Team Fans Got Not Razorbacks Muss Wanted to Build

Arkansas would have been legit national title contenders had Hogs' coach been able to pull off original vision

Author:
Kent Smith
Publish date:
Feb 15, 2024 1:08 PM EST

In this story:

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – A lot of fans woke up today officially done with Razorback basketball.

Another massive blowout at home, even if it was to a Top 10 Tennessee team, was their breaking point. With the promise of baseball starting Friday, they're putting their hearts on the diamond and that's that. Based on the number of seats sadly draped in pink pom poms Wednesday night, that had already taken place even before the game started.

And while fans voice their final frustration at the team Arkansas coach Eric Musselman brought in, it's good to keep in mind this wasn't the team he intended to assemble last spring. That group of Razorbacks looked vastly different.

Cloaked in the confidence of hauling in such a successful recruiting class the year before and also his status as the transfer whisperer, Musselman chose to aim high in the portal. But, before we get there, it's important to remember what he thought he had coming back.

There is good reason to believe that at one point Musselman was confident he was starting with 2023 Davonte Davis, first half of 2023 season's Trevon Brazile and Jordan Walsh. Yes, everyone forgets how things came down to the last possible second with Walsh, and for the longest time the good bet was him staying to develop his game and increase his draft stock.

With that in mind, Musselman set out to fill the missing pieces around that trio with a Who's Who of targets. Unfortunately, through numerous different means, most didn't pan out.

For starters, Dalton Knecht, the current Tennessee guard who probably dropped another 20 points on his way to the bathroom after the game last night, was high on Musselman's vision board. Whether he would have developed into the potential SEC Player of the Year that he has at Tennessee remains to be seen. A big part of his growth centers around Rick Barnes insisting he build an NBA ready body in the gym and that may not have been the case with Musselman.

Alongside Knecht was supposed to be Ron Holland, a freshman phenom from Duncanville, Texas, the national power that gave the Razorbacks Anthony Black. However, after a lot of fit throwing by Texas, as reasonable as it actually was since Holland originally signed with them, the Longhorns finally released Holland from his letter of intent.

What people didn't foresee was the landscape changing under their feet. Instead of coming to Arkansas as expected, Holland decided to head to the G-League where he is averaging 20 points, seven rebounds and three assists per game.

The biggest name in the portal was Hunter Dickinson. The 7-foot-2, 260 pound second team All-American reportedly kicked the tires on the Hogs, but ultimately wound up taking a deal at Kansas.

Last on the list, and yet another big name Musselman seemed confident he could land at Arkansas, was Grant Nelson. A lot of reports indicated he was on his way to becoming a Razorback. However, there a few things he needed to tidy up with classes so he could transfer, which delayed his decision for a long time.

At one point it was thought he might not transfer at all. When it came time, Musselman found himself going head-to-head with his nemesis, Nate Oats.

Much like during the regular season, Oats found a way to one-up the Razorbacks and Nelson headed to Tuscaloosa where he gives the Tide 12 points and six rebounds per night. Had things worked out, the Arkansas team Musselman dreamed about probably would have looked something like this.

• 2023 Davonte Davis
• Early 2023 season Trevon Brazile
• Jordan Walsh
• Dalton Knecht
• Ron Holland
• Hunter Dickinson
• Grant Nelson
• Tramon Mark
• Keyon Menifield
• Jalen Graham
• Layden Blocker
• Baye Fall
•Joseph Pinion

That's a loaded roster that could have won a national championship. It has size. It has scoring. It has length.

There would be concerns about defense in a spot or two, but the effort of Dickinson, Walsh and 2023 Davis would have been enough to pressure the others to step up their games. There is also no reason to believe Holland, at 6-foot-8, wouldn't have grown into a strong defender.

The point is, the team Musselman tried to bring to Arkansas would have easily been a national title contender.

In the end, Musselman had to bring in pieces that appeared to be odd fits when we did our portal breakdowns last spring. Players who showed no desire or skill on defense, ball hogs who couldn't work in a team system, turnover prone guards, and others from programs with bad cultures found a spot at Arkansas.

All that could be said was Musselman tends to know what he is doing, especially with transfers. Although, toward the end of portal season, things didn't seem as promising as it felt like he was just trying to fill out the roster, which made the sudden about-face on Derrian Ford's status without a guarantee of a better player a bit perplexing.

Why Musselman's super team didn't come to fruition remains to be seen. There are a lot of possible reasons, and regardless of what anyone tells you, unless it came from the mouth of Musselman or the since departed Gus Argenal, no one knows for sure.

Odds are it was much easier to pull off last year than for the upcoming season. However, if there is going to be as much turnover as anticipated, Musselman is going to have to find a way.

Hitting on four or five players is hard enough. There's a good chance he may need to hit on 10 or more.

That's a tall order in the best of circumstances. And best circumstances isn't what Musselman will soon face as he tries to load up on talent once again.