Minnesota Basketball: Breakdown of newcomers for 2020-21 season
By Ben Dickson
Minnesota Basketball newcomer – Brandon Johnson
Grad Transfer (Western Michigan) – Power Forward – 6’8″, 200 lbs
After earning Third Team All-Mid American Conference honors in the 2019-2020 season, Western Michigan PF Brandon Johnson decided to utilize his opportunity to become a graduate transfer. In addition to the loss of Daniel Oturu, Minnesota also lost starting power forward Alihan Demir to graduation. Those two big losses opened up a spot in the starting lineup, and Johnson pounced on the opportunity.
Johnson had a career season for the Broncos last year, averaging 15.4 points and 8.1 rebounds per game. Johnson also is not afraid to pull the trigger from deep, as he shot at a 33.3% clip behind the arc on 66 attempts. His big season was a great sign for him after coming off of a torn meniscus that kept him out of play during the 2018-2019 season.
Johnson will provide immediate help at the 4-spot for the Gophers and looks to have the best season of his career.
Minnesota Basketball newcomer – Liam Robbins
Sit-out Transfer (Drake, Pending Appeal for Immediate Eligibility) – Center – 7’0″, 235 lbs
Liam Robbins was one of the most coveted big men in the transfer portal this past season. Robbins picked up Second Team All-MVC honors in 2019-2020 after averaging 14.1 points and 7.1 rebounds per game at Drake. He was also fifth in the nation in blocks per game, averaging 2.9 per contest. Robbins has two more years of eligibility left, which is part of the reason he became such a big target on the transfer market.
Robbins needs a waiver to become eligible for the Golden Gophers next season, and it is a wild card as to if he may get one. The NCAA has been so back and forth on who gets waivers or not, and they shut down the one-time proposal that would allow all transfers to be eligible right away.
Regardless of if he plays this season or not, Robbins is a huge addition for the Golden Gophers, both literally and figuratively. As his block totals show, he is obviously a rim protector. He also runs the floor well for a man his size. In addition to his monstrous dunks, Robbins also has a one dribble turnaround jumper in his plethora. While he only shot 24 percent on 41 three-point attempts, his game can be near complete if that improves.