Gonzaga Basketball: Bulldogs frontcourt depth suffers slightly without Jacob Larsen
Gonzaga Basketball figured to have one of the best overall frontcourts in the country this season. That depth took a hit with Jacob Larsen departing the team.
The Gonzaga Bulldogs have arguably the highest preseason expectations that the program has ever experienced. They’re a consensus preseason top-5 team and have multiple potential first-rounders on the roster.
Where Gonzaga really shines in throughout the frontcourt. With five talented players (Rui Hachimura, Killian Tillie, Brandon Clarke, Jacob Larsen, and Filip Petrusev) taking up the lion’s share of the minutes. Unfortunately for fans of the Bulldogs, one name has been excluded from the group at this point and time.
Jacob Larsen might be the least recognized name out of the group of forwards but he was supposed to play a somewhat vital role on the team.
Jacob Larsen is no longer on the Gonzaga men's basketball team. Larsen, a 6-11 center who saw limited minutes as a redshirt freshman last season. Coach Few expected to address Larsen's departure after today's Kraziness in Kennel scrimmage.
— Jim Meehan (@SRJimm) October 6, 2018
At 6’11 and over 230 pounds, the Denmark product was a true post scorer who could play with his back to the basket. In limited minutes, Larsen showed a soft touch on offense while showing an ability to defend the post on defense.
One problem Larsen has dealt with before playing his freshman season was the two knee surgeries that slowed down his progress. He was supposed to be a change of pace for opponents off the bench for Gonzaga, different from the uber-athletic Clarke and Hachimura, as well as the floor-spacing Tillie and Petrusev.
Had he played, Larsen would’ve played his minutes at the five-spot (center position). Now, the shot-blocking Clarke and top-60 freshman Petrusev will split those minutes instead. These four will split the 80 available minutes.
Next. Top 25 frontcourts for 2018-19. dark
The Bulldogs will still have size with a pair of 6’10 forwards to use but now the 2019 class becomes even more important in terms of finding another big man. Tillie and Hachimura could easily leave after this upcoming season, leaving gaping holes in the frontcourt. Let’s see who Mark Few and the coaching staff recruits hard to fill Larsen’s scholarship, assuming he’s off the team for good.