2023-24 ROSTER BREAKDOWN:
G - Xavion Brown - Returning
G - Christopher Mantis - Returning
F - CJ Huntley - Returning
C - Justin Abson - Returning
G - Terence Harcum - Returning
F - Donovan Gregory - Graduating, Returning
F/C - Tre'Von Spillers - INCOMING JuCo TRANSFER
G - Myles Tate - INCOMING TRANSFER
C - Luke Wilson - INCOMING FRESHMAN
G - Jordan Marsh - INCOMING FRESHMAN
G - Etienne Strothers - INCOMING FRESHMAN
F - Joshua Hayes - INCOMING FRESHMAN
F - Luke Ledford - INCOMING FRESHMAN, Preferred Walk On
F - Dibaji Walker - Graduating, 1 year of eligibility to explore
G - Tyree Boykin - No Remaining Eligibility / TRANSFER PORTAL?
C - Tamell Pearson - No Remaining Eligibility
G - Carvell Teasett - TRANSFER PORTAL
G - Zocko Littleton - TRANSFER PORTAL
G - Michael Eads Jr. - TRANSFER PORTAL
G - Bryson Ogletree - TRANSFER PORTAL
Guards - 6 Forwards - 4 Centers - 2
1 SCHOLARSHIP AVAILABLE
Heading into the off season we currently have 6 scholarships to use. Walker, Gregory, and Teasett could all return but I currently see that as an unlikely scenario (but would love to see all 3 in the B&G again). Our two incoming Freshmen are big man Joshua Hayes and guard Etienne Strothers. I'm looking forward to seeing how we take advantage of the portal this off season.
WISHLIST:
1. Big Time guard addition via the transfer portal. New era of college hoops is living (and dying) by the transfer portal. This year we saw 2 prolific guards transfer into the conference and earn 1st team all conference honors: Austin Crowley at USM and Isaiah Moore at USA. One was a high major guard that transferred "down" for more PT, the other was a D2 All American who finally got his chance to play D1. Add Louisiana big man Jordan Brown to the mix and 3/5ths of the Sun Belt 1st Team were transfer portal additions to their school. We NEED a Delph/Shabazz/Forrest level guard to come in and take command of our offense.
2. Speaking of Offense, wish #2 is significant improvement to our offensive scheme. The hero ball offense is not very successful, but is even more painful to watch when you no longer have a Delph, Almonacy, or Forrest to bail you out often. The Sun Belt has become a more high scoring conference with our recent newcomers and I don't think we have to completely change our identity, but improvements to our ball movement and play design is drastically needed. We currently have good role pieces to work with on the roster: Mantis/Harcum EXCELLENT shooters, X is a great distributor for others and slasher, Huntley is an ideal modern day stretch 4, and Abson can get to work on the block. Now let's have an offense that allows these guys + newcomers to play to their strengths and thrive.
3. Free Throw Improvements. We can't be dead last in the conference again plain and simple.
4. Better Early season tournament - In the last 3 years we've hosted our own MTE in Boone, played in the Gulf Coast Showcase on FloHoops, and played in a small MTE hosted by UNCG. I'd say it's time for us to return to a Myrtle Beach/Charleston Classic type of tournament that is sponsored by ESPN. Give us a chance to knock off a P5 program on national television in front of NCAA tournament type crowd setting. Also I think it was apparent in another thread that some want the Sun Belt tourney to be played in Charleston
5. Roster / Staff Cohesion - Taking this one from the suggestions below. This year we saw 4 mid year departures from players and 1 surprising staff departure by an App Hoops Alum, with a couple players having interesting statements shared on social media when it was announced. Would love for this to not be a trend and would like to see guys at least not feel the need to quit (or get ran off) mid year.
6. Larger Media / Social Media presence - Another suggestion from below. I too would love to see more content in general in regards to our hoops program. Our football team has a large social media footprint, and it feels like hoops has the bare minimum. Idk if it's because of a lack of resources or a decision from our staff, but if there is an opportunity for us to have more articles/videos/graphics I would say the more the merrier in this day in age.
7. High Major Transfer Addition - I think some positive buzz could be generated for our program by landing someone in the portal coming from a P5 school. This could be for any position as we have 6 roster spots to fill and I would say Abson and Harcum are our only 2 locks for starters next year, everyone else is going to be competing for minutes.
A brief look at last year's wish list / predictions:
1. Adrian Delph returns. Would be huge, don't think it needs an explanation - Did not happen
2. Bring in a rim protector / strong rebounder. We need a guy like Georgia State has with Nsosome, a guy who can protect the rim and dominate games on the glass. Gregory is the closest player we have to that, and he's a 6'5 forward. If we could just another with his effort who is closer to 7 foot I think it would be HUGE for our team. - HAPPENED, I would say Abson fits this wish, would love to see Abson become an even stronger rebounder next year, the shot blocking is already there.
3. Bring in a veteran PG via the portal. I'm a strong believer in Zocko, and liked what we saw in Harcum this season. Xavion has PG capability as well, but would love to have a guy who has already PROVEN they can run PG effectively. - HAPPENED, Tyree Boykin fit this wish. We saw how much we struggled when he missed a few games with injury, will likely need another portal guard like him this off season
4. High major transfer via the portal. We've seen South Alabama almost exclusively go after HM transfers, and teams like ULL, Ga St, and Coastal land guys from high major conferences. I think with the momentum of our program it's our turn to land someone who will provide an immediate IMPACT to our program. It's wishful thinking, but with 400+ names already in the portal, there's bound to be someone there! - Did not happen, Walker from UMASS was the closest thing to a bigger conference player coming down to play for us
5. Better Early season tournament - This year we played in the Gulf Coast Showcase which did feature quality mid major programs, The tournament however was broadcasted on FloHoops which nobody was able to watch just about. In 2019 we played in the "Spartan Classic" against UNCG, Tenn Tech, and Montana St and those games weren't even livestreamed if I remember correctly. Would love to see us in one of the ESPN / big network tournaments for the national exposure it could bring and the opportunity to knock off a big time program at a neutral site. - Did not happen. While I did attend and loved that we got to host a MTE tournament in Boone, exposure wise I don't think it did much of anything for us. Wasn't broadcasted by a big network obviously, and it was scheduled the weekend of a home football game but attendance still wasn't great despite the great planning by Kerns / Doug / and co.
6. FREE THROW SHOOTING IMPROVEMENTS - Did Not Happen. Last season we shot 65.9% from the FT line, this year we improved to 67.6% from the FT line, which was good for DEAD LAST in the conference. Not going to win the conference if you're the worst at shooting free throws.
7. Donovan Gregory returns - Happened!
