NCAA Basketball: Indiana, Kansas, and Maryland among 10 early 2024 offseason winners

7. Ole Miss Rebels

First-year HC Chris Beard won 20 games in his first year with the Rebels but it wasn’t good enough to make the NCAA Tournament. After the season, there was a chance that he could’ve left for another job, including most notably, the Arkansas Razorbacks. So the fact that they didn’t have to go through another coaching search was a win within itself. 

Once confirmed to stay, Coach Beard immediately went to improve the roster. The frontcourt was viewed as the biggest weakness and they added a couple of key pieces, starting with Malik Dia. He was one of the top power forwards in the portal, averaging 16.9 ppg and 5.8 rpg at Vanderbilt. Mikeal Brown-Jones is another good athletic addition, coming off producing 18.9 ppg and 7.5 rpg at UNC Greensboro.

There are two more additions, including Dre Davis from Seton Hall. Kadary Richmond may have gotten all of the praise but Davis was just as good, averaging 15.0 ppg and 5.9 rpg, shooting 49% from the field. And Davon Barnes was a double-digit scorer from Sam Houston State and adds to the depth.

There are actually three covid-year decisions, including star guard and leading scorer, Matthew Murrell. If he comes back, Ole Miss can make a case for having a top-15 caliber roster for next season. So while the Rebels are already a winner in the offseason for now, even better things could be in store for them.