Gonzaga reloads its roster with an impressive transfer class

To be honest, things looked a bit touch-and-go for next year's Gonzaga squad in the weeks after the season ended. Drew Timme departing and Julian Strawther throwing his name into the NBA were locks. It wasn't a huge surprise that guard Dominick Harris and center Efton Reid entered the transfer portal, as neither got much playing time. It was however a bit of a shock to the system that hyper-talent guard Hunter Sallis, who looked to maybe be a starter entering next year, announced his intention to transfer too.

While it was obvious Mark Few would be active in the transfer portal, there was a point where the top two guards on Gonzaga's depth chart were the hyper-frustrating Nolan Hickman and... noted walk-on nepo baby Joe Few. Yikes.

But any concerns that Gonzaga might face a drastic drop-off in the post-Timme era have been assuaged thanks to the Bulldogs making some big splashes of their own in the transfer portal.

The biggest catch came earlier today, when Gonzaga landed a commitment from Creighton point guard Ryan Nembhard. For those scoring at home, yes, Ryan is the younger brother of former GU starting point guard Andrew Nembhard. One of the best point guards in college basketball last season (No. 6 overall player on CBS Sports' rankings of transfer pool players), Ryan's game is incredibly similar to that of his older bro (if anything he might be a slightly better 3-point shooter). He directed Creighton's potent offense and helped his university reach the Elite Eight for the first time since 1941 while averaging 12.1 points, 4.8 assists and 4 rebounds per game.

Nembhard absolutely fits the mold of a traditional true point guard that the Zags desperately lacked last season. It also frees up Nolan Hickman to play more of a shooting guard role, which actually fits his skillset (playing him at PG last year was the definition of trying to fit a square peg into a round hole - which is more of a questionable coaching move than a criticism of Hickman himself). It's a massive, massive upgrade at the most important position in college hoops.

A few minutes before the Nembhard news broke, the Zags landed an interior weapon for the new PG to feed. Wyoming's Graham Ike is a 6-foot-9-inch big who should have an immediate impact if healthy (he ranks 21st in CBS's transfer rankings). During the 2021-22 season, Ike was the Cowboys' best player, leading the 19.5 points and 9.6 rebounds per game en route to a 25-9 record. Heading into last season, Wyoming was a Top 25 team and Ike was the Preseason Mountain West Player of the Year. But then... he got hurt. A right foot injury sidelined him for the entire 2022-23 season, but he has true star potential if the bum wheel is mended. While he's not an interior shot-blocking force or a floor stretcher, he should be able to at least replace a fraction of Drew Timme inside scoring with a big more rebounding prowess.

That 1-2 punch came two weeks after the first positive for the Zags in the transfer portal season, when the Bulldogs landed Eastern Washington star guard/forward Steele Venters. Last year's Big Sky Player of the Year, the redshirt senior has great size and a skillset to do a bit of everything on the offensive side of the floor: shooting (over 40% from beyond the arc during his career), slashing, driving, etc. While he's not on the same lottery pick level, he's slightly reminiscent of former Wazzu stud Klay Thompson with the way he approaches the college game. He should slot into a three-man backcourt alongside Nembhard and Hickman.

The two biggest question marks remaining now for next year's Zag are if Anton Watson and Malachi Smith will return. Both have the option to return to Spokane (though Smith has put his name tentatively in the NBA Draft pool). Watson's local ties open up the possibility of him cashing in on Name, Image, Likeness endorsements, almost certainly making more money than he would playing overseas (since he's not a real NBA prospect).

But even if both Watson and Smith depart, versatile incoming freshman forwards Alex Toohey and Dusty Stormer are already on their way to Spokane. When combined with the three transfers, there's suddenly a lot more optimism about the influx of talent for the Bulldogs. Prior to today's transfers, most experts had the Zags pinned as a fringe Top 25 team, but after Nembhard and Ike's arrival, most have the Bulldogs back as a Top 10 caliber team.

Gonzaga will certainly look much different on the court when the 2023-24 season tips off this fall, but it certainly appears that their winning ways will continue. ♦