Xavier Basketball: Musketeers 2022-23 season preview

Projected Starting Lineup for the Musketeers

Souley Boum, Guard

Boum played the last three seasons at UTEP in Conference USA and was a bona fide bucket-getter. The 6’3 guard averaged 19.8 points per game a season ago on 43/37/84 splits alongside 4.5 rebounds and 2.9 assists. Boum basically took one of every three shots the Miners took last season and played 84 percent of UTEP’s minutes.

Obviously, he won’t be asked to do the same thing at Xavier, but he will be the guy with the ball in his hands a lot alongside Jones as creators on offense. He also joins the team as, statistically, the best 3-point shooter from a season ago. The Musketeers were 250th in the country in 3-point shooting a season ago so his continued efficiency will be important.

Mid-major to high-major transfers will always have to answer the bell when it comes to production at the higher level, while Boum won’t have the weight of the go-to guy on his shoulders, filling the void left by Paul Scruggs is an important role for the transfer as a redshirt senior.

Adam Kunkel, Guard

Kunkel came to Xavier from Belmont before the COVID season fresh off 16.5 points per game year where he shot 39 percent from deep on 6.5 attempts per game. He’s played an average of 21 minutes per game over two seasons but hasn’t been near that efficient from deep the last two seasons. His 26 percent clip two seasons ago jumped to 33 percent last season, but he is still arguably the best shooter on this Musketeer squad.

With Nate Johnson gone – and his 37.5 percent from deep going with him – Kunkel’s place this season in a presumed larger role will be very important to the Xavier starting five. If he, along with Boum and Jones can improve or sustain 3-point success the avenue is there for Xavier to be a better shooting team.

Colby Jones, Forward

Jones finished last season averaging 11.6 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 3.2 assists, but his finish has him in the conversation for All-Big East teams this season. He scored in double digits in the last 11 games of the season and was named the NIT’s Most Valuable Player. He capped off the year with a 21-point performance on 9-of-13 shooting in the NIT title game.

Jones is on the list of potential breakout players across the sport this season and was named a candidate for the Julius Erving Award which is awarded to the nation’s top small forward each season. Without Nate Johnson and Paul Scruggs on the roster, offensive creation is going to fall into the hands of Jones and his performance on the offensive end will be the driving factor for Xavier’s success on that end of the floor.

Zach Freemantle, Forward

Freemantle’s 2022-23 season got off to a weird start with being suspended indefinitely when Xavier began practice. He was reinstated a week later, but not exactly the ideal start to a senior season for one of Xavier’s best players. The 2020-21 Big East Most Improved Player had an up-and-down season as a junior after coming back from injury. His numbers were down in every category and he came off the bench in Xavier’s NIT run.

This season is all about Freemantle returning to the form he had in 2020-21. He’s one of Xavier’s most proven players alongside his frontcourt running mate in Jack Nunge. Hopefully, for Xavier fans, last season was a result of him never quite getting right after the slow start to the season thanks to the foot injury. His production is mandatory for Xavier to get where they want to go in 2022.

Jack Nunge, Center

Nunge is almost everything you want in a big with the way basketball is played in 2022. He’s a 7-footer that can protect the rim and then on the other end of the floor can stretch the floor to the tune of 36 percent from the 3-point line. On the offensive end, he and Freemantle complement each other nicely.

On the defensive end, there are questions about those two guys on the floor together because neither of them is versatile defenders. The Musketeers really struggled defensively in conference play last year finishing 8th in defensive rating and 10th in defensive effective field goal percentage. While the shot-blocking stayed to a certain extent, opponents were shooting over 50 percent from 2-point range against the Musketeers. Only Georgetown was worse. Nunge’s offensive abilities are undeniable, but his defensive limitations mean the rest of this Xavier team needs to be versatile.