The ubiquity of the transfer portal has dominated college basketball headlines this offseason.

More than 1,300 players have explored the transfer market, with personal options greatly enhanced due to two major factors.

Student-athletes have been granted an extra year of eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic, while NCAA legislation has permitted players a one-time transfer without having to sit out a season.

With player movement up nearly 30 percent across the game, the stability the Mason program has attained over the past six weeks has proven remarkable. The volatility of this year's market, coupled with the normal high transfer rate which occurs after a coaching change, could've spelled a full roster overhaul in Fairfax.

But first-year head Coach English and his core group of returning players have bucked the national trend, with an octet dubbed "The Great Eight" laying the foundation for a program on the rise.

Each member of that core carefully evaluated their options as English arrived in Fairfax began meeting with players one-on-one.

Rising junior Josh Oduro, who put together a breakout campaign in 2020-21, wanted to fully explore potential opportunities and entered his name into the portal.

He was contacted by a number of schools, but ultimately decided remaining at Mason in English's program provided him the best fit for success. He particularly appreciated English's unique vision for each individual player and the way he embraces the modern NBA style of play.

"We play hard in a way which highlights how the game is evolving," Oduro said. "Every possession, the first seven seconds is ours. We get out and push it. After that, we play a free-flowing offense where not everything is determined. You get to read the defense and play to your strengths as an individual player."

English's player-driven style also made an impression with Jamal Hartwell II, who considered entering the portal but ultimately chose to suit up in Fairfax for his senior campaign. In English's first meeting with Hartwell II, he broke down the point guard's film in Synergy and showed him how he'd fit perfectly within the program framework, in addition to sharing ways in which the staff could help him elevate his game.

Now, after three weeks of spring workouts, Hartwell II is already seeing an impact in his approach, with associate head coach Dennis Felton teaching the Inglewood, Calif., product "a whole new way of defense I'd never even thought of."

As Mason's sole returning senior, Hartwell II hopes to be one of the driving forces in establishing the team's identity in 2021-22.

"The best teams are player-led rather than coach-led," Hartwell II said. "That's something I try to embody and embrace. I want to instill a lot more toughness within our group – being a dog on the court and getting my teammates to do the same and follow my lead."

Culture proved to be crucial for rising sophomores Ronald Polite and Malik Henry as they made their decisions on whether or not to enter the portal.

Polite, who made great strides on the court in the second half of his freshman campaign, appreciated what English wants his players to establish off of the hardwood.

"I see something special going on here," Polite said. "We're trying to establish a championship culture. Coach mentions it all the time – about building a brotherhood. There's a lot on and off the court that goes into it. You have to give it your all and always being there for your brothers, your teammates. We have to get better every day and stand together in unity."

Henry, who hails from Longview, Texas, loved his first season on the Mason campus and in the greater Washington, D.C., area. He wanted to stay in Fairfax, continue to strengthen the bonds formed with his returning teammates, and push them with his positive energy and attitude.

Henry loves working with the new staff, and feels this instruction, coupled with his regular effort with strength & conditioning coach Handy Handerahan in the weight room, will help him reach individual and personal goals as a sophomore.

"I'm really focusing on getting stronger in the offseason," Henry said. "Handy has helped me a lot and given me a lot of good advice. Working with him gives me high energy in the weight room and makes me want to dominate everything I do."

As the calendar turns to June and July, the program will be further bolstered by the arrival of a gifted group of six players who will complete the Patriot roster for the coming season.

That group includes a trio of talented transfers in D'Shawn Schwartz (Colorado), DeVon Cooper (Morehead State) and Davonte "Ticket" Gaines. Mason also will welcome three freshmen in guard Mike Gray (Fredericksburg, Va.) and forwards Blake Jones (Canberra, Australia) and Mouhamed Mbaye (Dakar Senegal).

Mason's original "Great Eight"  - which also includes talented junior Xavier Johnson and dynamic sophomore Otis Frazier III - is now a group of seven after walk-on Lysander Rehnstrom received an outstanding opportunity to earn a scholarship at the U.S. Naval Academy.

But that foundational core of eight will always be remembered for what they did over three weeks in April – implementing the program's culture, competing at a relentless level and creating a significant structure on which the program can build in the months to come.

"We accomplished and established the way Kim wants to play," Henry said. "He wants to play fast and he wants us locked in to get stops on defense. Seeing that and adjusting to it week after week made a big difference. We got better as a group."