WCC Basketball: Preseason power rankings for 2023-24 season
By Tuck Clarry
5. San Francisco Dons
This is the beginning of another tier of the conference, with three teams jockeying for a potential third Conference bid by the end of the year. The Dons at 5 is likely a surprise for many who follow the conference closely, but the roster turnover and assumptive additions make it difficult for me to confidently have them at third where they were selected in the coaches’ poll and by other prognosticators.
San Francisco has carved out a distinguished reputation as a team that can compete with the top of the conference thanks to elite playmakers and a playstyle predicated on three-point shooting. The Dons have been in the top 50 in three-point attempts to two-point attempts the last four seasons, finishing second in two of them. That profile is likely to change with the losses of Khalil Shabazz, Tyrell Roberts and Zane Meeks–the three leading three-point shooters for the team.
Returning guard Marcus Williams and forwards Isaiah Hawthorne and Josh Kunen have shown a clear ability to score on the perimeter but on significantly less volume than Roberts or Shabazz. The college basketball and scouting world was abuzz when international prospect Mike Sharavjamts announced he’d be transferring from Dayton to San Francisco. Sharavjamts is an appealing guard/wing hybrid who is able to comfortably bring up the basketball despite his frame.
Sharavjamts struggled in his season at Dayton, averaging 5.6 points and 2.6 assists while shooting 38% from the field. Head coach Chris Gerlufsen is likely to lean on Williams to run the offense, but how Sharavjamts is deployed could be an interesting wrinkle to this offense and a mismatch for most teams in the conference.
What could dictate San Francisco’s ceiling is whether or not Kunen, Hawthorne and big man Saba Giberia are able to keep opponents on their toes in the interior. The Dons struggled to protect the rim and limit ball movement in the half-court. If they can maintain a semblance of their shooting and improve in the post, the Dons could be that third team to put next to the very top of the conference.