WKU Basketball: Preseason Preview — Projected Starters

It’s late October and the regular season is finally approaching. Hilltopper Hysteria is over and we got an extended look at what this team…

It’s late October and the regular season is finally approaching. Hilltopper Hysteria is over and we got an extended look at what this team might be but one thing that’s still up in the air is who will start this year. There are a few players we could lock in as starters but coach Stansbury has several options this year with the talent he’s assembled so we’ll look at who could (and should) start this year.

Charles Bassey

I would bet my life savings on Bassey being a starter this year. The Nigerian big man had an outstanding freshman season despite being hindered with a bummed up knee the majority of the year and averaged 14.6 points and 10 rebounds per game (along with 2.4 blocks). He won a slew of C-USA awards and was even a finalist for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award for best center in the country but lost to someone he clamped head-to-head (Ethan Happ of Wisconsin).

I expect Bassey’s dominance to continue into his sophomore year this season. He already looks more lean and agile during the scrimmage at Hysteria with a healthy knee. If he can remain healthy he should be due for an even bigger year than he had his freshman year on the Hill all around. The sky is the limit for him this year and we should all expect big things from the sophomore big man.

Taveion Hollingsworth

Going into his junior year, the bar is set high for the guard from Lexington.

I wouldn’t say his sophomore year was disappointing by any means but he didn’t look like the same Tay we saw dropping thirty points and going off like he did his freshman year. He still averaged 14.4 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 2.2 assists last year but I expect his offensive production to go up.

Hollingsworth has started all but one game in his entire career as a Hilltopper and I expect that trend to continue. He was asked early on in his career to step up and be a leader on the team and now with two years under his belt I’m hoping this season he is able to dominate and be that leader coach Stansbury has wanted him to be.

Josh Anderson

After being cleared (late) to play by the NCAA his freshman year, the explosive guard from Louisiana has only gotten better in time. Expect a few more SportsCenter top 10 dunks this year, folks.

Anderson has gotten better since he arrived on the Hill and is still getting better now. He started 28 games and averaged 12.1 points, 4.1 rebounds, and led the team with 1.7 steals per game last season.

One of the main things he struggled with early on was his jump shot and over time he’s been able to get better and more confident shooting. He went from shooting 14% from deep his freshman year to 28% his sophomore year and I expect him to get at or over 30% this season. While it’s not really his bread and butter, it would add another dynamic to his game outside of driving to the basket. He doesn’t really need to take a lot of threes this year but needs to make the ones he does.

I still believe Anderson is one of the most explosive and athletic players WKU has ever had and I look for him to start most games in 2019–2020 if he plays confidently. If someone like Carson Williams or Camron Justice goes off and he struggles he could lose his starting spot so with added competition, it should only push him to become a better player this season.

Jared Savage

This is where things start to get a little wishy-washy for me as far as being sure of someone starting.

Savage started all 34 games last season and averaged 12.2 points, 4.8 rebounds, and led the team in three point shooting. He was a key player on offense when he was shooting hot and at times was a little bit of a liability on defense but the senior guard from Bowling Green is still someone that will have a vital role on this team whether he starts or not.

Even at Hysteria he shot 3-of-4 from deep and looked better defensively as well with two blocks. With all things considered and with him being a starter from last season, coach Stansbury will probably give him a starting spot to start 2019.

Consistency could be a major key to this team’s success so with Savage being a senior leader, his role will still be important. If he has those games where he’s off he could lose playing time which is something coach Stansbury couldn’t have done with the bench he had last season.

Things are different this time around so whether he starts or becomes a sixth-man off the bench, I expect Savage to contribute some big threes and be a leader on this team.

Kenny Cooper

The grad-transfer from Lipscomb was a vital part of their big NIT run last season and should be a great facilitating point guard this year. That is if he gets cleared to play.

It’s late October and once again the NCAA is dragging their feet with another Hilltopper player. It wouldn’t be the Rick Stansbury era of WKU if we weren’t waiting for a player with eligibility issues to be cleared by the NCAA but Cooper’s situation is different than past players.

Cooper hasn’t been previously redshirted like most grad-transfer seniors but his head coach at Lipscomb, Casey Alexander, left to return to his alma mater Belmont to fill the big shoes of Rick Byrd who retired in April. Usually, when a head coach leaves to another school, players are able to transfer without having to sit out a year but it still has to go before the NCAA to be approved.

When Josh Anderson was waiting to be cleared by the NCAA his freshman year, he wasn’t cleared until January, right before conference play started. Cooper has still been able to adjust to this system and had ten points and four assists during the scrimmage at Hysteria but it would be preferable if he got cleared long before then.

Regardless of when he gets cleared, look for him to be the head of the offense once he’s out there. His experience will help this team get to the next level but in the meantime, we get to sit and wait for the NCAA once again. Let’s hope it’s soon

Wildcard — Camron Justice

Justice is someone I see starting maybe not the whole season but should start some games this year.

The grad-transfer from IUPUI averaged 18.6 points per game last year for the Jaguars and at Hilltopper Hysteria shot 5-of-7 from deep despite having to wear a face mask.

Realistically, I would see him starting in Jared Savage’s spot if he were to start this year. They both have similar playing styles and are big time three point shooters. Even if he doesn’t start the thought of having a senior that averaged 18 points coming off the bench should help this team tremendously.

I’m already a big fan of Justice after seeing what he’s capable of at Hysteria and I personally believe he should start over Savage but time will tell what route coach Stansbury decides to go with the three spot. If Savage isn’t as consistent as he should be I’d look for Justice to start and vice versa if Justice were to start.

I’m just glad coach Stansbury has options this year. He may decide to mix things up a lot this year but having different starting lineups for certain teams and matchups so I wouldn’t look for him to start the same five guys all season long. With Justice, Carson Williams, and if Cooper isn’t eligible, maybe even Jordan Rawls coach Stansbury will have a lot of players to rotate and give playing time to.