Big East Basketball: 2019-20 offseason questions facing each team

Providence: Is the sophomore class ready for a big leap?

Providence struggled throughout last season, but this could be attributed to some of their injury issues. Now that they are expected to be healthy for the 2019-20 campaign, experts have been quick to move the Friars back into the middle-of-the-pack in preseason predictions. Even though they will lose one of their top 3-point threats on a poor perimeter shooting team in Isaiah Jackson, Providence returns plenty of talent. The most important starters will definitely be Alpha Diallo and Nate Watson, but their rising sophomores will be what dictate their potential ceiling as a team.

A.J. Reeves and David Duke are a dangerous duo when they are both healthy and they need to take the next step with their games. Due to the idea that the majority of the talent around them has seemingly already reached close to their ceilings, these two will be what determine exactly how successful the team will be as they still have plenty of room to grow. With Reeves, his 3-point shooting will be essential to success. The Friars were simply much better last season when he was on the court as he greatly improved the team spacing. Reeves led the team in 3-pointers made and was the best shooter by percentage as well.

Duke, on the other hand, is a well-rounded talent and is coming off a solid freshman campaign. He was not the most efficient scorer but still averaged 7.1 points, 2.6 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game. The next step for him will center around gaining more confidence as a scorer and his efficiency should improve in Year 2. With regards to this coming campaign, it is possible that both Reeves and Duke emerge as double-digit scorers per game. If they are able to answer the call and make that happen, the Friars will be tough to beat.