Mountain West Basketball: Top 10 returning players for 2021-22 season

Desmond Cambridge, Jr. has been a huge threat for the Wolf Pack thus far. The transfer from Brown picked up right where he left off before his redshirt year: Cambridge, Jr. averaged 16 points and 4 rebounds in 26 games, earning Mountain West All-Conference Third Team honors – Though, I’d say that’s quite an underrating of his play and impressive 2021 showing.

Teammate Grant Sherfield might be the name most-circled on opponents’ stat sheets when facing Nevada, but Cambridge is just as important to the success of the Wolf Pack’s offense and overall presence. The star duo is an undeniable reason why Nevada is primed for a season that should see the Wolf Pack contending for their fourth Mountain West regular-season title in six years.

It’s entirely possible that Cambridge could see a slight decrease in ball-handling productivity due to Nevada’s influx of talented transfers, but his role on this Wolf Pack team is no less vital to Nevada’s high season aspirations.

Justin Bean is among the most well-known Mountain West basketball names over the last couple of years. His performance has been a big reason for Utah State’s recent success, and his withdrawal from the NBA Draft marks a tremendous return to the Aggies.

Star player Neemias Queta decided to remain in the Draft, and head coach Craig Smith left for the head coaching position at Utah, taking a couple of the Aggies’ best players with him. This all means that Justin Bean will have an even more important role in the Aggies’ rotation for the approaching season. This is a position Bean has become somewhat familiar with over the last few years, as Queta has had his share of injury struggles, and in Queta’s absence – it was often Justin Bean who stepped into the spotlight, willing Utah State to competitiveness.

Bean has earned Mountain West All-Conference honors previously, making the Second Team in 2021, after a Third Team showing in 2020. He averaged over 11 points a game in each of the last two seasons, and despite the head coaching change and roster overhaul, I would look for him to build on his performance next season.

San José State has had its share of talented players over the years; However, the Spartans’ biggest challenge lies in retaining those players. They rarely are able to do so and are seemingly caught in an eternal rebuild. At least, that was the case until a tiny bit of hope came along this off-season. That hope can be found in the hire of veteran coach Tim Miles. Along with the impressive hire, hope exists in that Richard Washington recently withdrew his name from the NBA Draft, choosing to exercise his extra year of eligibility and return to San José State.

Despite the Spartans’ struggles, Washington had an incredible 2021 campaign: He averaged over 19 points and 5 rebounds per game, leading the conference in player scoring averages per game. Building on that performance will be challenging, especially with Tim Miles bringing in more talent to build his team around – But someone of Washington’s play-making caliber can only help this Spartans squad while proving troublesome for the rest of the league.