The 2024-2025 season was supposed to get the Arizona State Sun Devils back on track. The roster heading into the season featured many new players, and it was rebuilt to compete in the Big 12. The 2024-2025 roster had a good mix of old and new players.
The old players had experience at places other than Arizona State but were still quality talent. The new faces were all highly ranked recruits, including one potential lottery pick who could change the trajectory of the Sun Devils.
The roster built by head coach Bobby Hurley didn't win. He accumulated talent, but it didn't mesh well together. The defense was porous, and key players were injured a lot. As a result, Arizona State ended up losing 12 out of its last 13 games.
It was a gut punch to a season that started out promising with wins over St. Mary's, New Mexico, and Grand Canyon. The feel-good loss by eight to Gonzaga changed the tune of the Arizona State team this year. After that game, many thought they would be okay.
If losing 12 out of your final 13 games wasn't enough, most of the key pieces from 2024-2025 either graduated or entered the transfer portal. Coach Hurley is in a roster rebuild again. He better get this one right because he may be out of a job if the Sun Devils struggle again.
Every team loses players to the portal and must do some roster re-tooling every season, but few teams lose what the Sun Devils lost. The losses will be impossible to make up with just one guy in the portal.
Jayden Quaintance was a top-10 recruit nationally and is one of the premier shot-blockers and rebounders in the country. He hurt his knee in February and was out for the remainder of the year. The freshman big man is a projected lottery pick in 2026, but he decided to enter the transfer portal and head to Kentucky.
Joson Sanon was a top-25 recruit before he headed to Tempe. He showed a lot in his first season under coach Hurley, but mainly his ability to be one of the best shooters in the country. Sanon and his shooting ability will be hard to replace in the portal. However, you could find some guys to make as many threes as he did, but not likely in the same player.
Alston Mason, Adam Miller, and Basheer Jihad have all left the program due to being out of eligibility. Jihad did enter the transfer portal but will need a waiver to play. His waiver is unlikely, as he has played well over the minimum number of games required in all five seasons.
Arizona State didn’t get anywhere close to finding that amount of talent in the transfer portal. They already have Moe Odum, a point guard from Pepperdine, Allen David Mukeba from Oakland, and Marcus Adams Jr. from Northridge committed. All those players bring different things to the Sun Devils, but none will replace what Arizona State lost.
Coach Hurley survived last season, but if this season doesn't work out, it may be the end of the Hurley era at Arizona State. There are only so many times a coach can rebuild a roster before his vision starts to be questioned. I know a lot of fans are already at that point for Coach Hurley. The athletic director at Arizona State may join the masses with another bad season.