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Dayton Basketball: Analyzing Flyers depth chart for 2020-21 season

By Carter Chapley

DAYTON, OH - FEBRUARY 08: Head coach Anthony Grant of the Dayton Flyers is seen during the game against the Saint Louis Billikens at UD Arena on February 8, 2020 in Dayton, Ohio. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
DAYTON, OH - FEBRUARY 08: Head coach Anthony Grant of the Dayton Flyers is seen during the game against the Saint Louis Billikens at UD Arena on February 8, 2020 in Dayton, Ohio. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /
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Dayton Basketball
DAYTON, OH – MARCH 07: Dayton Flyers head coach Anthony Grant looks on along with Obi Toppin #1 and Jalen Crutcher (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

After a magical season, Dayton Basketball will look different without Obi Toppin. Who are the key players for the Flyers in 2020-21?

The 2019-2020 Dayton Basketball team will go down in history as one of the greatest “what-ifs” in college basketball history. Head Coach Anthony Grant’s Flyers went 29-2, were poised to be a #1 seed, and had a legitimate shot at cutting down the nets at the end of the NCAA Tournament. All before the season came to an abrupt stop.

No other program has been impacted quite as much by the Coronavirus pandemic like Dayton. A chance at glory stolen, and their transcendent star (and consensus National Player of the Year) in Obi Toppin gone as he makes the jump to the NBA. The Flyers are left in a wake that will make the next time they take the court a challenge to parse with for Flyer fans.

Is the roster for the 2020-21 season the national world beaters the previous year’s team was? No, they aren’t. But they are extremely competent, with a group of players who will have just as good a chance as any at making a run for the A-10 crown. They won’t have that shot at the #1 seed, but a run to whatever version of the NCAA tournament plays next spring is absolutely in the cards.

As we explore the Flyers depth chart, the team’s most striking facet is how much talent the team returns. With a roster of 12 scholarship athletes (11 of which will be eligible immediately) and only three contributors leaving the program (albeit three of the top four contributors) in Trey Landers, Ryan Mikesell, and Obi Toppin, the Flyers still have a pipeline of contributors who will be looking to take the next step.