SEC Basketball: 2024 offseason grades for each team
By Justin Wiles
Mississippi State - Grade: B-
MSU had one of the older teams in the country last season, with six seniors on that roster playing more than 15 minutes per game. That’s a lot of experience for Chris Jans to replace in one offseason, especially since one of the losses was easily the team's best overall player Tolu Smith who ran out of eligibility.
Jans hit the portal hard this offseason and came away with a solid team with a ton of potential. He signed two young big men out of the portal - Jeremy Foumena from Rhode Island and Michael Nwoko from Miami (FL). Both played limited minutes last season but showed flashes of being solid players if developed correctly. Foumena and Nwoko didn’t shine on the defensive end last season but should get better in that area under Jans’ direction.
The other four players MSU added from the portal have a ton of high-major experience. Riley Kugel spent the past two years at Florida. RJ Melendez played two years at Illinois and one year at Georgia before joining Mississippi State. Claudell Harris spent his junior season at Boston College. And Kanye Clary played two years at Penn State. Both Harris and Clary averaged more than 13 points last season and, along with last year's leading scorer Josh Hubbard, should help improve an average Mississippi State offense.
The upside is obvious for the players added in the transfer portal, they will just need to be locked in every time they step on the floor. If the roster comes together just as Jans envisions it then Mississippi State might cause some problems for the top teams in the conference.