The 2021-22 SLU Basketball Preview Manifesto Part 1

This is the first in a multipart series serving as a preseason primer to all things Saint Louis University Men’s Basketball for the 2021-22 season.

Welcome Back

College Basketball in St. Louis is BACK.

This morning the Billikens kicked off their 2021-22 season with their first official practice. They will continue to have practices over the weekend. There will be no Midnight Madness this season, which usually marks the year’s first practice in many schools. Still, the Billikens will hit the ground running. With Friday marking the 42-day mark from Opening Night, Travis Ford’s team will be allowed 30 practices between now and then per NCAA rules.

With this Billiken team, we know a lot. We know the names; the faces are familiar. But we also have a lot of questions. Many things to answer. Which will–at the very least–mean this year will be interesting. A consistent trend among Billiken teams…

The one thing the Billikens have had going for them in the last handful or so seasons is that they’re at the very least interesting. Underperformed, had a season stolen from them, overperformed, performed exactly as expected? At the very least, interesting. They’ve been interesting for some extremely bad reasons in recent memory, so being of intrigue because of purely sport-related curiosity is hardly a bad thing.

Saint Louis Men’s Basketball is at a significant crossroads in 2021-22, one that could set the tone for the Travis Ford’s future and tenure. Entering their first season in the post-Goodwin/French era, the Billikens are distinctly more talented now than when that era began. Up and down, the roster has a depth of talent and a clear line of succession built-in, and we see where this team is going well down the pipe.

This means now is the time for Travis Ford to show what he can continue to have high-level success without his program reshaping recruits, and that this next wave of recruits can be transformative in their own ways.

Javonte Perkins is the sole senior and on-court leader of the team. Fred Thatch is one of the most experienced players in college basketball at this point and only has 3 more years of eligibility. Yuri Collins, TJ Hargrove, and Gibson Jimerson have experience and will be expected to be high-level contributors. Francis Okoro is a significant transfer and fits the age range of those now junior. For all intents and purposes, Jordan Nesbitt is a high-end freshman recruit – top 100 in the nation high end – despite spending 3 months at Memphis. This list of talent doesn’t even include the fantastic depth pieces Travis Ford has added to his core. Transfers like Marten Linssen–who was recently named one of four team captains– and newcomers Rashad Williams and Deandre Jones come with high pedigree and experience and will be vital to success in the short and long term.

All of this is to say, the Billikens are in an odd spot in terms of sports roster construction. On the one hand, they have lost monumental pieces, but what is left behind is a veteran roster who has shown not only the ability to be stars but perhaps a more conducive style to overall success.

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Now, before I say anything too abhorrent regarding the legacy of Hasahn French and Jordan Goodwin. Or imply their departure is in any way exciting, let’s first cover the things that the Billikens will especially miss.

It is going to be damn near impossible to replace the Defense and Rebounding that these two guys provided to the Billikens. We may never see another guard like Jordan Goodwin. How he crashes the boards and creates offense out of nothing. Or the tandem of physical grit the pair brought that will be extremely hard to replicate. No matter how hard you try, including the culture they built, it’s going to be very hard for the current Billikens to replicate what those two men did for the last four years.

But as Billy Beane (or Brad Pitt as Billy Beane) once said, “We can’t replace Giambi. But we can recreate him…recreate him in the aggregate.”

Fortunately for the Billikens, they have a team of talented players who can do what French and Goodwin did in more minor ways and recreate their effect across multiple players. From the center position, Francis Okoro is an excellent start to replacing the production of French. Except instead of having a 6’7ish forward playing the 5, you have a 6’10 center playing that position. A far more traditional center in an A-10 conference that lacks traditional centers. You also have Marten Linssen, who showed a clear commitment to the type of play you want out of him…intensity, dedication, and a team-oriented mindset.

In the guard/wing play, you have plenty of options. Fred Thatch is the first that comes to mind, a physical athletic guard capable of handling the ball and shows a knack for rebounding and giddiness to play physical, tough defense. Terrence Hargrove Jr brings the energy and attitude, Yuri Collins has demonstrated leadership on and off the court, and Jordan Nesbitt has the physical tools (and the name).

The amount of talent this team has compared to when Goodwin and French arrived is drastically different, so the reality of the world this team and its players face is radically different. For example, having a talent like Javonte Perkins in the lineup means no team member needs to feel overwhelming pressure to score. Javonte will be the guy in that case and has earned that respect over two years of production, so now, everyone can just be themselves and focus on their role while adding anything else and not feeling the need to force it. Gibson Jimerson can be your spot-up outside shooter and feel confident taking shots when they come to him; he doesn’t *need* to be anything else but himself. TJ Hargrove can be your energy guy who runs in transition and uses his physical gifts to be an impact player…he doesn’t *need* to be a creator on offense…he has Yuri Collins to create offense for him and everyone else (more on Yuri later).

Of course, you want all these guys to add more, to ascend higher and higher, but now you can allow the game to come to them rather than pressing and forcing uncomfortable growing pains.

The Billikens are going to roll out a multi-faceted attack on offense and a more committee-based approach on defense. Javonte Perkins will assuredly be the lead dog but beyond that, look for a more weaponized offense based on ball movement, shooting, and speed. With new transfers Deandre Jones and Rashad Williams offering high-level outside shooting, speed, and ball handling, it’s evident Travis Ford looks to roll out an attack that will press hard and not be afraid to let it fly.

Travis also recently mentioned a mindset that will make for more exciting Billiken basketball. They will look to put out their best lineups despite what other teams are trying to do. Having so many talented players and looks will give them plenty of options to play with and set up to roll with, to accomplish pretty much anything they want to do.

The loss of your marquee stars will put pressure on everyone to play a new type of basketball…one that requires a certain amount of confidence and selflessness. Last season, Jordan Goodwin often acted as a release valve. If things were floundering or didn’t flow well, Jordan took over and tried to get things moving forward. It wasn’t always the best thing, and that mindset sometimes led to longer stretches of inefficiency, but it worked often and served a vital purpose…Jordan settled stomachs on that team and carried the load of pressure for younger players. Now it’s on them. Players like Gibson, Yuri, Terrence, Francis, Nesbitt, and (to a lesser degree) Javonte need to know when the time to take over is and when the time is to pass up a good shot for a great one.

This is the first in a multipart series serving as a preseason primer to all things Saint Louis University Men’s Basketball for the 2021-22 season. Follow @ScoopswithDannyMac & @ChapleyMedia for updates on subsequent parts!