SEC Return Rankings: Where Does Mizzou Hoops Land?
Missouri Tigers men's basketball is set to welcome a slew of new faces next season. But change might be for the best after what was a disappointing 12-21 record in 2022.
With all the new changes around the SEC, 247Sports revealed its conference program rankings on Saturday for next season based on the returning talent for each team. Forward Ronnie DeGray III along with sibling tandem of Kobe Brown and Kaleb Brown are the only three returners for the Tigers and new coach Dennis Gates, leaving Mizzou further down the rankings at No. 10.
Here's what 247Sports had to say:
Kobe Brown, Ronnie DeGray III and Kaleb Brown are the only players slated to return next season for Missouri. Brown was Missouri's leading scorer and DeGray flashed a lot of upside. But Missouri has a real chance to be frisky in Year 1 under Dennis Gates due to the No. 7-rated transfer portal class. Missouri stole prized Missouri State transfer Isiaih Mosley away from Mississippi State. Mosley was the No. 7 player in the transfer portal, according to 247Sports, and he'll headline the Tigers' backcourt, alongside Clemson transfer Nick Honor. Missouri will have a big Missouri Valley Conference flavor thanks to the addition of Northern Iowa star Noah Carter. So even with limited returners, it's clear Missouri's overall roster has upgraded in a big way under Gates.
Kobe Brown was the do-it-all man for the Tigers last season. He led the team in scoring (12.5 points), rebounds (7.6), and steals (1.2), while totaling the second-most assists (81), blocks (28), and steals (40) on the roster. Without the 6-8 forward's return, the Tigers would be in deep water heading into 2022-23.
His brother, Kaleb, totaled just 24 points as a freshman last season but should see an increased role as he continues to grow as a guard in the SEC.
DeGray III was a key depth piece for the Tigers. He was solid on the wing, averaging 8.3 points, 4.6 rebounds, and one assist on 44.7 percent shooting while playing in all 33 games.
Missouri could find itself near the top of these rankings next offseason based on some of the talent the program has hauled in since the season concluded.
The most recent and undoubtedly most important addition was that of Missouri State guard and Colombia, MO native Isiaih Mosley, who committed to the Tigers on Monday after remaining one of the top available players in the transfer portal.
Mosley was one of the best scorers in college basketball this past season. At 20.4 points per game. he had the 15th-highest scoring average in the nation while averaging 6.8 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.2 steals on an impressive 50.4 percent shooting clip.
Along with the transfer additions of Clemson's Nick Honor, Northern Iowa's Noah Carter, and a Cleveland State duo of D'Moi Hodge and Tre Gomillion, who followed Gates to Columbia, the Tigers have an interesting year ahead of them.
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