Gonzaga Basketball: Takeaways from pickup of Arkansas transfer Khalif Battle

Next steps for Gonzaga Basketball this offseason

Even after landing Battle and Smith from the transfer portal, the Bulldogs still have a couple of open scholarships to work with. As we saw from this past season, having depth is important in case an injury occurs. So what are the biggest needs on the current roster?

One position to watch is another point guard. Nembhard had an excellent first season at Gonzaga, averaging 12.6 ppg and 6.9 apg. He was poor as a three-point shooter but rebounded to over 32% overall. But he was definitely tired at times and sliding Hickman to the point had its flaws since he’s more of a natural scorer. A proven ball-handler that can play 8-10 mpg would be ideal, especially if an injury occurs.

Speaking of “injuries”, losing Watson doesn’t matter as much at the four-spot since they landed Ajayi from Pepperdine, while also keeping Gregg. But Watson also played some minutes at center behind Ike, when they didn’t want Braden Huff and his defensive limitations in the game. Plus, Ike has already missed a year due to injuries at Wyoming, and having a third big man as insurance would make sense.

The portal is winding down in turns of proven high-major talent but Gonzaga doesn’t need a game-changer but rather a guy or two that can fill out the roster and make sure there aren’t any hopes. That could be the difference between being a national title contender or someone who comes up short.