What should you expect from WSU this season? Taylor Eldridge breaks down the Shockers
Struggling to figure out what to make of the Shockers this season? Don’t worry, everyone is.
The amount of uncertainty on the roster — nine of 13 players haven’t played Division I basketball — has outside expectations as low as they’ve been since the start of Gregg Marshall’s tenure.
That’s exactly how Marshall likes it. He thrives in the underdog role and his teams have historically performed well when others count them out.
WSU has experienced its biggest roster overhaul of the Marshall era, but this should be one of his more talented teams. In his first recruiting class since joining the American, Marshall has upgraded athleticism. The Shockers have more length on the wings and better quickness in their guards.
It’s almost a given WSU will improve on defense after its efficiency plummeted to No. 111 in the country last season, the first time the Shockers have been outside the top 30 since the 2010-11 season. While these Shockers may not restore the defense to that level of efficiency, the newcomers are dedicated to bringing back the “Play Angry” style of defense.
One trait that never changes on Marshall’s teams is its ability to rebound. Since Marshall’s arrival, WSU has finished top-12 nationally in defensive rebounding percentage in 10 of the last 11 seasons. Even with 83 percent of its rebounding from last season gone, expect WSU to once again rebound at an elite level this season.
Still, expectations for this team must be tempered.
“We’ve had some good practices and we’ve had some not-so-good practices,” Marshall said. “That’s with any group, but with this one it can be a wild swing from day-to-day and even within the practice. We’ve seen those swings more frequently.”
Yes, there is great talent on the roster. The two seniors, Markis McDuffie and Samajae Haynes-Jones, have reportedly been the team’s two best players in the preseason. Freshman Dexter Dennis could have NBA potential. West Virginia transfer Teddy Allen would be a difference-maker if the NCAA deems him eligible.
But there’s no way to get around inexperience. McDuffie, Haynes-Jones and Allen are the only players with meaningful experience and even then, Haynes-Jones and Allen played minor roles last season. So while WSU has a roster full of talent, it is inexperienced talent that doesn’t yet understand the intricacies of winning at a high level.
“They just don’t know what they don’t know,” Marshall said. “There are going to be struggles early for sure, but my goal is to find a way to make this team better each and every day. They’re going to be good sooner or later, it’s just a matter of how quickly that happens.”
A year ago, a summer foot injury robbed McDuffie of his explosion and made him a shell of the player who led WSU in scoring and rebounding as a sophomore. As a result, McDuffie settled for more jump shots and made just 37 percent of them. Meanwhile, Haynes-Jones, who had games of 26 and 31 points in December, lost confidence and was squeezed out of the rotation the last six games of the season.
For WSU to exceed expectations, McDuffie and Haynes-Jones need major bounceback seasons. Both are capable and have reportedly been WSU’s two best players this preseason. If Allen is eligible, he could give WSU another great scorer and Dennis figures to be a star-in-the-making on the wing, where his length and athleticism could make him a two-way force.
At guard, junior college transfer Ricky Torres at the very least will split ball-handling duties at point guard with Haynes-Jones, but the two figure to share the court at times too. Freshman Jamarius Burton brings an intensity and physicality Marshall loves, while classmates Chance Moore (instant offense off the bench) and Erik Stevenson (knockdown shooter) will also be factors.
When WSU decides to play big, it figures to be a steady rotation of freshman Morris Udeze and Isaiah Poor Bear-Chandler along with junior college transfer Jaime Echenique and sophomore Asbjorn Midtgaard. Udeze is the fiercest rebounder, Poor Bear-Chandler is the most skilled offensively, Echenique offers size (6-11) with mobility and Midtgaard has a year in the system. Rod Brown, who redshirted last year, should also help with defense and rebounding.
How will so many new players mesh together? How will Marshall dole out playing time with 12 (maybe 13) viable options? How is a team so young supposed to uphold Marshall’s ridiculously high standard of winning at WSU?
It will take time for all of those answers and that’s what fans should give this team: time.
“Coming in, these new guys don’t really fully understand the way that we play,” McDuffie said. “They can watch it on TV, but it’s entirely different when you have to actually go out and do it. That’s what we’re trying to show these guys. They’ve already learned so much, but there’s still more learning to be done.”
WSU may not win 25 games, which it has done the last nine seasons, and it may not get back to the NCAA Tournament, which it has done the last seven seasons, but Marshall has set up the program to win big in the future.
Just give it time.
This story was originally published October 28, 2018 at 5:30 AM.