Busting Brackets
Fansided

Nevada Basketball: 2019-20 season preview for Wolf Pack

By Jacob Shames

RENO, NEVADA - NOVEMBER 19: Jalen Harris #1 of the Nevada Wolf Pack comes off the court during the game against the California Baptist Lancers at Lawlor Events Center on November 19, 2018 in Reno, Nevada. (Photo by Jonathan Devich/Getty Images)
RENO, NEVADA - NOVEMBER 19: Jalen Harris #1 of the Nevada Wolf Pack comes off the court during the game against the California Baptist Lancers at Lawlor Events Center on November 19, 2018 in Reno, Nevada. (Photo by Jonathan Devich/Getty Images) /
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LAS VEGAS, NV – MARCH 11: Lindsey Drew #14 of the Nevada Wolf Pack passes the ball during the first half of the championship game against the Colorado State Rams in the Mountain West Conference basketball tournament at the Thomas & Mack Center on March 11, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Nevada won 79-71. (Photo by David Becker/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NV – MARCH 11: Lindsey Drew #14 of the Nevada Wolf Pack passes the ball during the first half of the championship game against the Colorado State Rams in the Mountain West Conference basketball tournament at the Thomas & Mack Center on March 11, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Nevada won 79-71. (Photo by David Becker/Getty Images) /

Projected Starters

G Lindsey Drew (6’4, Sr., 8.1 ppg, 4.3 apg, 4.1 rpg in 2017-18) — Predicting Nevada’s starting lineup this season is close to an impossible task, and it’s almost certain that multiple players listed here will be coming off the bench, or even sitting on it, when the season begins. Drew won’t be one of them. He missed all of 2018-19 after hip surgery, which came while he was still rehabbing from a torn Achilles suffered the year before. Perhaps Drew, a defensive stopper and floor general, was the piece the Pack missed last year. The son of former NBA coach Larry Drew, he’ll be one of Nevada’s most important players in a time of extreme transition.

G Jazz Johnson (5’10, Sr., 11.0 ppg, 1.5 apg, 45.2 3pt%) — The lone contributor to return from last season, Johnson was overshadowed by many of his teammates but posted a whopping 129.1 offensive rating in 28.6 minutes per game, ranking as one of the nation’s most efficient players. Now, he’ll look to make the transition from lethal spot-up threat to ball-dominant lead guard and facilitator in Alford’s scheme. He has experience in that role, though — in his sophomore season at Portland he averaged 15.8 points on 12 shots per game.

G Jalen Harris (6’5, Rs. Jr., 15.3 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 44.4 3pt% in 2017-18) — Musselman built his Nevada program on transfers — the Pack’s top six scorers last season started out at other programs. Harris is a remnant of that, having played his first two years at Louisiana Tech, where he was in the midst of a breakout sophomore season before deciding to transfer. Long, attack-minded and versatile, he has a chance to be Nevada’s leading scorer.

F Robby Robinson (6’8, So., 15.3 ppg, 10.0 rpg, 39.4 3pt%) — Robinson, a transfer from San Diego City College, is an athletic forward who can go between the wing and inside, which should make him a perfect fit for Alford’s four-out attack. He’s also an important piece as simply a big body, which is why he’s penciled among the strangers.

F Johncarlos Reyes (6’10, Rs. Sr, 1.9 ppg, 1.0 rpg, 61.9 fg%) — Reyes didn’t play much in his four years at Boston College, but he’s listed here because he brings two things the Pack desperately need: experience and size. While he won’t show up much on the stat sheet, his presence manning the middle will be essential.