Ranking Every WVU Player With Eligibility Remaining Ross Hodge Must Retain

West Virginia's season may not be over just yet, but the planning for the 2026-27 season has already begun. Who are the Mountaineers Ross Hodge and his staff need to do everything possible to retain? I ranked every potential returning player.

Top Priority: Amir Jenkins and DJ Thomas

If Ross Hodge is able to retain these two, which I anticipate he will, then it will be deemed a successful retention window, if you ask me. Of what is returning, these are the two with the most potential, and it's not really close. I threw them together because I don't think you can truly separate them at the moment by value, and holding onto only one would be a massive letdown.

This offseason, Jenkins has to expand his offensive game and gain more confidence in his shot. That's not just his three-ball, either. He has the quickness to blow by defenders, yet rarely goes to the cup with the ball. Getting stronger and adding some weight should help him absorb contact better. Defensively, he's already legit and could be an All-Big 12 caliber defender by next season.

As for DJ, there are a lot of promising things to work with offensively. He's got a beautiful form shooting it, just has to connect more often to truly stretch the floor. I thought for a freshman, he did an okay job at finishing underneath, but went through some up-and-down stretches. Has to be better with the ball in his hands, and once he can create his own shot, he'll be a problem.

No. 2: F Jayden Forsythe

Forsythe can really shoot the three-ball, connecting on 38% of his shots from the perimeter in his final year of high school. You may have forgotten because of the play of the two guys above and the addition of Miles Sadler in the 2026 class, but Forsythe was a four-star recruit. There's a lot of potential, especially if he becomes a three-level scorer. Don't sleep on this kid.

No. 3: Jackson Fields

Jackson Fields? This high? Yes! You may think West Virginia may be better off letting him hit the transfer portal, but I'd say bringing him back as a versatile bench piece would go a long way in establishing frontcourt depth. He already knows the system and produced when he played serious minutes. In the two high-major games he played 15+ minutes in, he scored seven points to go along with four rebounds in each game vs. Wake Forest and Ohio State. Incredibly bouncy and can offer some rim protection.

No. 4: Evans Barning Jr.

Barning is another freshman who took a redshirt year, so he's one we still don't know much about. He reclassified just like Jenkins did, so expectations for him this year were virtually non-existent. They wanted to get him into the program and with the strength staff. He's long, athletic, can shoot it, and can really get up. He's the wild card of the bunch.

No. 5: Morris Ugusuk

The South Carolina transfer had a disappointing season, shooting just 27% from three-point range after connecting on 40% a year ago with the Gamecocks. On top of that, he struggled on the defensive end as well against high majors, which is why he fell out of the rotation. I'm not convinced that he returns, but if he does, he'll need to at the very least be a good defender to see the floor.

No. 6: Abraham Oyeadier

Does Oyeadier stick around? I'm not sure. He's incredibly raw and has played a grand total of two minutes in two seasons at WVU.