Breein Tyree says he’ll ‘keep his options open’ regarding possible transfer

It’s been seven days since Andy Kennedy announced he was leaving the Ole Miss basketball program at the end of this season, and fewer than 24 hours since he up and resigned with two weeks remaining in the ill-fated 2018 campaign.

This notion has probably been sitting in the back of Rebel fans’ minds without them knowing it, but the sudden departure and leadership change for Ole Miss basketball throws the door wide open for current players to transfer to another program. We know this to be the case after 2017’s football shitstorm, and at a presser on Monday, Rebel one-guard Breein Tyree reminded everyone of this fact.

Tyree was candid when he spoke about entertaining the prospect of jumping ship. His full remarks, via The Oxford Eagle’s Davis Potter:

I’m keeping my options 100 percent open. At the end of the day, I’ve got to do what’s best for me. I came to Ole Miss to be a Rebel. I love the university. Depending on the coaches they bring in, I’ll definitely look at them. I’m not saying I’m transferring. I’m not saying I’m staying. I’m just keeping my options open.

That’s fair and honest, no one should fault Tyree for speaking up in such fashion. He came to Oxford under the supposition that he was going to play basketball under Andy Kennedy, and that’s no longer the case. It’s undoubtedly been a whirlwind week for the team, which of course dropped both games. The players are no doubt frustrated at the whole sordid affair, so disillusionment is an understandable reaction.

Whatever happens in the end here, though, a mass exodus of players due to AK’s departure and lackluster hiring will sit squarely in Ross Bjork and Jeff Vitter’s collective laps.