So here is what we know as of now.
Can Return.
Des Watson, Jayden Dawson, Jalen Quinn, Trey Lewis, Sheldon Edwards, Miles Rubin, Ben Schweiger,
Walk ons
Caleb Reese, Matt Mortenson,Sam Yuresek
Incoming Freshman
Jack Turner, Braden Young,Seifeldin Hendawy,Daniil Glazkov
Assuming no walk ons get scholarships and no one leaves? we still have two spots.

Some assumptions.
We are going to lose some players
None of the incoming freshman will contribute in a major way.
The portal transfers we add will extremely important for us to maintain our position in the A-10
The A-10 has a lot of good returning squads next year.

Some Questions
Did Jalen Quinn or Des Watson show enough this year to take over as the main ball handler or will we be looking to bring one in?
How many minutes can we count on Miles Rubin to play next year.He averaged 18 this year with a foul every 6 minutes. And will we be looking to bring someone in to keep his minutes under 20 or will we be looking for someone to support him and Miles to work towards 30,.Will Brayden Young be able to play minutes like Miles.?
Will Ben Schweiger have a resurgence and be involved next year or is he on the way to the portal?
Will any of the incoming Freshman be able to contribute significantly like Rubin Miles did this year? The last two signed ,Hendway and Glazkov came in highly ranked.

I would have to assume either Lewis and/or Schweiger seek the portal.

Lewis might have the bigger upside in retaining. Has 3 years eligibility left. Could get more minutes next year too. Should assimilate into the system nicely.

If both go portal, I think we'd be fine. This is a lot of guards. But then we lose the depth.

Seifeldin should get instant minutes next year. That's a body you have got to play. Potential starter.


Mortenson is going to be the next LUC cult hero of walk-ons. We who are seated behind the bench already appreciate and are entertained!!!

I don't see a path for Lewis. He is still rail thin and he seems lost on defense. His true freshman year in the pre-season open scrimmage, Drew made a comment that he doesn't play defense. Defense is a must if you want to get on the floor at LU. He's been here two years and this year got no minutes. I would suspect he will leave. His issue is that he has no tape to shop.

Ben is an interesting situation. He was on the all newcomer team in his red shirt freshman year last year and some great moments. His TOs were a bit high last year and he never seemed comfortable this year. Whenever we were up big, and Drew wanted to put him into a game he would literally ask him if he wanted to go in. I have never seen that before. Ben is also in a different position and he has 2 years of eligibility left and he has an award and tape to shop if he wants to go into the portal. I would think in a conference like the MVC, he would be highly productive. Hate to lose an athletic jumping jack if for no other reason it challenges guys in practice.

If we divorce emotion from the equation, it might be best for the players and the program if they leave so we can bolster some of our holes with experienced transfers, hopefully juniors with 2 years left like Phil, Des, and Sheldon. One and done guys don't give you the stability you need in getting your freshman recruits ready to contribute. I think the Egyptian and the Russian kid will both play next year. They are going to be physically up to it and both seem like they are extremely hard workers who will be coachable. Turner we will need to see. He has a very low release point on his shot that I worry about, but he has some great skills. The kid from Texas may need a redshirt year, but he's a 3 star and has talent.

Drew and the staff got some work to do and having a couple of more scholarships would be huge because not every transfer will necessarily work out.

Question...will anyone else follow Des' path and want to transfer from within the conference? This could be interesting if it does happen.

Quinn took a big step up. His turnovers came way down. He is playing better defense and is not committing as many fouls, his FT shooting is excellent at 80% and he is making better decisions on when to go to the basket and passing when he get down near the basket and kicking out when draws attention. He's also not leaving his feet as much trying to pass in the lane. His only weakness is he needs to improve his jumper. He should be shooting 500 balls a day coming off of screens and catch and shoot. He improves that, he can be a load. I like what I saw from him this year.

No..no...no.....After reading JCT's post, I think the NIT is a strong possibility now! Selection Show is on TV Sunday night.

You should never assume Freshman will contribute in a major way…but I wouldn’t be surprised if one or more of them did. We have been recruiting at a different level the last few years.

Miles Rubin improved significantly in defending without fouling the last few weeks. He’s become an absolute monster of a rim protector…which is on the one hand great for next year…but on the other hand gives me anxiety over the number of big money programs who might be making a push for him to transfer. That game still feels dirty to me, but it’s reality at this point.

I have seen several NIT bracketology sites that have us in. It makes sense because NCAA takes 68 (including Play-in teams) and NIT tales 32. That equals 100. Our current NET, event with the loss is 84, placing us comfortably in Top 100 teams (68+32=100)

We really need to find some offense next year.

Norris was our only player who finished in the Kenpom top 500 in offensive rating this year, and he's gone. Des was a very nice surprise offensively. Dawson obviously showed tons of potential, but he's got to stay healthy. When Quinn is making his shots around the rim, he's a major weapon, but these games where he goes 1/7.. 2/6... 0/3... those just really hurt. Sheldon can get hot, but need to be more consistent. With Miles it's just the careless turnovers.

There are pieces, but I don't see a go-to guy right now.

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MBB Scholarship Chart

Per Rothstein, Sheldon Edwards is officially back next year.

I’m not sure how to link instagrams on here, but I think it’s a pretty safe bet to say that neither Dawson (source: his mom on Twitter ) and Rubin (source: Drew sharing his Instagram post ) will be transferring.

Two huge sighs of relief.