Butler Basketball: Setting 2020 offseason priorities for the Dawgs

VILLANOVA, PA - JANUARY 21: Bryce Golden #33, Aaron Thompson #2, Bryce Nze #10, and Jordan Tucker #1 of the Butler Bulldogs huddle against the Villanova Wildcats at Finneran Pavilion on January 21, 2020 in Villanova, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) /

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INDIANAPOLIS, IN – DECEMBER 07: Coach Jordan of the Bulldogs talks (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

Butler basketball is losing a few key pieces this offseason, including star player Kamar Baldwin. What should the Dawgs prioritize heading into 2020-21?

Butler basketball is fresh off one of its best regular-seasons in recent memory. Behind a steady offense and a resurgence on the defensive end, the Dawgs shattered just about every preseason expectation en route to finishing the year with a 22-9 (10-8 BE) record. Butler was widely projected to earn a Top 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament before its cancelation and could have been poised for a deep run. Alas, the season was cut short amidst concerns regarding the spread of the coronavirus and the Dawgs were never able to realize their postseason destiny.

Now a month into the offseason, Butler is once again facing many questions. Most notably, head coach LaVall Jordan is going to have to juggle tremendous roster turnover heading into his fourth year at the helm. The Dawgs are graduating four key pieces this offseason, including an all-time program great in Baldwin. This roster turnover was then amplified by the departures of Khalif Battle (transfer) and Jordan Tucker (NBA Draft, although he could still return).

Thankfully, Butler will be returning three upperclassmen starters with Aaron Thompson, Bryce Nze, and Bryce Golden. This gives the team a relatively high floor, particularly on the defensive end. The issue is that the rest of the roster is extremely unproven and will feature five incoming first-year players. While these freshmen make up arguably Butler’s best-ever recruiting class (on paper), it is impossible to determine how impactful they could be right away.

Considering the Dawgs have at least one open scholarship remaining for this coming season, the 2020-21 roster is not yet set. There is still time to add an impactful transfer to the wing and that could greatly change the outlook for the campaign. That is only one of the major priorities facing the staff for the next few months, though. Let’s dive into the rest.