Buzz is at an all-time high for Nevada Wolf Pack basketball, and for good reason. Eric Musselman loses returns his primary core while injecting a myriad of new talent into this team. Coming off a 29-8 record and a second-weekend appearance at the NCAA Tournament, Nevada will be keen to continue their growth.
The Wolf Pack have improved in each year under Eric Musselman. After missing the NCAA Tournament in year one, he led them to the big dance for a first-round exit in the following year. To grow from there, Musselman guided this team to a Sweet 16 appearance last March. This season, sights will be firmly set on a trip to the Final Four.
Key Returners
- Caleb Martin
- Jordan Caroline
- Cody Martin
- Lindsey Drew
Nevada brings back its top three scorers, including four of its top five from last season. Everything starts with Caleb Martin. Martin, who will be preseason All-America and a National Player of the Year favorite, is a versatile wing who averaged 19 PPG last year. His ability to score at will and impact both sides of the ball will help carry this Wolf Pack squad. Cody Martin, Caleb’s twin brother and reigning MWC Defensive Player of the Year, will be tasked with providing elite two-way impact. He can guard the opposing team’s best player in any game, using his length to disrupt matters at all five positions.
Big man Jordan Caroline is the other returning senior to complete this big 3. Caroline averaged 18 PPG and nearly 9 RPG last year. The two-time All-MWC player will be freed up to display even more versatility this season with the addition of a true center. Lastly, senior guard Lindsay Drew returns from an Achilles injury to help lead this team to the promised land. While Drew may not be available immediately, his experience and role as lead facilitator will be vital upon his return.
Key Losses
- Kendall Stephens
- Josh Hall
The biggest loss for Nevada will prove to be sharpshooter Kendall Stephens. Stephens shot 43% from deep and broke Jimmer Fredette’s 3-point record in the MWC. Making up that shooting will be a crucial point of focus for the Wolf Pack. While their guards can score with anyone, recreating the spacing offered by a guy like Stephens will be hard to do. Losing wing Josh Hall to transfer will impact the experience on their bench.
Key Newcomers
- Jordan Brown
- Jazz Johnson
- Tre’Shawn Thurman
- Nisre Zouzoua
- Corey Henson
- Trey Porter
The Musselman transfer machine keeps rolling. Nevada adds five impact transfers as well as a five-star freshman. Brown, the freshman, is a 6-foot-10 big man who can score with fluidity as well as bang inside for rebounds. A true blue chip recruit, his commitment serves as a microcosm of the momentum that is being built around this program. Johnson is a small point guard who can score in bunches. While he may play the least of this group, Johnson is a 40% 3-point shooter at 5-foot-10. Thurman is a 6-foot-7 combo forward with a similar skill-set to that of Jordan Caroline. He averaged about 13 PPG and 7 RPG at Omaha last year and should be inserted into the rotation with immediate impact.
Zouzoua will likely be best served as the prime bucket-getter off the bench. The 6-foot-2 combo guard averaged over 20 PPG at Bryant last season and can score at all three levels. Henson is another combo guard, standing at 6-foot-3, and averaged nearly 15 PPG at Wagner last season. He has a polished skill-set and should get ample opportunity to contribute right away. Lastly, Trey Porter enters the fray as a graduate transfer. At 6-foot-10, Porter is an athletic big who averaged 13 PPG and grabbed over 6 RPG. He will serve to help their depth in the frontcourt when rolling out more versatile lineups.
Projected Starting Five
- Cody Martin
- Corey Henson
- Caleb Martin
- Jordan Caroline
- Jordan Brown
This lineup takes Lindsey Drew’s injury into account. Without knowing when he will return, Eric Musselman may opt to line up like this. Cody Martin assumed point guard responsibilities after Drew’s injury last season.
Season Outlook
The Nevada Wolf Pack enter the season as one of the national favorites. With so many returning stars and an injection of big talent, expectations will be at an all-time high in Reno.
After finishing 18th in points per game last year, Eric Musselman’s squad will only look to improve. Using a similar positionless style of basketball that they did last season, the Wolf Pack should have no trouble playing versatile defense. There will be lineups that can switch all positions 1-5 while most of their units will have 1-4 position switching ability. This makes them a nightmare for opposing offenses. Typically at the college level, few teams have this type of switching ability and very few offenses have the capability to deal with it.
Offensively, the Wolf Pack will again use its versatility to its advantage. Virtually every player on the roster can play multiple positions, offering a slew of different lineups that Eric Musselman can experiment with. With three double-digit scorers returning, two of which averaged over 15 PPG, expect this squad to end up in the top 15 in the country in points per game. After finishing 18th last season, an improvement can only be expected.
Record Prediction: 27-4 (16-2)
Despite playing in a weaker conference such as the Mountain West, Nevada is not testing itself in non-conference play like some other mid-majors do. The only notable teams they have scheduled there are Loyola-Chicago, USC, Arizona State, and Utah. None of which are expected to be powerhouses this season. Due to that, it seems reasonable to expect that the Wolf Pack walk away with just one or two losses. While they are more talented than every team they’ll face, the myriad of new pieces will take some time to gel.
In Mountain West Conference play, it is more of the same for Nevada. Without any true competitor, the Wolf Pack look poised to run through the conference. The best competition would seem to come from San Diego State, New Mexico, and Boise State. However, the talent level on these teams pales in comparison to what Eric Musselman has. We can assume that they have to slip up at some point or another in league play.
Betting on a team to go undefeated is typically a losing bet, but Nevada will undoubtedly have more talent than every opponent they go up against.
