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Wichita State basketball: Injuries to star players a concern

By Tristan Freeman

ST. LOUIS, MO - MARCH 4: Head coach Gregg Marshall of the Wichita State Shockers directs his team against the Missouri State Bears during the Missouri Valley Conference Basketball Tournament Semifinals at the Scottrade Center on March 4, 2017 in St. Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)
ST. LOUIS, MO - MARCH 4: Head coach Gregg Marshall of the Wichita State Shockers directs his team against the Missouri State Bears during the Missouri Valley Conference Basketball Tournament Semifinals at the Scottrade Center on March 4, 2017 in St. Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images) /
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Wichita State has a top ten caliber team. But injuries to a couple of star players has dampened the Shockers’ aspirations.

Head coach Greg Marshall is going to have to make some early adjustments for his team to start the season. One of their top players, Markis McDuffie, will be out 3-4 months with a stress fracture in his left foot.

The good news for the team is that, while he will miss most of the non-conference portion of the schedule, it won’t require surgery, which would end his season. McDuffie is vital to his team’s success, with his 11.5 ppg and 5.7 rpg both leading the team last season. The hope will be for him to return by mid to late December, just before the start of ACC play.

He’s not the first Shocker hurt this off-season, as arguably the best overall player on the team Landry Shamet is still recovering from his surgery on his right foot. This isn’t the first time the point guard has dealt with this type of issue, as he only played three days before going down with an injury to his other foot, causing him to miss the rest of the season and redshirting there after.

The surgery happened in July, so his timetable to return should be in the middle to late December. While he won’t miss many games, the missed practices and time it takes to rehab will cause him to be slow off the gate. The good news is the chemistry shouldn’t be affected considering that everyone is coming back from last season.

However, these injuries will still have an impact on both their regular season and post season. There are several good teams that the Shockers will play in the non-conference, including Baylor, Oklahoma, and potentially Notre Dame. While the NCAA will consider these injuries when determining bids and seeding, losing most of these games will hurt them down the road.

Next: Wichita State 2017-18 preview

And while the American Athletic Conference is superior to the Missouri Valley, it’s not chock full of bids. Considering how this is the Shockers’ first season in a new league, issues like this are unwelcome. This could still be a special season for the Shockers, and, when healthy, they can compete with the best of them.