The West Virginia basketball roster has taken shape for next season following a wave of departures and additions. So WVSports.com takes a look at what the roster will look like and which players fit in where heading into next season.
Departing Players from 2023-24: Center Jesse Edwards (Graduated), Guard RaeQuan Battle (Graduated), Point Guard Kerr Kriisa (Kentucky), Forward Akok Akok (Graduated), Forward Quinn Slazinski (Graduated), Guard Noah Farrakhan (Hampton), Forward Patrick Suemnick (Oklahoma State), Guard Kobe Johnson (St. Louis), Forward Josiah Harris (Akron), Guard Seth Wilson (Akron) and Guard Jeremiah Bembry (Transferred)
Incoming Players for 2023-24: Forward Tucker DeVries (Drake), Guard Javon Small (Oklahoma State), Forward Toby Okani (UIC), Guard Jayden Stone (Detroit Mercy), Center Eduardo Andre (Fresno State), Forward Amani Hansberry (Illinois), Guard Sencire Harris (Illinois), Guard Joseph Yesufu (Washington State), Guard Jonathan Powell (High School), Point Guard KJ Tenner (High School)
--In the the first year under new head coach Darian DeVries this is almost a complete rebuild with only one player in Ofri Naveh returning from last season. And with that the Mountaineers return just 3.7-percent of the total scoring and 1.4-percent of the rebounds from the output a season ago.
--All four of the players that averaged scoring in double figures are now gone with guard RaeQuan Battle (16.1 points), center Jesse Edwards (15.0 points), forward Quinn Slazinski (12.3 points) and point guard Kerr Kriisa (11.0 points) all departing.
--The only returning player is sophomore Ofri Naveh. The Israel product averaged 2.6 points and 2.5 rebounds but was limited to just 13.8 minutes per contest. Still, he understands the game and should be able to help as an athletic forward.
--The good news is while West Virginia is dealing with a lot of turnover on the roster, the coaches effectively used the transfer portal to find proven options to fill holes on the roster. And while there was a lot of turnover, the roster could end up coming out as a net positive considering that overall experience.
--One of the centerpieces to the roster will be forward Tucker DeVries, the reigning two-time Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year during his time at Drake. DeVries, the son of Darian, understands the system and has been highly productive averaging 21.6 points, 6.7 rebounds and 3.6 assists for the Bulldogs this past season. He also was named the MVC Player of the Year the previous season where he averaged 18.6 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game. He is going to be a key piece.
--Another critical piece to the build was another Missouri Valley Conference transfer in UIC wing Toby Okani. The Mountaineers prioritized him when he went into the transfer portal and he is coming off a year where he averaged he averaged 11.1 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game for the Flames while shooting 39-percent from the floor and 32-percent from three. Okani is a versatile piece on both ends of the floor and is highly athletic which can allow him to fit into several different spots. His versatility on defense with his ability to defend the one through the five along with his rebounding make him a critical piece to the overall roster build.
--West Virginia lost their entire point guard room from a year ago, but the Mountaineers were able to add Oklahoma State transfer Javon Small to the roster. Small already had proven himself in the Big 12 last season where he averaged 15.1 points, 4.7 rebounds and 4.1 assists while shooting 44-percent from the field and 37-percent from three. He is a high level option that also has the flexibility to play off-the ball.
--The Mountaineers also have some flexibility at the point guard spot behind Small with Joseph Yesufu who spent his first two years with DeVries at Drake before transferring to Kansas and then Washington State. During his sophomore season he was named the Missouri Valley Conference Sixth Man of the Year after averaging 12.8 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game and understands the systems. Freshman KJ Tenner is the next piece there and while a true freshman was highly productive this past season averaging 21.2 points, 4.3 assists, 3.3 rebounds and 2.5 steals per game in route to winning Mr. Basketball in Division 4A in Tennessee. He could be counted on to provide some minutes there in order to spell the first two options.
--At the two guard West Virginia was able to add Detroit Mercy guard Jayden Stone who is coming off a season where he averaged 20.8 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.7 assists while shooting 42-percent from the floor and 31-percent from three. He was asked to do more for his team this past season he will be in a more secondary role with the Mountaineers where he has already shown the ability to excel shooting 52-percent from three. He is going to be surrounded by better players which will open his skill set.
--The final two guards on the roster are Illinois transfer Sencire Harris and freshman Jonathan Powell. Harris was a top 100 recruit in the class of 2022 and redshirted this past season for the Illini to get stronger. Still, he has the ability to get the ball into the paint and is one of the best on the ball defenders on the roster which should get him on the floor for the Mountaineers. Powell could see time as well and at 6-foot-6 he has the strength and frame to be a effective piece. The first-team all-Ohio selection averaged 19.1 points per game last season and was the second leading scorer in the Greater Western Ohio Conference and his shooting could get him on the floor.
--The front court is the most limited spot on the roster right now with Eduardo Andre and Amani Hansberry taking up those roles. Andre is more of a traditional big that at 6-foot-11 can run the floor and rim protect, while scoring with his back to the basket. He averaged 7.3 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.0 block per game. As for Hansberry, he is a highly skilled big that was a former top 100 player that saw limited time during his lone season with the Illini due to their experience in the front court. However, he has impressed with his overall ability to date and has developed into a stretch five option for the Mountaineers that will fit into what the coaches want to do in a five-out.
--Still, even with those pieces in place it is clear that West Virginia would like to add even more size to the mix in order to round out the roster. But if that can't occur, this is the type of roster that could have success given the length and versatility across the board.
--My projected starting five: Small, Stone, Okani, DeVries and Hansberry.
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