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Looking Ahead: Gonzaga Bulldogs Potential Starting Lineups

By Mitch Krmpotich

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Fall is quickly approaching and that means that college basketball is right around the corner.  In Spokane, the start of basketball season is the start of a new year and a new opportunity to make history.  There are a lot of changes to this year’s Gonzaga Bulldogs.  I’ve been thinking a lot about potential lineups for the Zags all summer.  Let’s look at some of the options that the Zags have.

First of all, there is a ton of talent on this year’s team.  The loss of Kevin Pangos, Gary Bell Jr., and Byron Wesley is difficult, but the new look Zags will have more athleticism than last season.  Last year, Gonzaga had an experienced, sharpshooting backcourt.  This year the backcourt will be looking to attack the rim more and take fewer outside shots.

PG – Josh Perkins
SG – Silas Melson
SF – Kyle Dranginis
PF – Kyle Wiltjer
C – Przemek Karnowski

I think this is a realistic lineup.  Last year Perkins was looking strong, but his season was cut short due to a jaw injury.  He was able to take a medical redshirt and I believe that he will come back stronger than before.  He is a talented point guard with the knack for scoring.  Melson was able to get a fair amount of playing time last season despite being a freshman on a team loaded with talent.  I was most impressed by his explosiveness.

Dranginis is one of those guys who just plain works hard.  He doesn’t always have amazing stats, but he hustles, plays defense and fights hard for 50/50 balls.  I believe that Mark Few trusts Dranginis to get his job done on the court.  Kyle Wiltjer is one of the best players in all of NCAA basketball.  Not starting him would be a crime.  Karnowski had his best season of his college career last season.  He has greatly improved his footwork, hands, defense, and scoring ability.  I can’t wait to see what he can do this season.

PG – Eric McClellan
SG – Josh Perkins
SF – Kyle Wiltjer
PF – Domantas Sabonis
C – Przemek Karnowski

This is a gigantic lineup.  No one in the WCC could defend a Gonzaga team with Wiltjer, Sabonis, and Karnowski all on the floor at the same time.  McClellan is a good distributor at the point.  Perkins is also a good passer and he has a pretty nice three point shot.  Teams would have to focus on the post players so much with this lineup and that would open up outside shots for the guards.  This is my unrealistic dream lineup.  It would be a lot of fun on offense, but probably a little unsettling on defense.  I’m not quite sure how it would work for 6′ 10″ Kyle Wiltjer to guard small forwards around the nation.  Sabonis also makes an incredible 6th man because he is so talented and most teams do not have players on their second units that can defend him.

PG – Josh Perkins
SG – Eric McClellan
SF – Kyle Dranginis
PF – Kyle Wiltjer
C – Przemek Karnowski

I’m not quite sure what the Gonzaga backcourt is going to look like.  McClellan played well last season as a backup point guard to Kevin Pangos, but I believe that he is good enough to start.  I’m not sure if Perkins would start at the point or the two guard spot.  I think Perkins is a bit more versatile than McClellan, but I also think that Perkins is Gonzaga’s point guard of the future.  Mark Few and company have some tough decisions to make with this backcourt.  This is definitely a good problem to have though.

PG – Eric McClellan
SG – Josh Perkins
SF – Silas Melson
PF – Kyle Wiltjer
C – Domantas Sabonis

To contrast my gigantic lineup, this is one of the smaller lineups that the Bulldogs could use.  I don’t see this lineup being realistic, but after watching the Golden State Warriors use the small ball game so successfully I thought I’d give this lineup a shot.  This would be a quick lineup that would probably score a lot of fast break points, but I see a lot of problems on the defensive end.  With this smaller lineup we might see that 2-3 zone that Mark Few uses so often.

It’s fun to try to predict what the lineups will look like, but I think that my first and third lineups are the most realistic.  One thing I know for sure is that Gonzaga has a lot of good options this season.

Next: Michigan St. Close to Landing Monster Recruiting Class

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