Gonzaga Basketball: Bulldogs set for the future with Colgate transfer Braeden Smith

Gonzaga Basketball lands yet another transfer pickup in Braeden Smith, who'll run the offense 2 seasons from now.

It's been a busy past couple of weeks in the transfer portal for Gonzaga Basketball. They recently landed guard Khalif Battle, along with former WAC all-freshman forward, Emmanuel Innocenti. With Michael Ajayi already on board, the team was looking to land one more player to the roster in Braeden Smith.

Coming off an NCAA Tournament trip at Colgate and earning Patriot League Player of the Year honors, Smith was one of the top point guards left in the transfer portal. He averaged 12.5 ppg, 5.5 rpg, and 5.6 apg at Colgate and had a few west coast options to choose from (originally from Seattle, Washington), as Cal and Washington were also in the mix. Both teams likely had starting jobs available, while the Bulldogs didn't. Still, Coach Mark Few once again got over the non-former Pac-12 programs.

What's interesting about Smith is that Gonzaga Basketball already has its starting backcourt set in Nolan Hickman and Ryan Nembhard, with Nembhard coming off a top-10 season in passing (6.9 apg) and is the clear lead guard of the offense. On paper, Smith would only get around 8-10 mpg on next year's roster for the Bulldogs, which would be great for their depth and not having Nembhard play all 40 minutes but it would be a far cry from the 30 mpg that the former Colgate starter is used to.

However, early reports are that Smith will redshirt and sit out next season, before being the starting guard for the 2025-26 season. Both Nembhard and Hickman has just one year of eligibility left, along with Battle most likely. So while sitting out isn't ideal, it makes sense for both sides.

Smith doesn't have to use up one of his two remaining seasons playing limited minutes off the bench, while Gonzaga has its starting guard for the future and won't have to scramble to get more players a year from now. It'll be interesting to see how many capable ball-handlers will be in the portal a year from now with the "covid year" guys out the way so potentially, the Bulldogs may have gotten a steal here.

Plus, injuries can always happen so in case of emergency, Gonzaga can have Smith come in and play big minutes for a team with top-10 potential next season.