A-10 Basketball: Way-Too-Early 2019-2020 Power Rankings

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MARCH 13: Maceo Jack #14 of the George Washington Colonials handles the ball against Carl Pierre #12 of the Massachusetts Minutemen in the second half during the first round of the 2019 Atlantic 10 men's basketball tournament at Barclays Center on March 13, 2019 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Mike Lawrie/Getty Images) /

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Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images /

9. Saint Louis Billikens (Tier-3)

This placement might seem low considering that the Billikens are coming off of an A10 Championship, but the team that will take the floor in November will look nothing like the one that we saw in March. Although Hasahn French and Jordan Goodwin will remain, Tramaine Isabell, D.J. Foreman, and Javon Bess will be all be moving on to pursue professional careers. All three were crucial to the identity of the team (especially Bess) and Goodwin and French will have big shoes to fill in their absence.

Coach Ford will still have talent to work with outside of the two aforementioned returnees; former Duquesne point guard Mike Lewis II should make up for the loss of Isabell, and the incoming Freshman class is good for third best in the conference (on 247Sports), but depth and a lack of leadership/experience will be obstacles to overcome.

The ceiling is still relatively high for SLU if they can put all the new pieces together and establish an identity, but it will likely take time, and a tough conference won’t be conducive to that process. The bottom line: Don’t look for the Billikens to repeat as champions – the top is just too strong and they’ve lost too much, but do look for them to remain a fun, competitive team that will keep it close every night and make a respectable push in Brooklyn.

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