Path Awaits Perfect Razorback Basketball Dream Next Season

Arkansas fans, Anthony Black, Jordan Walsh couldn't write more perfect script

Author:
Kent Smith
Updated:
Apr 12, 2023 4:15 PM EDT
Original:
Apr 12, 2023

In this story:

NOTE: Three hours after this story was published, Arkansas guard Anthony Black declared for the NBA draft. Because the content of the story is still relevant despite Black's declaration, the story will remain as originally published.

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – There are dreams and then there are paths so aligned with destiny that it wouldn't be believable if it were written in a movie.

If the Arkansas coaching staff can somehow convince Jordan Walsh and Anthony Black to come back next season, it will set up the most perfect run to an Arkansas national championship ever devised.

If the Razorbacks can find a way to snag a No. 2 seed in next season's NCAA Tournament, they will most likely be placed in the South Region. That particular region next season is the most Arkansas centric path to a national championship ever constructed.

The No. 2 seed begins with an assignment in Memphis for the opening two rounds. The idea of a first weekend in a location with easy access to Razorback fans and time to plan for a destination where the Hogs would definitely play means a FedEx Forum packed to the rafters.

Should Eric Musselman continue his historic run of trips to the Sweet 16, the other half of Arkansas will find itself with an easy drive as the South Regional meets in downtown Dallas at the home of the Mavericks. American Airlines will bring back echoes of the old Reunion Arena days of the Southwest Conference tournament.

The final leg of the journey stops in a place all too familiar to Arkansas fans – AT&T Stadium.

That's right. The same building where the football team faces down with Texas A&M could serve as the perfect location to wrap a national championship run that looks like it was written for Arkansas and no other school.

It's even more perfect if Black and Walsh come back. Both have deep ties to the Dallas area having done a lot of growing up there.

The allure of getting to end their college careers in front of their parents, extended families, former coaches and teammates is enough of a storybook ending to possibly delay being NBA draft picks for one more year.

There would definitely be a sea of red there to celebrate with them.

The furthest a Razorback fan in Little Rock would have to drive the entire NCAA tournament would be six hours. If fans wanted to fly to the Dallas sites, it's $79 one way.

For a fan base that can often be limited during the NCAA Tournament by cost, there's very little in the way of an average fan attending the tournament.

Typically, a ticket for the full Final Four, two semifinals and the championship game, can run around $800. However, single-game tickets can drop to very reasonable numbers.

This is how low they fell last season.

TicketSmarter: $65 ($84 with fees).
StubHub: $53 ($66 with fees).
Ticketmaster: $50 ($59 with fees).
SeatGeek: $59 ($85 with fees).
Vivid Seats: $60 (prices with fees unavailable).
TickPick: $76 with fees.

If an Arkansas fan wanted to save for flights while anticipating higher cost tickets, $1.000 would do it. That just means putting back $25 per week in anticipation next year's team can pull it off.

It's the greatest dream an Arkansas fan could ever have, and, as of noon on April 12, it's a dream that can still happen.