How Global Recruiting Has Transformed College Basketball with Jonathan Givony
On the debut episode of The Program, Woj visits with Jonathan Givony, founder of DraftExpress. They discuss the accelerated pattern of college’s recruiting international basketball talent — strategy that’s transforming roster construction in the age of paying players and the transfer portal.
Some of the topics covered:
• The Global GM Mindset: Givony reveals the one crucial evaluation method schools must adopt to succeed in international recruiting, arguing that only offering the most money is an often a losing strategy.
• Woj's Reporter Edge: Hear Woj explain how he leaned on his past life as a reporter to land top European talent like Achille Lonati.
• How the NCAA's reluctance to fight lawsuits is flooding the college market with older, professional players and what that means for high school recruitment.
• Playing Time vs. The Paycheck: Is a big NIL/Rev share deal at a Power Five school worth sitting on the bench? Woj and Givony detail how agents are increasingly steering clients on a different path that maximizes long-term earnings.
• The Future of College Staffs: Givony gives his bold prediction on the next major structural change in the sport.
We’ll see you next week for episode two with USC women’s basketball coach Lindsay Gottlieb
A big thank you to our presenting sponsor, Novig, America's #1 Sports Prediction Market, where you can make picks on the NBA, NFL, and more at the best odds in over 35 states! Learn more at https://novig.us/woj and use code THEPROGRAM for a match up to $100 on your first purchase.
Must be 21+. No purchase necessary to play. Void where prohibited. New users receive 1,000 Novig Coins and 5 Novig Cash automatically. See terms of use for eligibility.
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The Program with Woj: Learning From the Best Team Builders in Sports
Welcome to The Program with Woj.
I’m Adrian Wojnarowski. You may remember me from my days as the Senior NBA Insider at ESPN, but now I’m back at my alma mater, St. Bonaventure, navigating a whole new world as GM of their men's college basketball team.
On The Program with Woj, I’ll sit down with some of the most accomplished and innovative leaders and minds across all levels of the sporting community--my personal exploration of front office work and modern team building.
From college to pro, men and women, The Program with Woj will dig into it all.
The Program with Woj is a creation and production of In the Arena Studios. The series will be presented by our title sponsor, Novig. New episodes will drop every Wednesday and can be found wherever you get your podcasts.
See you soon, on The Program with Woj.
A big thank you to our presenting sponsor, Novig, America's #1 Sports Prediction Market, where you can make picks on the NBA, NFL, and more at the best odds in over 35 states! Learn more at novig.us/woj and use code THEPROGRAM for a match up to $100 on your first purchase.
Must be 21+. No purchase necessary to play. Void where prohibited. New users receive 1,000 Novig Coins and 5 Novig Cash automatically. See terms of use for eligibility.
Adrian Wojnarowski and In the Arena Studios welcome you to "The Program with Woj." In this series, the veteran journalist and influential media personality—now serving as General Manager of the St. Bonaventure men's basketball program—is joined by high-profile guests. They offer a wide range of perspectives across multiple college and professional sports to explore the business of building a sustainable and competitive program.
Woj will approach every conversation from the seat of a brand-new GM in a completely different profession. With this transition in mind, the series acts as a lens into his own curiosity, seeking to understand how teams develop their respective programs and what it takes to sustain the success needed to compete at the highest levels of college and professional sports.
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