Kansas State Basketball: Analyzing the Wildcats’ rotation for 2018-19

Small Forward

Minutes Allocated (40 total): Xavier Sneed (32) and Barry Brown (8)

Sneed went from being a productive freshman scorer from off the bench to being a pivotal piece on Kansas State’s Elite Eight run. He produced a team-high 22 points and nine rebounds in the upset win over Kentucky and had 16 in the loss to Final Four bound Loyola-Chicago. His breakout game was the 21-point effort against Vanderbilt in the non-conference, one of four 20+ point games.

Considered one of the best defenders in the Big 12, the 6’5 Sneed uses his length and speed to bother opponents, ranking fourth in the league last season with 59 steals. He’s an all-around great shooter and rebounder who will be the star of the team after the three senior starters graduate. But for next season, Sneed will be part of the “quartet” of Wildcats leading the way.

Brown will get more minutes at the three-spot, bringing his total to around 35 mpg for another season. The main rotation for Kansas State will likely be four guys (Stokes, Diarra, Sneed, and Brown) playing the three perimeter spots. Due to the talent of the four guards who can all play multiple positions, it’s hard to see another guard even having the opportunity to crack the main rotation for competitive games. But for guys like Williams and McGuirl, they should always be ready if an injury occurs.