Plenty of questions as UNLV Rebels take the court
UNLV returned to Las Vegas from the Bahamas in August knowing much more about what kind of basketball team will take the court this season.
The Rebels had two weeks of practices leading up to the trip to Nassau, then three exhibitions and more practices in the Bahamas.
“I think the value is yet to be determined, but obviously we feel good in planning the practice stage, because when you lay out the blueprint for the year, you’ve got to start somewhere,” first-year coach Marvin Menzies said. “We’re starting a little further ahead than we would have if we had not had that opportunity to be with the guys.”
But as much as Menzies and his assistant coaches learned, they still have many questions remaining as practices begin Friday in preparation for the season, which opens Nov. 11 against South Alabama at the Thomas & Mack Center.
Here are some of those questions:
HOW WILL POINT GUARD SHAKE OUT?
Jalen Poyser, a 6-foot-4-inch sophomore, could be the starter, but he also should be effective at shooting guard. In the final Nassau exhibition, Poyser totaled 28 points, five assists and just two turnovers.
Expect Poyser to play both guard positions during the season, with 6-2 junior college transfer Jovan Mooring possibly sharing the point. Two other possibilities for playing time are walk-ons — 6-0 freshman Jaylan Ballou and 6-2 junior Larry Bush.
“It’s not a position you want to play by committee, obviously,” Menzies said. “We have to zero in on a guy or two, but we’ve got to look at that in practice before we can make that determination of who will be the guy that we go to first and first off the bench once the season begins.”
WHAT DOES THE ADDITION OF TROY BAXTER JR. MEAN TO THE FRONTCOURT?
Baxter, a 6-8 freshman, originally signed with South Florida, but the four-star recruit was given his release and committed to UNLV. ESPN ranked him as the nation’s No. 90 recruit.
“We’re still at the very beginning of trying to identify basketball roles, but we do know he has the potential to be an impact guy,” Menzies said. “So we’re optimistic that he will be able to contribute, but at this stage, there’s no way we know how much.”
Baxter isn’t the only question up front.
Cheickna Dembele, a 6-11 freshman, was outstanding in August practices, according to those who saw the closed workouts, but he wasn’t allowed to play in Nassau because of an NCAA Clearinghouse issue with his transcripts from Africa. Dembele is expected to be cleared soon.
UNLV also is counting on 6-7 senior Tyrell Green, 6-7 senior Christian Jones and 6-8 junior Dwayne Morgan to be key players.
Green returns after missing most of last season with various injuries, and he averaged 11.7 points and 5.3 rebounds in the Bahamas. Jones, a graduate transfer from St. John’s, averaged 15.7 points and 13.0 rebounds in the exhibitions. Morgan didn’t play because of hip surgery, but last season at UNLV, he started 22 games and averaged 5.5 points and 4.7 rebounds.
HOW DEEP WILL THE REBELS GO?
Menzies doesn’t know, and he’s particularly interested to give practice time to players who didn’t get many minutes in the Bahamas, such as Ballou, 6-7 freshman Ben Coupet Jr. and 6-5 freshman Zion Morgan. Then Menzies and his staff will have a better idea.
Until then …
“It kind of leaves that question still unanswered,” Menzies said.
Contact Mark Anderson at manderson@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2914. Follow on Twitter: @markanderson65
