Why is Earl Timberlake still playing basketball at Bryant? What you need to know

SMITHFIELD — Perhaps there are still a few simple answers to be found when it comes to modern college athletics. 

Name, image and likeness rights, the transfer portal, conference realignment, billion-dollar multimedia deals, revenue sharing between schools and athletes — it can all seem so complicated. Anything less than a five-minute explainer on federal lawsuits and the impending House settlement might not be enough. 

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Earl Timberlake takes a shot over a Dean College defender in Bryant's opening game on Monday night.

The current landscape tells us that Earl Timberlake probably shouldn’t be playing men’s basketball at Bryant University this season. The tangibles elsewhere — more available compensation, superior facilities, easier travel, something approaching the larger stages he experienced at two previous stops — should certainly have been enough to lure him away after two years. 

That wasn’t the case. Timberlake sat at a Chace Athletic Center podium prior to a recent practice and recapped an offseason that saw him contemplate a third transfer before ultimately opting to stay. The answer as to why has become an increasingly old-fashioned one. 

“I’m already real familiar with my team and the people coming back,” Timberlake said. “I just love Bryant. I love the people here. It’s family oriented.” 

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Bryant guard Earl Timberlake drives to the basket for a layup against New Hampshire's Clarence Daniels and Jaxson Baker during a game last season.

Relationships still count for something. Cut through all the window dressing — coaches and players still need that baseline connection to get the best out of one another. Villanova reportedly paid its roster roughly $3 million last season to miss the NCAA Tournament, a collection of ill-fitting pieces coming together for what amounted to nothing but personal payoffs. 

“The college basketball world, it’s just very transactional,” Bryant coach Phil Martelli Jr. said. “I get that. It is what it is. It’s not going to change. It’s not going backwards. We have to deal with it.  

“But I think on a day-to-day basis there has to be that relationship. I can only push so far if there’s no relationship. I can’t keep going with that. We can only get to a certain point. To be able to push them through, to be able to push our team through — there has to be that relationship piece.  

“You have to pour into people. It worked this year. It might not work next year. We might have five guys come in and say, ‘I’m out of here. I’m chasing money.’ You’ve got to deal with that when it comes about. But for me, for our staff — these are the guys who are with us. They’re here. They chose to be with us. We have to pour everything into them and trust that more often than not they’re going to appreciate that and get that.” 

Timberlake has carried a high-profile name in the sport for nearly a decade. His grassroots organization on the Nike summer circuit was Team Durant — as in Kevin Durant, the future Hall of Famer. He was a consensus top-50 recruit placed in the first round of some 2021 NBA mock drafts before he played a college game.  

Bryant's Earl Timberlake gets off a short jump shot during a game in December 2022.

The left-hander started his prep career at Rock Creek Christian, a small private school in suburban Maryland. The former head coach there is Chris Cole, the current associate head coach at Bryant entering his seventh year on staff. The Bulldogs offered Timberlake a scholarship around the same time Cole was hired in June 2018 by former coach Jared Grasso. 

“That’s a big piece,” Timberlake said. “I’ve known him damn near my whole life. That was huge in me coming back.” 

Timberlake transferred after one year to DeMatha Catholic, the national power sitting northeast of his Washington, D.C., home. His college options grew steadily over the next three seasons — North Carolina, North Carolina State, Louisville, Alabama, Ohio State, Florida and Georgetown were all schools that didn’t make his list of five finalists. Timberlake selected Miami ahead of Providence, Seton Hall, South Carolina and Pittsburgh, opting to test himself in the ACC. 

It was a difficult lone season for Timberlake with the Hurricanes in 2020-21. He was limited to just seven games while battling shoulder and ankle injuries, and Miami finished 10-17. Jim Larrañaga was under pressure to make changes after missing a third straight NCAA Tournament, and it seemed no player was guaranteed a role on the next year’s roster. 

Timberlake decided to transfer and found another robust market for his services. He selected Memphis ahead of interest from the Friars, Pirates, Hoyas, Gonzaga and LSU. The Tigers were fresh off an NIT championship and reached the second round of March Madness, but Timberlake couldn’t nail down a starting role — just 18 combined minutes off the bench in postseason games against Boise State and the Bulldogs. 

“It’s a little harder, obviously,” said Rafael Pinzon, a scoring guard entering his second year at Bryant after a transfer from St. John’s. “When you choose a school, you never want to move from that school. Opportunities come.” 

Timberlake found himself entering another uncertain offseason, and Bryant was fresh off a first NCAA Tournament appearance as the Northeast Conference champion. He was essentially guaranteed to be a centerpiece with a commitment to the Bulldogs, and he’s started in all but two of his 58 appearances. Timberlake averaged 14.6 points, 9.0 rebounds and shot 62% in 2023-24 while making a run at America East Player of the Year honors. 

“Personally, I’ve been through a lot at my previous two schools,” Timberlake said. “I’ve really got a huge trust factor with Coach Martelli and the rest of the staff.” 

That wound up being the deciding factor after Timberlake briefly entered the transfer portal in April. The sales pitches he heard were all familiar — eight years of being recruited tends to leave no fresh material. Timberlake, Pinzon, Kvonn Cramer, Connor Withers, Aaron Davis, Keyshawn Mitchell and Josh Ozabor all opted to return, giving Martelli a solid base entering his second season in charge. 

Bryant's Earl Timberlake gets a helping hand from teammates Doug Edert and Antwan Walker during a game in December 2022.

“There were days in the summer where they lifted in the morning, went to class, had a workout, did strength and conditioning, ran steps in 90-degree weather,” Martelli said. “Then I’m sitting in my office packing up ready to go home and all of a sudden you hear the ball bouncing. You look out and there are 10, 11, 12 guys out there.  

“Those new guys don’t necessarily know how to do that. They see Earl is in there to get another workout in or Rafael is in there shooting with a manager — ‘I’m going in there.’ Then next thing you know you’re looking out days, weeks later, and it’s every guy doing that. That stuff gets contagious.” 

Timberlake’s possible departure would have taken Bryant out of expected league title contention with Vermont and UMass Lowell. His return gave Martelli a focal point to add transfers like Devean Williams (Canisius), Barry Evans (St. Bonaventure), Kam Farris (Marist), Favour Aire (Penn State) and Jakai Robinson (Miami). The Bulldogs had already secured their most important recruit, someone who thanked Martelli in an office meeting last year for helping restore his passion for the game. 

“Definitely,” Timberlake said. “I credit them for helping me get that love back for the game and showing up every day. Going through those lows — you take everything that basketball brings.” 

In the college game that includes more than it used to. A scholarship, some pocket money for dinner on the road, a seat on the bus — it all seems so quaint by modern standards. Guaranteed paychecks, palatial practice facilities and charter flights can obscure what remains true at the sport’s root. 

Basketball remains a relationships game — chemistry while on the court, a common purpose in the locker room, the sacrifice for a chance to win a championship in March. Timberlake will enjoy all those things over the next five months. He placed more value on them than anything he could hold in his hand. 

bkoch@providencejournal.com

On X: @BillKoch25 

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