Welcome to my team preview series for 2024-25. Each day between now and the start of the college basketball season, I will preview one team or conference, both on Instagram (@collegehoopsoutlet) and through an article here. The preview will go in-depth on the roster build of the team, my expectations for their upcoming season, and the state of the program under their current head coach.
Baylor (Projected: 4th in Big 12)
After solidifying himself as one of the best active coaches in college basketball with his national championship victory in 2021, Scott Drew has been able to get out of the first weekend in the NCAA Tournament. This year’s roster has the talent to do so, but it will be up to Drew to mold together the mix of returners, transfers, and incoming freshmen into something special by March.
It will be a rather new looking lineup in 2024-25 for the Bears, but two experienced guards headline the group of four returners. Jayden Nunn (11 ppg) and Langston Love (11 ppg) each scored in bunches last season, and if they each take their game to the next level, the Bears could have one of the best backcourts in college basketball. Nunn transferred in from VCU last season, starting all 35 games in his first season with the Bears, and establishing himself as a three-level scorer at the Big 12 level. Love, a junior, came off the bench in all 24 games he played in last season, but played 25 mpg and should be in for a similar role this year. Love can also score from all three levels, hitting 48.0% of his three-point attempts on over three attempts per game.
The lone frontcourt returner for the Bears is Josh Ojianwuna (5 ppg). Ojianwuna was the backup big for breakout freshman Yves Missi last season and should now have his turn to start. Ojianwuna is a physical body in the paint and his limited role last season, made 73.5% of his shot attempts. Ojianwuna doesn’t need to be a focal point offensively with the guys that will surround him but needs to have a positive impact on the defensive end and on the glass.
Scott Drew lost eight players in the offseason, including four starters from his 24-win team last season. In the backcourt, freshman stud Ja’Kobe Walter (15 ppg, 4 rpg), senior RayJ Dennis (14 ppg, 4 rpg, 7 apg), junior Dantwan Grimes (5 ppg), and freshman Miro Little (2 ppg) all headed out the door. The Baylor frontcourt lost senior Jalen Bridges (12 ppg, 6 rpg), freshman stud Yves Missi (11 ppg, 6 rpg), senior Caleb Lohner (2 ppg), and senior Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua (1 ppg).
Scott Drew only picked up three transfers from the portal, but he was very efficient with the guys he was able to land. Jeremy Roach (14 ppg at Duke) should step in instantly to the starting point guard role, coming over with four years of experience as the starter at Duke. Roach developed a consistent three-point shot last season to combine with his scoring and playmaking ability, and you can’t go wrong with an ultra-experienced guard from the high major level. Jalen Celestine (9 ppg at Cal) is another incoming transfer with multiple years of power conference experience, hitting 44.0% of his threes on four attempts per game last season at Cal.
Norchad Omier (17 ppg, 10 rpg at Miami) is the star newcomer in the frontcourt, an undersized but extremely talented big who played a big role in Miami’s Final Four run in 23. Omier is a dominant rebounder at just 6-7 and is also a very good defender. Omier should thrive in Scott Drew’s system and may see some time at the center spot with the plethora of talented guards and wings Baylor has. Yanis Ndjonga (JUCO) transferred up to Baylor last offseason but tore his ACL over the summer and wasn’t healthy for the 2023-24 season. At 6-8, he will be another guy that can help in the frontcourt rotation behind Omier and Ojianwuna.
Four talented freshmen fill out Scott Drew’s roster for 2024-25. VJ Edgecombe (5*, NAT 4) is an extremely athletic finisher at 6-5, and his overall talent slots him into the projected starting lineup in my eyes. With experienced guys around him, I think he has the chance to shine as a scoring wing as a freshman, just as Ja’Kobe Walter did for the Bears last season. Rob Wright (4*, NAT 27) was an early commit in the class for the Bears and should see time as the primary backup point guard option behind Jeremy Roach. Jason Asemota (4*, NAT 44) was another early commit to Scott Drew, a floor-spacing four man that could see time in the frontcourt rotation. Marino Dubravcic (Croatia) signed this summer for the Bears and is the only other true center option for Baylor this season behind Josh Ojianwuna.
Scott Drew has done a video game YouTuber-type rebuild at Baylor over the last 21 seasons, culminating in winning the national championship in 2021. Now consistently one of the best teams in college basketball, Baylor looks to be the home for Scott Drew until he retires, having turned down the open job at Kentucky this offseason. Drew has plenty of talent on this year’s squad, and I think it would be seen as a major disappointment if the Bears failed to reach the Sweet 16 for the fourth consecutive season.
Adding Jeremy Roach and Norchad Omier via the transfer portal to this already talented team gives me great hope for what this team can accomplish offensively. The defensive side is where things have dropped off in recent seasons, and I’m interested to see how the frontcourt for this team plays out. My X-factor for this team is Josh Ojianwuna, as I believe he has big shoes to fill after the departure of Yves Missi. If Ojianwuna can become a formidable Big 12 center, the sky is the limit for Baylor.
The Big 12 should be an absolute gauntlet this season, and Baylor will be in the mix at the top. With teams like Kansas, Houston, Iowa State, and Arizona also in the mix though, it’s hard to project how a very different looking Baylor team will do. The talent is there in the backcourt and Omier should be an important piece in the frontcourt, so I’ve got the Bears finishing 4th in the Big 12, placing them somewhere between 7th and 15th nationally.