Dennis Gates and Mizzou's Unique Approach to the 2025 Offseason

Gates and his staff reverted back to old methods of relying on player development to round out his upcoming roster.

Feb 12, 2025; Columbia, Missouri, USA; Missouri Tigers head coach Dennis Gates reacts during the second half against the Oklahoma Sooners at Mizzou Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images | Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

It's rare to see any sort of college athletics program focus on player retention and not head to the transfer portal to build a roster. However, it does still happen, including in Columbia, Misosuri.

That seems to be the case for head coach Dennis Gates and the Missouri Tigers, who have reverted to an older approach when it comes to roster completion for the coming season. After multiple years of high-level high school recruiting and multiple big additions in the transfer portal, Gates has pulled a complete 180.

The Tigers have added four transfer portal talents so far, with more potentially on the way, but none of them are the fun, shiny additions like others in the past.

In recent years, Gates has added the likes of Tamar Bates, Mark Mitchell and other high-profile transfers. This time around, Gates has only one guy in the top-150 transfers, according to 247Sports. All of that and more begs the question: What is the plan for Dennis Gates?

That answer is pretty clear and it's slightly unorthodox for where things stand in college sports. In a college basketball world where some players transfer two to three times, Gates has managed to keep a large chunk of his core from last year. Despite losing nearly 50% of his production with veterans like Bates, Caleb Grill and more departing the program, he still has a large part of his roster from last year to build off.

"Recruiting our own guys is very important," Gates said in a press conference April 29. "I'm excited about this group that we have returning."

It's not a completely foreign concept and Missouri isn't the only team to follow this same path, but to revert from being active in the transfer portal and reeling in top-10 high school classes is an interesting concept. There may not be a certain method to Gates' madness and the reasoning for it appears to be crystal clear.

There is a group of young players, along with some returning veterans, that should have the Tigers set up for some levels of success next season. Bringing back Anthony Robinson, Trent Pierce, Mitchell and Jacob Crews is the first step of that. Maintaining a young core of T.O. Barrett, Annor Boateng and Trent Burns is the next one.

Many teams next season will be completely restarting their rosters. In fact, at the start of the season and the time leading up to the start, many of the teams that will litter the preseason top 25 and the rankings in the opening weeks will be teams that spent tons of money and added high-profile transfers. Building team chemistry without the cornerstones of a program is much harder than when you have those, which Gates will.

"Player development is at an all-time high," Gates said. "Because once you retain, you have a group of guys that you're able to now, share your culture, share your mantra, and they get to pass that to the new guys."

Robinson has made it clear that he plans on taking a step up in leadership next season and Mitchell is also an outspoken leader. Barrett and Boateng have shown glimpses of being contributors and with another year of development, along with a year of experience, they will also be able to be part of that core.

The Tigers also return unique big man Trent Burns, who will play his redshirt freshman season with the Tigers. The former four-star recruit is listed as 7-foot-5 on the team roster as of last season, bringing a remarkable amount of size, speed and athleticism for his size. He may be the player that Missouri fans are most excited to see next season.

Mississippi State Bulldogs forward Cameron Matthews (4) passes while pressured by Missouri Tigers guard Anthony Robinson II (0) during their second round game of the SEC Men's Basketball Tournament at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., Thursday, March 13, 2025. | Denny Simmons / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

None of those players returning will matter if there isn't a clear and plan for developing those returners. The younger players, among others, still have areas where they must improve in order to take the next step. Many of those areas revolve around offensive and emotional consistency, which can get better with a strong offseason.

This is going to be an important year for Gates as a coach. A down season might not end well for Gates, especially if there is a lack of success in the SEC portion of the schedule. In some ways, having a core of players to bring with him for this important season might be better than having a new roster full of transfers.

Gates has established a trend, outside of this offseason, of improving his roster by utilizing the transfer portal. That's not completely untrue this offseason, but now he will fall back on his returning players, his coaching staff and the idea of player development in order to find success in the 2025-26 season.