Suffice to say Kevin Young met and exceeded expectations in his first year leading BYU last season. The former NBA assistant won 26 games, tied for 3rd in the Big 12, and took the Cougars to the Sweet Sixteen in his first campaign as a collegiate head coach. This program has looked the opposite of overmatched since joining the Big 12 two years ago and have every reason to be even better next year.
Leading scorer Richie Saunders returns for his senior season and should remain a massive part of the equation for the Cougars, though clearly not everyone is back. Egor Demin’s standout campaign as a freshman got him attention and he’s off to the NBA, while notable players Fousseyni Traore and Trevin Knell saw their collegiate careers draw to a close. BYU gets Dawson Baker and Keba Keita back but it’s not the returners that have many eyeballs on Provo next year.
Top-rated freshman A. J. Dybantsa will attract plenty of attention and immediately be an impact player in this frontcourt. In addition to a few other 4-star additions, BYU’s staff has put together an attractive haul from the transfer portal. They’ll loaded up on potential at small forward, notably landing Kennard Davis from Southern Illinois alongside Dominique Diomande of Washington and Tyler Mrus from Idaho. Nate Pickens should earn some run at the point after transferring from UC Riverside but a different point guard gets today’s attention.
Robert Wright III is a 6-1 point guard originally from Wilmington, Delaware who was a Top 25 prospect last season. After breakout success at the high school level, Wright’s freshman season at Baylor had several notable moments while averaging 11.5 points and 4.2 assists per game. Wright played a key role leading the charge in another productive season for the Bears and now transitions to a new Big 12 program.
A member of the Big 12 All-Freshman team, Wright opted for new surroundings and has landed in a fantastic spot for his second collegiate campaign. With Dybantsa and Saunders at the forward positions, the job of the point guard is both easier and more important. Wright showed flashes of brilliance as a true freshman and if he can take that step forward as a sophomore it would go a long way towards what could be a really special season at BYU.
We’ll be seeing how the rotation works out behind what are clearly the three best players on this roster. BYU has both raw talent and veteran experience with Young and his staff really breaking the bank to bring talent to Provo for this basketball team. It’ll be interesting seeing how this talent works together, especially if there’s enough production in that frontcourt with both Dybantsa and Saunders. A lot of the onus falls on the true sophomore running the offense; can Wright live up to heightened expectations?