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Mike Boynton Taking Unconventional Path to Build Oklahoma State Roster

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Mike Boynton is taking an unconventional path to building his roster of the future, however the blueprint to his success has already been mapped out by a Sweet 16 darling that was ousted on Thursday.

Although Oklahoma State is miles away from the University of Nevada from a resources and support perspective, the Cowboys’ program — at least for Boynton, a first-time head coach with virtually no brand and no track record — can be difficult to recruit to.

So like Nevada did under Eric Musselman, Boynton has taken to building his program through conventional recruiting with a heavy sprinkling of players from the transfer market.

“I just think that, with the transfers—that was a way for us to get good as quick as we could,” Musselman told Sports Illustrated of his strategy when he took over the program in 2016. Nevada has been to the NCAA Tournament each of the past two seasons under Musselman.

Boynton inherited a much more talented roster than Musselman at Nevada, parlaying a projected last place finish in the Big 12 this season into a respectable NIT run and 21 total wins, all despite gutting what depth he had by cutting Davon Dillard and Zach Dawson midseason.

And guess what? St. John’s transfer Yankuba Sima, whom Boynton helped land for Underwood last season, played a big role in that success.

But Sima may be the surface-scratcher for Oklahoma State when it comes to its success in fishing the transfer market.

In addition to Sima, Oklahoma State will also be breaking in talented Miami (Oh.) transfer guard Michael Weathers next season after sitting out 2017. Weathers is a do-it-all combo guard who will shoulder a huge load — if not the biggest — in a talented backcourt next season.

The same rings true for Curtis Jones, a midseason addition for Boynton who transferred from Indiana. Jones is a former prep star who rarely saw the floor for the Hoosiers, but could be a neglected star-in-waiting for Oklahoma State when he regains eligibility at the second semester mark next season.

Nevada’s Musselman didn’t neglect high school recruiting altogether, and neither has Boynton. Musselman mixed in a healthy dosage of high schoolers (signing five in each of the last two classes), and added a massive influx of transfers, too.

Of the six players who logged at least one minute during Nevada’s tourney run, only one — sophomore Josh Hall — signed with the Pack out of high school. The rest — such as twins Caleb and Cody Martin, and Jordan Carolina — all arrived in Reno by way of transfer.

Boynton could be blazing a similar path as Musselman. Sure, Lindy Waters and Cam McGriff project as starters next season. But so does transfers Michael Weathers and Yankuba Sima, as well as Curtis Jones, all of which arrived in Stillwater via the transfer hotline.

And did I tell you that OSU is in the mix for another St. John’s 7-footer?

Fishing out players by way of transfer is far from a new trend for new coaches looking to make a splash, but Boynton’s made an emphasis to keep his feet in both ponds. With a talented 2018 class incoming and talented transfers in line to make an impact next season, he may have already cooked up a winning formula that could translate to larger success in 2018.

Fortunately for him, Musselman’s already written the recipe for success. Boynton just has to go to the supermarket, pick out his ingredients and turn the oven on.

OSU may be closer to turning things around than some people realize, and the process might be expedited if Boynton strikes gold on the transfers he’s imported since taking over the program.

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