potential top-four seed in the NCAA Tournament. 
“I think it really just comes down to our willingness to win,” Okereke told Vandy on SI. “Everyone just from top to bottom really understands what their role is, and that really just helps everyone else. Everyone falls in line and that's why they've had success this year. So everyone just keeps going, and obviously it starts with the seniors.” 
The run in this place ended prematurely for the group of seven seniors that were honored on Wednesday–Vanderbilt seniors Frankie Collins and Mason Nicholson were not–but what they did here should be remembered. This group lost just three home games this season. Nickel and McGlockton have lost just six games here in this building in their Vanderbilt careers. 
As a result, there was some real emotion that those two had to push down as they walked away from their families at midcourt and got in the huddle prior to Wednesday’s tip off. Perhaps that indicates the naivety of the heartless mercenary narrative.
“I’m gonna miss it,” McGlockton said. “For sure.” 
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Joey Dwyer is the lead writer on Vanderbilt Commodores On SI. He found his first love in college sports at nearby Lipscomb University and decided to make a career of telling its best stories. He got his start doing a Notre Dame basketball podcast from his basement as a 14-year-old during COVID and has since aimed to make that 14-year-old proud. Dwyer has covered Vanderbilt sports for three years and previously worked for 247 Sports and Rivals. He contributes to Seth Davis' Hoops HQ, Basket Under Review and Mainstreet Nashville.
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