Projected Depth Chart and Rotation

After Davidson’s phenomenal 2021/22 Men’s Basketball season the program experienced the most tumultuous offseason it has faced for the better part of 15 years. This offseason was far less noisy but still quite busy. Foster Loyer graduated, Sam Mennenga went pro in the NBL after attending Davidson for 7 semesters, rising Junior Des Watson transferred to Loyola-Chicago, and walk-on Michael Katsock entered the portal but ultimately decided to return. On the recruiting front McKillop and the Staff missed out on some of their early targets and decided to not pursue others, but ultimately rebounded well and added Junior guard Jarvis Moss, a transfer from Stanford, and German Big Man Rikus Schulte. So with the offseason recapped let’s look where things stand.

For starters here’s the scholarship chart:

The first thing to point out is that Skogman, Kochera, and Huffman are all entering their 4th year of College but have the choice to return for a 5th season if they’d like courtesy of the extra covid year. At this moment we don’t have any information about whether any of them will or won’t use that extra year but for now we are assuming they won’t. If we get any information, we will duly update our assumptions. Second, Achile Spadone is not listed because he isn’t on scholarship BUT he’s certainly proven himself to be part of the rotation. This is bolstered even further by the fact that Spadone made the Swiss Men’s SENIOR National Team, quite the feat for a 19-year-old.

Now for our projected depth chart. A typical McKillop Davidson team features a regular 8-man rotation with an emergency big and guard who can play in a pinch. Last season Sean Logan filled the emergency big role while Achile Spadone filled the emergency guard spot. Lineups often feature 2 guards who can handle the ball, 2 interchangeable bigs, and a wing. In the Davidson system the 4 is arguably the critical position as the position requires someone who has guard capabilities on offense but can play like a big on the defensive end, battling for rebounds and banging down low. Reed Bailey needs to add some strength and experience but is perfectly suited for this role. David Skogman can, and did, fill this role a lot last year and did it quite well too in the latter half of the season, evidenced by his near 50/40/90 stat line last year.

Going off all of this, here is what I expect the Davidson rotation to look like:

Starters

Guard: Angelo Brizzi => 30 minutes/game

Guard/Wing: Grant Huffman => 30 minutes/game

Wing: Connor Kochera => 20 minutes/game

Big/Small Ball 4: Reed Bailey => 25 minutes/game

Big: David Skogman => 25 minutes/game

Bench

First Guard off the Bench: Jarvis Moss => 20 minutes/game

First Wing off the Bench: Bobby Durkin => 20 minutes/game

First Big off the Bench: Sean Logan => 15 minutes/game

Emergency Guard: Achile Spadone => 10 minutes/game

Emergency Big: Schulte => 5 minutes/game

Now let’s look under the hood and I’ll show my math for how I got here. First, Brizzi and Huffman are going to play A LOT as they’re the two best lead guards on the roster and the McKillops are known for keeping their main guards out there; case in point, JAG averaged over 36 minutes/game his last 3 seasons and Kellan averaged 35.8 minutes/game over his 4 seasons in the Red and Black. That said, both guys are capable off-ball as well, so they’ll see the floor a lot together. Ultimately, I expect at least one to always be on the floor except for garbage time. If one picks up an injury or fouls, then Spadone or Loughnane will step up as the next lead guard on the roster. For now I give the advantage to Spadone since he filled the role last year and spent the summer practicing and playing with the Swiss Men’s Senior National Team. Comparisons to a taller Rusty Reigel were thrown around this summer as both are capable shooters, ball handlers, and hard-nosed defenders and I really like that comparison.

Loughnane is not one to disregard though as he’s very talented and has produced at every level of basketball he has competed in, including this past season when he was a postgrad and played against high level New England Prep schools. Loughnane also played AAU ball for Middlesex Magic, an AAU program that has produced a ton of D1 and even a few NBA players including Duncan Robinson. I’ve heard Loughnane get compared to current Cat Grant Huffman in terms of athleticism and he’s also an elite 3-point shooter. Even if Loughnane doesn’t contribute a ton on the court this season he will sooner rather than later. Thus, Loughnane and Spadone will be a competition to keep an eye on.

Second, I went with Kochera as the starting wing. Kochera struggled at first last season and was ultimately moved to the bench in favor of Des Watson. Kochera did not take the move as a demotion though and he worked hard to improve and provided some very good moments in conference play. If he can play like he did during the 12-game stretch that encompassed most of January and February where he shot 43% from 3, 72% from 2, rebounded well, and showed improved defensive focus, awareness, and positioning then he will have a clearcut spot in the rotation. He won’t get his spot without competition though, Jarvis Moss, the transfer from Stanford, and freshmen Bobby Durkin and Hunter Adam will push him very hard for playing time.

Moss did not put up a lot of stats in his two years at Stanford, but he was a highly sought after high school recruit from local Concord, North Carolina. He also possesses some impressive bounce and 3-point shooting ability that would’ve had any Wildcat fan incredibly excited to land him out of High School. I think he’s a perfect fit for the system and if he doesn’t beat out Kochera then he will assuredly provide good minutes off the bench. Bobby Durkin was a high 3-star recruit who did a postgrad year at IMG and had a multitude of Power 6 offers. He reminds me of Kishawn Pritchett and brings elite 3-point shooting and passing with him to Davidson. Hunter Adam is a physical player who has received high praise from overseas recruiting experts. He also spent the spring semester at Davidson practicing with the team and getting used to life in America. I’ve been told he looks really good defensively and was immediately one of, if not the best defensive player on the team last year in practices. I’ve also been told by recruiting experts that his 3-point shot is a work in progress though and that’s the only thing holding me back from having him higher right now.

Ultimately, both Adam (thanks to his defense and physicality) and Durkin (thanks to his offensive abilities, especially his shooting) will be key pieces for Matt McKillop but right now they’re slightly behind the more experienced Kochera and Moss. I would not be surprised if either are key rotational players by the end of the season though, maybe even starters. Both freshmen also have the size and physicality to play the 4 as well, which should help them see the floor as much as possible.

Finally, I went with Skogman as the starting 5 but wouldn’t be surprised to see Logan or even Schulte starting in that spot this season. Skogman will almost certainly play starter’s minutes no matter what but his ability to play either big spot may mean he starts games off the bench. I’m fairly confident in this prediction because Skogman fought through a tough start to his Davidson career last season to become a key rotational piece as the season went on. Now that he’s fully acclimated to the system, I expect him to continue his improved play. Logan can’t be ignored though. He has some tantalizing tools and upside and can provide shot blocking that Davidson has not had in a very long time. He was also very raw last season, which is expected for a freshman big and put cap on his playing time. If he’s added strength and is fully versed in the system, then he could explode this season. Schulte is another player I like a lot. He’s a rock-solid player who looks like the prototypical Davidson big with his cerebral and skillful play. Schulte has also played legitimate minutes against professionals in Germany which is quite the asset to bring to the table as a freshman. Short-term I expect him to fill the emergency big role and provide competent minutes when needed. Longer term the amount of success he has will come down to whether he can extend his range out to the 3-point line. I’m confident in his long-term prognosis but that is not a question for right now.

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