Minnesota Basketball: Projected depth chart and rotation for 2023-24 season

Power Forward

Starter – Dawson Garcia: 15.3 PPG / 6.7 RPG / 31.8 MPG

The unquestioned face of the program now that Battle has moved on is Dawson Garcia. After stints at Marquette and North Carolina, Garcia returned home to the Twin Cities and following some initial growing pains, was the most consistent player on the Gopher roster a year ago. He averaged 15.3 PPG on 46% shooting and was also a reliable rebounder on both the offensive and defensive glass.

The next step for Garcia will be continuing to grow as a leader and, hopefully, further development defensively. There were times last season when Garcia seemed fine taking a backseat in the offense but if he grows to be more assertive, he has All-Big Ten potential. On the other end, Garcia has never been known as a top-tier defender, but was good enough in 2022-23. If he can become even better, a soft Gopher defense will be much more ferocious.

Off the bench – Parker Fox

There is no greater wild card on the Gopher roster this year than Parker Fox. A former Division II All-American, Fox also returned home to play for Ben Johnson and the Gophers, but has had miserable injury luck. He’s missed both of the last two seasons with knee injuries and been relegated to an energetic sideline presence.

I’m still hopeful Fox can regain his old form and be a contributor on this year’s Minnesota team, but it’s fair to have questions. He was known as a bouncy and agile athlete, but will that remain the case after two significant injuries? Fox is already a fan favorite and even seeing him on the court this winter will be a treat.

Off the bench – Isaiah Ihnen

Isaiah Ihnen is the lone player still on the roster from the Richard Pitino era and much like Fox, he has had terrible injury luck. Ihnen played 50 games over his first two seasons on campus but has also missed the last two years due to injury and will be entering unfamiliar territory in 2023-24.

The redshirt junior is a fascinating player, a player originally from Germany who is 6’10” with a 7’4″ wingspan. And, you saw some of the potential during the Ihnen era, although he fell far too in love with his three-point shot for my taste during the 2020-21 campaign. There’s certainly potential for him to become an important piece for this team this year, but he’s such a mystery at this point in his career.

Limited minutes – Erick Reader & Kris Keinys

I don’t suspect we will be seeing much of the other two pieces from the 2023 Class in Erick Reader and Lithuanian Kris Keinys, but considering the injury history with Fox and Ihnen, who knows? Reader is a walk-on from inside the state, while Keinys comes over after playing three seasons in the National Basketball League (NKL) of Lithuania.