MWC Basketball: Top 5 returning players for the 2017-2018 season

With most returning rosters decided, it is a good time to rank the best-returning players in the Mountain West for the 2017-2018 season.

As the number of players leaving programs due to transfer or professional opportunities continues to climb, fans have can often focus on the talent being lost. The Mountain West is no different, having a handful of talented players leave for various reasons.

Elijah Brown turned heads when he decided to transfer from New Mexico, ultimately landing with the Oregon Ducks. Cam Oliver, the star Nevada forward, has joined others from around the country who left school to play professionally.

In the Mountain West, a talented senior class has also graduated, leaving opportunities for new stars to emerge. With players like Gian Clavell, Marcus Marshall, and Jalen Moore all graduated, new players will have to step up and lead their teams both on and off the court.

The usual reaction for fans of programs losing talent is to focus on recruits and transfers. Programs like UNLV have a lot of young freshman for their fans to get excited about. Other teams, like the Nevada Wolf Pack, have reloaded with a few top transfers.

With the spotlight on departures and arrivals, those who remain with their programs are often an afterthought. This goes for the Mountain West as well, which returns its share of great players for the 2017-2018 season.

When determining the best returning players, only players that played significant minutes during conference play were considered. The player must also be a lock to play in this upcoming season. These stipulations left talented players such as Nevada’s Elijah Foster, who was suspended for legal issues, out of contention.

The players on this list are those that impressed us last season and should continue to improve going into this season.

So who made the list for top returning players in the Mountain West?