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.
SMU (Projected: 13th in ACC)
SMU kicked off one of the most entertaining college coaching carousels in a long time this spring when they let go of Rob Lanier after just two seasons. The firing of Lanier directly led to Eric Musselman going to USC, John Calipari going to Arkansas, and Mark Pope going to Kentucky. The Mustangs replaced Lanier with former USC head coach Andy Enfield, who could read the writing on the wall at USC after a very disappointing season. Enfield hopes for a fresh start at SMU and has an exciting yet tough task ahead of him as he looks to build up SMU as they head into the ACC.
Three players will holdover from the coaching change, most notably senior guard Chuck Harris (13 ppg). Harris, an efficient three-level scorer, transferred in from Butler last offseason and finished second on the team in scoring this past season. Harris shot 43.2% from the field and 40.7% from three with more than two makes a game.
The other two returners are Keon Ambrose-Hylton (7 ppg, 4 rpg) and BJ Edwards (4 ppg). Both Ambrose-Hylton and Edwards started the majority of games they played in last season. Ambrose-Hylton is a physical forward and a good offensive rebounder. Edwards can do a bit of everything in the backcourt, averaging nearly three assists per game in 19 mpg.
Eight players left the program this offseason for the Mustangs, most notably the team’s leading scorer, Zhuric Phelps (15 ppg, 4 rpg). The backcourt also lost Ricardo Wright (7 ppg), Jalen Smith (6 ppg), and Emory Lanier (4 ppg). The Mustangs’ frontcourt lost Samuell Williamson (8 ppg, 7 rpg), Tyreek Smith (8 ppg, 5 rpg), Ja’Heim Hudson (5 ppg, 4 rpg), and Mo Njie (1 ppg).
Andy Enfield worked the transfer portal tirelessly this offseason, landing seven transfers. The biggest portal pickup was Kevin “Boopie” Miller (16 ppg, 4 apg at Wake Forest). Miller is a streaky scorer and a talented passer, leading the Demon Deacons in assists last season and finishing second in scoring. The other transfer projected to start in the Mustangs’ backcourt is Kario Oquendo (7 ppg at Oregon). Oquendo brings three years of high-major experience and great physicality with him from Oregon. AJ George (11 ppg, 4 rpg at Long Beach State) rounds out the guards in Enfield’s first transfer class at SMU. George is an athletic wing who scored double-figures in 10 of The Beach’s last 11 games of 2023-24 and had a season-high 28 points in a road win over CSU-Bakersfield on February 1st.
The frontcourt added four new pieces in the transfer, most notably UMass transfer Matt Cross (15 ppg, 8 rpg at UMass). Cross is a terrific rebounder, good defender, and has great scoring ability inside the arc. He’ll likely form a “Big 3” with Kevin Miller and Chuck Harris for the Mustangs, my top three projected scorers for the team. Yohan Traore (15 ppg, 5 rpg at UCSB) will likely start next to Cross in the frontcourt. Traore played his freshman season at Auburn before transferring down and breakout as a sophomore at UCSB. Traore’s athleticism at the five is high-major level and when you combine his scoring ability with that of Cross, the Mustangs have a formidable frontcourt offensively. Tibet Gorener (11 ppg, 4 rpg at San Jose State) and Jerrell Colbert (3 ppg at Kansas State) round out the list of transfers for the Mustangs. Gorener provides an option as a stretch-four, while Colbert is another option as more of a traditional big.
To round out the roster, Andy Enfield landed three high school recruits in the class of 2024. Mitchell Holmes (3*, NAT 158) is the highest ranked out of the trio, a 6-10 forward who will compete for minutes in the SMU frontcourt. Chance Puryear (3*, NAT 205) stands at 6-7, more of a wing than a forward, and has a shooting ability that will allow him to have a chance at entering the rotation as a freshman. Turkish big man Samet Yigitoglu rounds out the recruiting class with his massive 7-1 frame.
Andy Enfield didn’t really get the most out of his rosters at USC outside of the Elite Eight run in 2021. Hopefully SMU gives him a fresh start and he brings together his roster, but I’m skeptical on buying into an Enfield-coached team at the current moment.
Entering the ACC this season, I do think Enfield put together a roster that is on par talent-wise with the rest of the middle of the conference. The X-factor for this team in my opinion is Oregon transfer Kario Oquendo. If Oquendo can come into the ACC and take a jump in production in his final season, he becomes an extremely viable third guard for SMU. If Oquendo fails to take a step forward, a lot of weight will fall on returner BJ Edwards and Long Beach State transfer AJ George.
Overall, this SMU team has enough talent to be competitive in the ACC, but I’m skeptical of Andy Enfield in his first season in charge. I’ve got the Mustangs to finish 13th in the now-18 team ACC. A 13th place finish would be slightly disappointing for Enfield in year one, but something to build on in the Mustangs first year in the ACC.