In losing their top two scorers from a year ago, the Nebraska basketball program figures to once again struggle in the Big Ten.
NEBRASKA CORNHUSKERS
Last Season: 11th, 6-12 in Big 10, 16-18 overall
Predicted Big 10 Finish: 13th
Projected Depth Chart
F/C: Michael Jacobson (So)/Jordy Tshimanga (Fr)
F: Ed Morrow (So)/Jack McVeigh (So)/Isaiah Roby (Fr)/Jeriah Horne (Fr)
SG: Tai Webster (So)/Nick Fuller (Jr)
SG: Anton Gill (Jr)/Evan Taylor (Jr)
PG: Glynn Watson (So)
Gone: SF-Shavon Shields, PG-Benny Parker, SF-Andrew White (transfer-Syracuse), C-Jake Hammond (transfer-Central Oklahoma), G-Bakari Evelyn (transfer-Valparaiso)
Strengths:
With Shavon Shields graduating and Andrew White choosing to transfer, Nebraska loses nearly half of their offensive output. Still, the Huskers do return starting guards Tai Webster and Glynn Watson, and welcome in Louisville transfer Anton Gill so they still have a solid collection of guards.
Question Marks:
Nebraska basketball lacked any sort of real interior presence last season and that figures to be the case again this year. Michael Jacobson and Jack McVeigh were role players are freshmen and are likely to start at the four and five this year. Minutes are up for grabs with Ed Morrow and a trio of freshmen. As a whole, don’t expect a lot of production from this group.
Player to Watch:
Coming out of high school, Gill was a top 50 recruit but failed to make much of an impact during his two years at Louisville. Tim Miles has had success with transfers since arriving in Lincoln and Gill should be a huge part of the Huskers’ offensive attack.
X-Factor:
If there one player really capable of breaking out in the frontcourt, it’s Morrow. He battled injury throughout much of his freshman campaign and brings some athleticism and toughness inside. Assuming he is healthy, Morrow should be Nebraska’s top frontcourt option.
Looking Ahead to 2017-18:
With no seniors on the roster, 2017-18 should show more promise than this upcoming season. Miles landed a transfer this summer in Miami FL shooting guard, James Palmer Jr. who should add some punch to the lineup. Nebraska has a pair of commits for the 2017 class in shooting guard Aguek Arop and small forward Nana Akenten.
Key Non-Conference Games:
11/24 vs. Dayton (Wooden Legacy)
11/25 vs. UCLA/Portland (Wooden Legacy)
11/24 vs. Texas A&M/CS-Northridge/Virginia Tech/New Mexico (Wooden Legacy)
11/30 at Clemson
12/7 vs. Creighton
12/10 at Kansas
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.
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