The Kansas State Wildcats return seven of their top nine scorers but lack the talent to be a real factor in the Big 12.
KANSAS STATE WILDCATS
Last Season: 8th, 5-13 in Big 12, 17-16 overall
Predicted Big 12 Finish: 8th
Projected Depth Chart
C: D.J. Johnson (Sr)/Dante Williams (Fr)
F: Dean Wade (So)/Isaiah Maurice (Fr)/James Love (Fr)
F: Wesley Iwundu (Sr)/Austin Budke (Sr)/Xavier Sneed (Fr)
SG: Barry Brown (So)/Carlbe Ervin (Sr)/Brian Patrick (Fr)
PG: Kamau Stokes (So)/Cartier Diarra (Fr)
Gone: SG-Justin Edwards, C-Stephen Hurt
Strengths:
K-State’s projected starting lineup for this upcoming was not outstanding but still effective in 2015-16. The frontcourt trio of Wesley Iwundu, Dean Wade, and D.J. Johnson combined to average about 30 points and 15 rebounds per game. Kamau Stokes and Barry Brown made significant impacts in their freshman campaigns and will take on even more responsibility this year.
Question Marks:
Justin Edwards led the Wildcats in scoring a year ago and was the closest thing that Bruce Weber had to a go-to option. There is no obvious candidate to become the number one option which raises the question of where does the ball go when K-State needs a bucket. Barry and Kamau should improve but neither is going to light up the scoreboard as the Wildcats must implore a score-by-committee approach.
With four true freshmen and a pair of redshirt freshmen, depth and experience off the bench is also a concern. That was the same case last year but Stokes, Brown, and Wade were able to step into roles right away. Weber needs at least a couple of his new faces to emerge this season as well.
Player to Watch:
Primarily used as a sixth man last season, Brown is probably Kansas State’s most dangerous offensive weapon. He is a high volume shooter who forced things too often as a freshman. A year more mature, Brown needs to make better decisions with his shot selection since every possession will be valuable for a team that could struggle scoring.
X-Factor:
The 6-10 Wade brings good versatility to the frontcourt as he is a protoypical face-up four who can stretch defenses with his outside shooting but also operate down low when he has a size advantage.
Looking Ahead to 2017-18:
Weber has landed a pair of power forwards for his 2017 class but he continues to miss out of landing the type of talent that can turn this Kansas State Wildcats program around. With K-State likely to miss the NCAA Tournament for a third straight year, the school could decide to look to bring in a new head coach next off-season.
Key Non-Conference Games:
11/25 vs. Boston College (in Brooklyn)
12/3 at St. Louis
12/10 vs. Washington State (in Kansas City)
12/17 at Colorado State
1/28 at Tennessee (SEC/Big 12 Challenge)
David Kay is a senior feature NBA Draft, NBA, and college basketball writer for the Sports Bank. He also heads up the NBA and college basketball material at Walter Football.com and is a former contributor at The Washington Times Communities. David has appeared on numerous national radio programs spanning from Cleveland to New Orleans to Milwaukee to Honolulu. He also had the most accurate 2011 NBA Mock Draft and the most accurate 2012 NBA Mock Draft on the internet (Yup, repeat champ… #humblebrag), and finished with the second most accurate 2013 NBA Mock Draft (nearly a three-peat.) You can follow him on Twitter at David_Kmiecik.