A-10 Basketball: 6 talented prospects from 2019 recruiting class

Gregory Hammond (Rhode Island)

One obstacle that Hammond will have to contend with in his Freshman season is the massive amount of depth on Rhody’s roster, but I believe that he ultimately has the talent and versatility needed to carve out a meaningful role. Jeff Dowtin and Cyril Langevine are, and, barring unforeseen injuries, will continue to be Coach Cox’s primary weapons, but the 6’5” 180 lb scorer can be easily inserted into various lineups and given a wide range of defensive assignments.

Because of the Rams’ depth, which is among the best in the conference, I expect Cox to take a game-by-game approach with his rotation, and that may entail some games where Hammond barely touches the court. The bottom line, however, is that he will have his opportunities and I’m confident that he will take advantage of them. By no means will he be a dominant force – the team around him is too good for that to be the case – but don’t act as though you weren’t warned if he overachieves and comes through with a few fantastic performances.

Justin Winston (Saint Bonaventure)

Anyone who was watching the Bonnies in Brooklyn a few months ago is well aware of how talented their rising Sophomore class is. Kyle Lofton played himself into contention for the conference’s best point guard, Osun Osunniyi averaged 2.7 blocks per game on the year, and Dom Welch averaged 12 points per game (on 40% three-point shooting) over the team’s final five contests.

That all being said, there is hardly a wealth of returning talent outside of those three for Coach Schmidt to work with this season, so the incoming Freshmen will be asked to step up and play relatively important roles from the jump. Justin Winston, a 6’7” wing who can handle the ball and has a knack for driving and drawing fouls, should be well-equipped to do just that. Now that former star Forward Courtney Stockard is out of the picture, Schmidt will likely call on Winston to fill that void in the starting lineup alongside Welch on the perimeter.

Should he decide to go small in certain matchups, Schmidt could even insert Winston at the PF spot because of his defensive versatility and ability to post up on offense. The bottom line is that it’s difficult to envision this young Bonnies roster competing for a title with the consensus top teams being as tough as they are, but if Winston and the other Freshman can overachieve to the degree that last year’s rookies did, watch out for them to at least make an exciting run.