ASU Men’s Basketball: 2017-2018 Season Preview
By Zach Pekale
After a 221 day hiatus, college basketball is back. ASU men’s basketball will take the floor against Idaho State at 8 pm to open its season.
Year Three of the Bobby Hurley era begins in Tempe on Friday with some new faces and heightened expectations after posting 15 wins in each of his first two seasons. For the first time since Hurley took the head coaching job in April 2015, there is reason to be optimistic about this program. Here’s why:
Experience: Returning to lead the team are seniors Tra Holder, Shannon Evans II and Kodi Justice. The trio provide a reliable veteran presence and will be one of the most formidable backcourts in the conference.
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New Faces: Hurley brought in his second straight top-25 recruiting class, headlined by four-star prospects Kimani Lawrence and Remy Martin. Additionally, forwards Romello White and Vitaliy Shibel are expected to be key contributors after missing last season.
Key Games: There have been no shortage of marquee games for ASU over the past two years and this season is no exception. The Sun Devils play Kansas State and St. John’s at neutral sites before a daunting trip to Allen Fieldhouse to take on the Kansas Jayhawks.
With tip-off just hours away, the Devils in Detail basketball coverage team gives their final thoughts of what to watch for heading into the season.
Who is the player to watch this year?
Zach Pekale: With a surplus of depth in the backcourt, Remy Martin was flying under the radar until he posted 25 points off the bench during an exhibition against San Diego. Despite being the third point guard on the roster, Martin is a starting-caliber floor general. What he lacks in size he makes up for with an unmatched level of intensity. Martin possesses great court vision and is a pest defensively, two traits that fit Hurley’s style of play well. While Martin might not play in long stretches, he is the type of player you notice when he steps on the floor.
Jordan Kaye: I think one of the most important players to watch this season for ASU is Kimani Lawrence. The 6-foot-7, 180-pound freshman forward came to Tempe as the 57th ranked player out of high school, according to ESPN. Lawrence will get big minutes and after starting the exhibition finale, he looks like he will start the season starting at forward. Lawrence has incredible length and athleticism that will help the Sun Devils spread the floor and give them a real threat to get to the basket.
Alyanna Harina: Understanding that the new class, bringing in Remy Martin and Kimani Lawrence is largely impressive, my player to watch will be Shannon Evans II. After losing Torian Graham to graduation, the Sun Devils need someone to fill in as the catalyst for the team and for me, that’ll be Evans. Between his experience with the team, relationship with Hurley, and after dropping 50 points with 11 three pointers in an exhibition game against Arizona Christian, he’s already looking like an explosive leader for this Sun Devil team.
Richard Geraffo: Sun Devil fans should keep an eye on Kimani Lawrence. Lawrence was among the nations elite small forwards in his high school class, and signed at Arizona State over USC, Florida, and Texas. Lawrence was the No. 57 prospect nationally and has the tools to excel in almost every category on the basketball court. He has been seen doing a bit of everything so far for the Sun Devils in practice, and he should have a solid freshman season and will be an integral part of this team’s future. Standing at 6-foot-7 with a seven-foot wingspan, he can step outside and shoot from distance while using his length and athleticism to excel on the defensive end.
Trevor Booth: Romello White. Outside of Obinna Oleka last season, the Sun Devils had no size in the frontcourt, a huge reason why they finished last in the conference with 23.4 defensive rebounds per game last season. After missing the 2016 season due to academic ineligibility, White should be a huge presence for the Sun Devils. Bobby Hurley has been especially high on White this offseason, commending his ability to execute in the low post along with his added energy on the defensive end. Along with Vitaly Shibel and De’Quon Lake as his counterparts down low, White should a provide a huge boost for a newly upgraded Sun Devil frontcourt.
Where will the Sun Devils finish in the Pac-12?
ZP: I’m going to take an optimistic approach here and say the Devils go dancing for the first time since 2014. The team finished eighth a year ago and competed with the likes of UCLA, Oregon and Arizona all while running a six-man rotation. Now, ASU has depth, size and substantially more skill on its roster. I think the backcourt trio of Holder, Evans II and Justice mesh well with the younger players and the team comes together to win 20-22 games and sneaks into a first-round bye at the Pac-12 tournament.
JK: I see the Sun Devils improving upon their 15 wins from Hurley’s first two seasons while finishing fifth in the Pac-12. ASU got beaten around down low and their lack of depth started to plague them late into games. Both of those problems may not be fixed for this season, but they will at least be aided with the additions of redshirt freshman forward Vitaliy Shibel and freshman Kimani Lawrence. Those additions could set up ASU for a NIT berth and a possible NCAA Tournament bid; but just for the Pac-12, I see ASU falling behind Arizona, UCLA, USC and Oregon in that order.
AH: Considering that the Sun Devils finished eighth last season, with what was arguably a six- man rotation and virtually no frontcourt, I have ASU finishing either fifth or sixth in the Pac-12. Other than Arizona, Oregon, USC and UCLA sitting pretty at the top of the Pac-12, the fifth spot will come down to Stanford and ASU for me. After sweeping the regular season series and then beating Stanford in the first round of the Pac-12 tournament last season, I’m optimistic that the Sun Devils could put some numbers up against the Cardinal to secure that No. 5 spot.
RG: While the past few years of ASU basketball hasn’t had much intrigue or success, this year could be the beginning of a major turnaround. With more roster versatility and talent than previous years, expect Bobby Hurley’s squad to play much better basketball this season. Even with a vastly improved roster, the Sun Devils will have an extremely tough time in Pac-12 play. Fighting against perennial basketball powerhouses UCLA and Arizona, up and coming programs USC and Oregon, and the always feisty Stanford Cardinal make up a gauntlet of competition. Arizona State may still be a year away from top four contention, but this season should have the Devils landing in the five spot.
TB: Although Bobby Hurley’s program is likely a year or two away from making resounding noise in the Pac-12, the outlook of this year’s conference has an experienced Sun Devil roster poised to make a run toward the top of the standings. Outside of Arizona and USC, the conference is as wide open as it’s been over the past three seasons, with several programs hitting the reset button and having to rebuild with youthful rosters. With a senior-led backcourt of Tra Holder, Shannon Evans II and Kodi Justice, along with talented newcomers in Romello White and Kimani Lawrence, the Devils possess a healthy blend of experience and youth that should give them an edge over several of their Pac-12 foes. Expect ASU to finish fifth in the conference standings this year after UCLA and Oregon, but don’t be surprised if they leapfrog the Ducks into the top four.
Next: ASU Men’s Basketball: Luguentz Dort commits to Arizona State
Tip-off between Arizona State and Idaho State will be at 8 p.m. MT from Wells Fargo Arena. The game can be viewed on Pac-12 Arizona.