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Butler Basketball: Graduate transfer Derrik Smits commits to the Bulldogs

By Lukas Harkins

PHILADELPHIA, PA - MARCH 02: Head coach LaVall Jordan of the Butler Bulldogs calls a play against the Villanova Wildcats in the first half at the Wells Fargo Center on March 2, 2019 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Villanova defeated Butler 75-54. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - MARCH 02: Head coach LaVall Jordan of the Butler Bulldogs calls a play against the Villanova Wildcats in the first half at the Wells Fargo Center on March 2, 2019 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Villanova defeated Butler 75-54. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /
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Butler basketball needed to find a grad transfer big this offseason. Derrik Smits, formerly of Valparaiso, is joining the team for next season.

Butler basketball missed the NCAA Tournament this season after four consecutive appearances but the future remains bright. This is due to the fact that the program is returning many of its top players from this past year, including star guard Kamar Baldwin. And while head coach LaVall Jordan, who is entering his third year with the program, has his doubters, he is still a young leader who should continue to develop his skill along with his players. Even though the offseason is still relatively young, Coach Jordan has been active on the recruiting trail and that has resulted in landing Valparaiso graduate transfer Derrik Smits.

On the surface, this might not seem tremendously noteworthy but it is certainly worthy of discussion. This is because Smits’ commitment comes after Joey Brunk’s decision to leave the program as a transfer. With Brunk leaving, as well as Nate Fowler graduating, Butler’s frontcourt was left quite depleted and it was expected that Coach Jordan would seek out a graduate transfer big man. With Smits, he got just that.

https://twitter.com/fstearns2/status/1122598824831328257

One of the better big men in the Missouri Valley last season, Smits started 25 of 32 games for Valparaiso and posted solid numbers on both ends of the floor. While playing just over 20 minutes per contest, the center averaged 12.2 points (59.4% FG), 5.7 rebounds, and 1.0 blocks per game. These numbers might not seem spectacular but he showed glimpses of being a go-to post scorer at times while receiving mixed reviews on the defensive end. With his 7-foot-2 frame, Smits alters many shots around the rim. He also exhibited a block rate (5.1%) that would have been tops in Butler’s main rotation last season – and by a very considerable margin, I might add (Fowler led the main rotation players at 1.4%). He did, though, commit plenty of fouls.

And while Smits might not have been the best graduate transfer big man on the market, he fills a major need for the program next season. The Dawgs were desperately in need of a true big man to hold down minutes at the center spot and Smits should be able to do so for at least 15-20 minutes per game. He will join Milwaukee transfer Bryce Nze and rising sophomore Bryce Golden as players who will likely see minutes at the “5” next season. (Many expect that incoming freshman John-Michael Mulloy will be a redshirt candidate.)

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Additionally, Smits fills the only major need heading into next season. The rest of the rotation seems relatively set and therefore the program can look ahead to the future. With Jerald Gillens-Butler also transferring out this offseason, Butler has one more open scholarship for next season and that could be used on a sit-out transfer. Among others, the Dawgs have been linked to RJ Cole (Howard) and Adam Flagler (Presbyterian). Both of these players have proven to be strong contributors at the mid-major level and can absolutely let it fly from beyond the arc.

With Kamar Baldwin and Henry Baddley graduating after this coming season, many expect that the program is heavily targeting guards for the future. These two sit-out transfers represent viable options but they are also active on the recruiting trail. Coach Jordan and Co. seem eager to land a top-rated guard in the 2020 class and that could come in form of someone like Chuck Harris or Tyler Beard.

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With all of this said, you can expect that Coach Jordan will remain very active on the recruiting trail over the next few months. With at least one scholarship still left to work with for 2019-20, the expectation should be that he lands a guard. Whether that comes via the sit-out transfer market or the 2019 recruiting class…remains to be seen. On the whole, Smits might not be the most exciting land in the history of the program but he fills a need and should be able to give a fair number of solid, albeit maybe not spectacular, minutes for the squad in 2019-20.