What Isaac Asuma's B1G Media Days invite reveals about his 2025-26 role with Gophers

Asuma will be a leader of Minnesota Golden Gophers basketball going forward.

Feb 1, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers guard Isaac Asuma (1) drives towards the basket as Washington Huskies guard Tyler Harris (8) defends during the first half at Williams Arena. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images | Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

Is it being hyperbolic to make dramatic assumptions about which players are invited to Big Ten Media Days? Probably, but we're going to do it anyway.

The Big Ten announced that Gophers sophomore guard and Colorado State transfer forward Jaylen Crocker-Johnson will be joining first-year head coach Niko Medved at the conference's annual event on October 8-9 at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, Illinois.

NEWS: Niko Medved will be joined by Gophers' sophomore guard Isaac Asuma and Colorado State transfer big man Jaylen Crocker-Johnson at Big Ten media days next month.

A pretty notable honor for both players on a roster with a lot of new faces. https://t.co/b5Vs72cLjI pic.twitter.com/V7wmAb2mXd

— Tony Liebert (@TonyLiebert) September 30, 2025

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Crocker-Johnson is the only player on Minnesota's roster who has played for Medved before, so it shouldn't come as a huge surprise that the junior forward has been chosen to represent the program. I believe it's significant that Asuma was chosen as the other player to make the trip to Chicago.

Medved has spoken about how much of a priority it was to retain Asuma, and how important a piece he is for the future of the program, but opting to bring a true sophomore to represent your program says a lot about the trust the staff has in the Cherry, Minnesota native.

Mar 12, 2025; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Minnesota Golden Gophers guard Isaac Asuma (1) dribbles the ball while Northwestern Wildcats guard Justin Mullins (20) defends in the second half at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images | Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

"He's a really talented young man, but he's just an exceptional dude. I just love being around this guy every day," Medved said earlier in September about Asuma. "He just needs to continue to get better and kind of find that fire in him and that confidence that he can really be a guy. I think you'll start to see him grow that way this year."

Minnesota brought in a pair of veteran transfer portal guards this offseason, who have experience contributing at the Division I level. Chansey Willis Jr. from Western Michigan and Langston Reynolds from Northern Colorado are both capable of starting. The question becomes, what does Minnesota's starting backcourt look like?

Dec 30, 2024; East Lansing, Michigan, USA; Western Michigan Broncos guard Chansey Willis Jr. (2) gets trapped by Michigan State Spartans guard Jaden Akins (3) during the first half at Jack Breslin Student Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Dale Young-Imagn Images | Dale Young-Imagn Images

Bringing Asuma to Big Ten Media Days makes it hard to think he's not in the starting lineup. He flashed potential last season as a true freshman, averaging 5.6 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game. He likely has the highest potential out of any player on Minnesota's roster, so it would make sense for Medved to let him loose in a season without many expectations.

Whether Willis or Reynolds join Asuma in the backcourt remains to be seen, but the Gophers will have two exhibition games next month against North Dakota State (Oct. 16) and North Dakota State (Oct. 25) to experiement.