SEC Basketball: 2024 offseason grades for each team

Missouri Tigers - Grade: A

The past couple of seasons have been plagued by roster turnover. Loading up on talent from the portal worked for Dennis Gates in year one. Year number two saw much of the same but this time the roster never really clicked. Now going into year three Missouri once again looked towards the transfer portal to improve.

The Tigers will be without last season's top scorer, Sean East, as he ran out of eligibility. But all is not lost for Missouri, Tamar Bates is returning for another year in Columbia. After a somewhat slow start, Bates ended the season with 21 games in double figures. Only two other returners from last year saw considerable minutes. Anthony Robinson provided a defensive spark off the bench, and Caleb Grill was the Tiger's best defender and rebounder last season before missing a majority of the season due to injury. 

Dennis Gates brought on five transfers this offseason. His focus was on getting reliable scoring, a true point guard, and some solid defense. He hit on all three of these. Jacob Crews and Marques Warrick averaged over 19 points per game last season. Tony Perkins is a true facilitator. Last season at Iowa he averaged 14 points and 4.6 assists. And on the defensive end, Gates added Mark Mitchell and Josh Gray. Mitchell is a solid rebounder and an athletic defender who defends well all over the court. And Gray provides some, very much needed, rebounding and interior depth. 

And with one of the top recruiting classes in the country, Missouri looks to be a much-improved team. There are still some questions when it comes to depth for the Tigers, but overall the roster assembled this offseason seems to be much more balanced and capable of competing for a spot in the NCAA Tournament.