Next basketball season is six months away, but it’s never too early to start analyzing how Wake Forest will shape up for 2017-18. We take a look at the three key areas: backcourt, frontcourt and coaching.
Backcourt = A-
Danny Manning can sleep well at night knowing that he has juniors Bryant Crawford and Keyshawn Woods. While Crawford could improve on his shooting percentage, he averaged 16.2 points, 5.5 assists and 3.8 rebounds per game. More importantly, he cut his turnovers from 3.5 a game to 2.3 last season, and he’s the heart of the team.
Woods’ shooting ability didn’t diminish after he transferred in from Charlotte and sat out a season. He was one of the ACC’s top three-point shooters (43.8 percent) and contributed in other areas with 4.2 RPG and 3.5 APG.
Manning often played three guards with Woods taking on bigger guards on defense. That allowed reserves Mitchell Wilbekin and Brandon Childress to see the court. Wilbekin is a serviceable player who increased his three-point percentage to 40.5 last season. Childress continued to improve throughout his freshman season.
Why the minus? Well, the Deacons are not good defensively. For example, Crawford and Woods combined to average one defensive win share, according to Sports Reference. London Perrantes of Virginia averaged 2.1 alone. Childress is an aggressive defender, but the Deacons will have to improve next season.
Frontcourt = C
It’s tempting to give the Deacons an incomplete here because Manning faces so many unknowns. Wake Forest has nine frontcourt players, and only one (Dinos Mitoglou) has been a regular in the rotation in his career. Mitoglou might have to play much more inside than in past seasons.
The Deacons will be athletic down low, but they’ll be inexperienced and will face questions both as shooters and rebounders.
At small forward, Manning will need Woods to play big at times. In addition, Chaundee Brown (a top-35 recruit) will need to make an immediate impact. Brown’s body seems college-ready, and he could be the exciting wing player the Deacons have been missing lately.
Incoming freshman Olivier Sarr and returning centers Doral Moore and Sam Japhet-Mathias will help determine how the rest of the lineup looks. The lean, lanky Sarr is a good athlete, but will he be able to contribute at power forward or center? Neither Moore nor Japhet-Mathias looked great last season.
Right now, Sarr and Mitoglou are likely in line to start. Sarr won’t add much offensively, but he can block shots — a missing part of Wake’s approach. As a power forward, Mitoglou is adequate, providing some ability to stretch the floor. He’s improved his rebounding, but he’s a step slow, which could mean that Manning moves him inside.
If Moore or Japhet-Mathias prove they can play, Manning will have much more flexibility.
Coaching = B-
Manning has transformed the recently moribund program. The evidence includes a return to the NCAA Tournament, the development of John Collins and fans returning to the games.
However, a few problems remain. The Deacons don’t have a lot of coaching experience on the bench. Sometimes that leads to odd in-game decisions.
This offseason, Manning emphasized recruiting with the hiring of Jamill Jones to fill an assistant spot. Randolph Childress also has been stellar on the recruiting trail.
But after three years, Manning is still missing an effective defensive game plan. And while Manning has rebuilt the winning culture and repaired relationships with alumni who were fed up after the Jeff Bzdelik era, sustained success on the court moving forward is a must.
Overall, the Deacons will be an interesting team next season, full of potential and led by a strong backcourt. Beyond that, Manning needs at least two capable contributors in the frontcourt to make the postseason a realistic goal.
READ MORE: Can Bryant Crawford become Wake’s next great point guard?