NCAA Basketball: 25 biggest offseason winners heading into 2021-22 season
478. . . . Red Storm . 11. team
A lot when on for St. John’s this offseason but none of that mattered unless a key decision was made regarding its star player.
Julian Champagnie was one of the best players in the Big East last season, leading the Red Storm with 19.8 ppg and 7.4 rpg. But he had a major decision to make regarding the NBA Draft and with his twin brother Justin Champagnie of Pittsburgh opting to leave, it looked as if he was going to depart as well.
Instead, the star forward came back, making St. John’s an instant NCAA Tournament contender. And he joins a completely revamped roster, with six new transfers. I would argue that this bunch of newcomers is better than the outgoing transfers that left the team, making this an overall win in terms of roster construction.
Key newcomer guards Montez Mathis, Stef Smith and Tareq Coburn joins Posh Alexander and Dylan Addae-Wusu to create a quality backcourt for the team. And Fordham center Joel Soriano and former Purdue forward Aaron Wheeler gives the team more size and athleticism compared to what they had last season.
St. John’s is even winning on the recruiting trail, adding Kolby King and four-star commit AJ Storr for the 2022 class. They’re looking to build off of one more year of Champagnie and if they can, the Red Storm will be a factor in the Big East for this season and more to come.