Pac-12 Basketball: UCLA, Oregon atop WTE offseason rankings for 2022-23
By Joey Loose
8. Washington State
In the three years since Kyle Smith arrived at Washington State, there has actually been legitimate optimism for this Cougars program. Things have gotten a little better each year, with a 22-win campaign last season certainly looking amazing when considering this program’s recent history. This was a team that could certainly be thought about as a sleeper pick to do some damage next season, but then things didn’t go their way in the offseason.
Michael Flowers graduated, Tyrell Roberts transferred to San Francisco, and we’ve already mentioned that Noah Williams went over to rival Washington. The Cougars are still waiting for decisions on Efe Abogidi and Mouhamed Gueye, though both withdrew from NBA Draft consideration. That’s potentially their top five scorers all gone, meaning they’ll have to lean on young players like TJ Bamba and Andrej Jakimovski to take much bigger steps forward.
This rotation will certainly have much less talent than expected, but maybe it’s not the end of the world at Washington State. It’s still possible that Gueye returns to the Cougars, and after his dynamic freshman season he’d be welcomed with open arms. These departures are not a death blow for Washington State; if Smith built this lineup once he can do it again, with 4-star freshman center Adrama Diongue looking to be part of that future this season.