What Kerr Kriisa's Suspension Means for WVU's Lineup + Rotation

It's been one heck of a month for WVU basketball. In the last thirty days, WVU parted ways with Jose Perez, had the waiver for RaeQuan Battle denied by the NCAA, witnessed a scary situation with Akok Akok collapsing to the floor during the charity exhibition, and now, Kerr Kriisa being handed a nine-game suspension for receiving impermissible benefits while enrolled at the University of Arizona.

For an already young and thin roster, this is a massive hit. Kriisa is one of the two all-league level players the Mountaineers have and for him to miss the first nine games of the season puts WVU in a challenging spot to begin the year.

So what does this mean for the starting lineup and rotation? That's a great question.

For the George Mason exhibition, it was Kriisa, Seth Wilson, Josiah Harris, Akok, and Jesse Edwards. I would expect Kobe Johnson would slide into Kriisa's spot in the interim while Quinn Slazinski moves into Akok's spot at the four. Johnson isn't necessarily an offensive playmaker but he has improved on that end of the floor and is a pass-first guard. Defensively, he is an upgrade over Kriisa and is arguably West Virginia's best on-ball defender. So WVU will lose some production on offense but will gain some on the defensive end.

More importantly, Kriisa's absence further impacts West Virginia's depth. The only other guard eligible to play is Jeremiah Bembry who did not play against George Mason. Josh Eilert has no choice but to get him ready to go and in the rotation. Noah Farrakhan is required to sit out a year and unless the NCAA changes its initial ruling on RaeQuan Battle, Bembry is all they have.

Kerr Kriisa to Serve Nine-Game Suspension

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