Atlantic 10 Basketball: Top 30 players midway through 2021-22 season

The calendar has turned to February and we have reached the midpoint of conference play, as six teams have now played exactly half of their conference schedule.  For the fourth time in five years (exception being Obi Toppin in 2020), there is no clear favorite for Player of the Year and the entire race for First Team All-Conference has more candidates than normal.

The last two years have featured a transcendent, NBA-bound star at the top (Toppin and Bones Hyland) but lacked the fantastic depth of stars that this year has. In fact, 13 of the 14 teams have a bona fide Atlantic 10 Basketball All-Conference candidate this season. Even Fordham has two after years of being left out of the discussion.

This list features the Top 30 players, ranked based on performance so far this season, with conference play being heavily weighted, but non-conference play still being a factor. It is not a prediction for how the final five weeks will go. So without further ado, my Twitter handle is up top and I look forward to hearing where I screwed up this list.

*All stats are full-season unless specifically noted

Honorable Mentions

These first eight players are not necessarily #33-#40 but are players who could find their way onto next year’s list or possibly even an end-of-the-year ranking.

Young and Rising*

*Conference Stats

Erik Reynolds II, St. Joe’s – 12.6 ppg

Brayon Freeman, GW – 11.0 ppg, 3.8 apg

Jordan Nesbitt, St. Louis – 9.1 ppg, 4.4 rpg

Kobe Elvis, Dayton – 10.6 ppg, 50% fg %

Reynolds has already shown a magnificent scoring touch as a true freshman. He has extreme confidence (which has damaged his shooting %) and appears to be the perfect shooter/slasher to play off guard next to an excellent playmaker in Jordan Hall. As he starts to turn some bad shots into quality passes, he’ll rise.

Freeman has already gone from an off-the-bench nobody to GW’s third-best player in conference play. He’s a critical ball mover in the Colonials’ stagnant offense and a decent shooter. He likely needs a different roster to maximize his passing talents (he would have loved playing with Jamison Battle), but if that comes, whether through a re-tool or transfer, Freeman is a future star.

Nesbitt athletically looks like a five-star recruit moving around the court but still hasn’t put it together stats-wise. He’s an excellent fastbreak partner for Yuri Collins, a good finisher, and a decent rebounder.  I’m skeptical that he puts it all together this season but he remains an intriguing breakout player next year.

Elvis looked completely lost offensively early in the year but earned Anthony Grant’s trust as an excellent disruptor on opposing guards, especially in the press. Recently, he has started to come together on the offensive end, as he leverages his speed and takes advantage of whatever open space he can find (three games of three or more three-point makes; 20 points on 9-11 shooting from 2 vs VCU’s vaunted defense) and is rapidly becoming a key part of Dayton’s current and future core.

Excellently Inconsistent

Toumani Camara, Dayton – 10.8 ppg, 6.7 rpg

Tre Williams, Duquesne – 10.4 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 2.3 bpg

Camara is out of position offensively as a 4 next to a non-shooting 5 but has found ways to make it work in certain games and has just played his two best games of the season (18 pts, 10 rebs, 4 asts vs Rhode Island, 18 pts, 4-5 from 3, 8 rebs vs VCU).  At his worst, Camara is a turnover machine (3.0 per game) who infuriates his own fanbase and clogs the offense. At his best, he is a versatile weapon inside the middle of a defense and an excellent rebounder. We are just now starting to see more of the best.

Williams is sometimes the only line of defense for a Duquesne team that is getting blitzed from 3 (38.3%, 3rd worst among top 10 conference teams) but is basically average defending the 2 (49.8%, national average is 49.6%), thanks to his 2.3 bpg (5th in A-10).

But Williams has tailed off offensively, as his post touches have been more limited as of late, scoring just 7.7 ppg over his last 9 games. Just as how Williams saves the Dukes defensively in the paint, they likely need him to do the same offensively to stop their six-game losing streak.

One-Sided Studs

DeVon Cooper, George Mason – 12.9 ppg, 42.1% 3 pt %

KeShawn Curry, VCU – 8.9 ppg, 1.2 spg

Cooper has settled in nicely as the third scorer and floor spacer for George Mason but is always ready to rise for a star moment. He made five 3s in each of the games against Washington, St. Bonaventure, and St. Louis when his offense was desperately needed. Cooper’s season can basically be defined the same as the Patriots as a whole, pretty solid despite a few dud games but when things are clicking, he is excellent.

Curry doesn’t stand out on paper in any way but when you watch VCU, you see his impact as both an on- and off-ball stopper. His perception is damaged by the fact that college basketball still lacks the impressive individual defensive advanced stats of the NBA. Add in that he is the best fastbreak finisher in the A-10 and key to what the Rams defense creates and you see why he plays huge minutes despite poor shooting (24.1% from 3).

Just Missed

Rich Kelly, Umass – 13.1 ppg, 51% 3 pt%

Francis Okoro, St. Louis – 10.0 ppg, 7.7 rpg

Umass’ three-point shooting (39.6%, 6th in nation) is the only thing keeping the Minutemen out of the basement, and Kelly, as the A-10 leader in the category is the gasoline to their ability to catch fire from deep.  He’s also a good passer (3.3 apg) but just misses the top 30 due to (like most Umass players) his lack of impact inside the arc (1.7 two-point makes per game).

Okoro is probably one strong ArchBaron Cup performance away from the top 30 and likely would have made it if he had an impact on OT in the SLU-GMU classic, instead of fouling out amidst a great offensive performance.

Nevertheless, Okoro has 14+ pts and 8+ rebs in each of his last three games and is top 5 in the A-10 in rebounding and fg % since conference play began. His impact is beginning to become reminiscent of a young Hasahn French and he is now trending towards making a huge impact in March.