On the latest podcast of The Providence Crier, Mike and I crowdsourced questions and addressed them on the fly on that podcast. We’ve linked the podcast below for convenience.
As a follow-up, I’ve taken some time to think through some of those questions and provide a more fulsome response. Feel free to reply and let us know your thoughts on these questions, as they are simply our opinion, and I love getting a sense of what the Providence fanbase is thinking about the roster, program, etc.
- Who is this year’s X-Factor? I think you can go in many different directions here, but I’ll go with Ryan Mela. Mela was an All-Big East freshman selection alongside Oswin Erhunmwunse, but his impact for next year may be lost in the shuffle of landing elite portal talent. I see Mela as a potential All-Big East type talent as a junior and senior, and I think he is going to be a fundamental piece to the 2025-2026 roster. For Mela to build off his strong freshman campaign, he needs to be more accurate from the perimeter with his three ball, as well as at the charity stripe. Mela was 30% from three and 57% from the free throw line. If he can improve those numbers to 34-35% and 65-70%, respectively, he may average double digits in scoring while still compiling 5-7 rebounds and 2-3 assists per game. For what it’s worth, my other selection would be Jaylin Sellers. There are high hopes for him, but an injury last year may be causing some to sleep on him. He could be a Top 10 scorer in the Big East if fully healthy.
- Who has a bigger impact next year: Jaylen Harrell or Jamier Jones? Anybody who follows me knows that I think the key to being a consistent Top 25 program is marrying strong high school recruiting with selective portal additions (minor in the portal, not major in it). English has shown to be an exceptional evaluator of talent at the prep level with his additions of Oswin, Mela, Barron, and now Jamier and Jaylen. I’m going to go with Jamier Jones due to the current roster construction. This is by no means a knock on Harrell, who I’ve praised as a perfect fit for what English wants at the wing position, but more so a reflection on the current roster composition. The wing is stacked with quantity and quality of talent, and I think a true freshman in Harrell may struggle to break through in this rotation. While Jones is technically a wing, I think he’ll also see some time at the 4 due to necessity. The frontcourt doesn’t have as much depth with just Oswin, Hargrove, and Powell. Jones may have an easier path to playing time for that reason alone.
- With two scholarships open, do you fill them? If so, how? I believe the one missing piece to this roster is a third true big behind Oswin and Hargrove. This person ideally would be a depth add that would only see 5-10 minutes and plays behind Oswin and Hargrove at the 5. I’m envisioning a bigger bodied, 7 footer who can play the 5 if Oswin and Hargrove are in foul trouble. I believe the roster is well-stocked, but an injury to the 5 spot has the potential to derail the season. I’d be much more comfortable with this roster if we were to add another body to the frontcourt. The other position folks may be clamoring for is another true point guard. I am not as concerned there, as I think Edwards and Davis can play the point. If either get hurt, we’ve seen Floyd handle the PG spot in emergency situations in the past (Baha Mar against Georgia). I wouldn’t be opposed to another PG add, but I’m more concerned with adding another 5 than a true 1.
- What are your thoughts on the non-conference schedule for next year? I haven’t done a thorough analysis of the non-conference, nor do I think it is fully complete quite yet, but I like us playing neutral and road games against Power 5 opponents in Penn State and Colorado. The scheduling of a game at Mohegan as a “neutral site” is an astute move as that should be a de-facto home game for the Friars…but you still need to win that one (see St. Bonaventure game last year).
- What is the plan for Oswin to stay on the court for longer than twenty minutes? The million dollar question. Oswin was arguably our best player next year, but he was often his own worst enemy getting into early foul trouble. There was a Twitter handle (name escapes me, apologies) who did a +- analysis of Providence with and without Oswin on the court, and the numbers were eye opening. His impact as a true freshman far exceeded my expectations. I think the answer is another year of Big East basketball will have him being a more savvy player and not getting silly fouls. He needs to walk that fine line between aggressive and reckless play. Easier said behind a keyboard than done, obviously. There’s no easy answer here, but English and staff need to hammer home how important he is and that he must do everything to stay on the court. He’ll probably be again the most important player for the Friars next year, and that is saying something given all the additions Providence made. He’s a special talent.
- What is Duncan Powell’s role? The Shag-Man aka Corner Man aka Janky Man is more likely than not going to be Providence’s starting 4 man alongside Oswin in the frontcourt. He is a good inside out player who will threaten opposition from deep as well as on the glass and in the paint. I like the addition because he will help spread the defense out and open up driving lanes for the guards and wings. I also like his ability to rebound, and he’ll be a fan-favorite with his energy and hustle. He’ll have his fair share of plays where he was the catalyst for a second chance opportunity with keeping loose balls alive that lead to a bucket for Providence. Lastly, his physical maturity and time spent in college will allow him to guard 4’s in the Big East, something that was a killer for the Friars last year.
- How long will it take for Daquan Davis to be your starting point guard? This is a fascinating question because Davis is probably the best pure point on the roster right now. Edwards has been penciled in as the starting one, but he is more of a combo guard at this point. I think folks are hesitant to put Davis in the starting line-up alongside Edwards because both are smaller in stature for a Big East backcourt (see Joseph and Pierre last year). We’re not in the gym with the team though, so English may see the defensive capabilities of Davis as too much of an asset for him to come off the bench. This is one storyline I’m looking forward to watching develop this offseason. Regardless, Davis is Providence’s point guard of the future and will see a ton of minutes this year.
- Are they setting Edwards up for failure by playing him as the pseudo point guard in the starting line-up? I put this next to the Davis question, as I think this is something that will be hashed out during the offseason. Edwards is a pure scorer, but has shown the ability to orchestrate an offense. If the offense stagnates early in the season due to a lack of a “true point”, we’ll know in short order, and Davis will get the call-up to run the show alongside Edwards.
- Who is the biggest impact sleeper next year? This is definitely different than biggest X factor, but a lot of the same names could likely be chosen for either question. For this one, I’m going to go with Cole Hargrove. Hargrove is going to get a lot of minutes at the back-up 4 and 5 spot, in my opinion, and isn’t being talked about enough for a guy who probably plays 20-25 minutes a game between the two positions. I foresee a stat line of 8 and 6 with 1-2 blocks/game. There’s also a scenario where his junior year explosion at LaSalle shows the light bulb has “gone on” and he emerges as the starting 4 man for Providence. Other choices for me would be Daquan Davis and Stefan Vaaks.
- How is it going to work on defense in conference with our smaller lead guards? I’m not worried about this unless English decides to play Edwards and Davis alongside each other, which I don’t believe will happen too frequently. While both are not optimal size for the 1 in the Big East, they would be playing alongside a “2” in Sellers and Floyd that are plus sized for their position and incredibly physical. They also will have Oswin patrolling the paint to eliminate any mistakes on the perimeter. For what it is worth, I don’t think people will be able to pick on Davis despite his size. He can defend.
- Team’s Achilles Heel? I would say right now it is size in the frontcourt. This frontcourt isn’t very big. Oswin will make a physical jump this offseason I’d imagine and Hargrove is well-built, but there isn’t a lot of height in this frontcourt. I don’t foresee this being too much of an issue, but playing against some big bodies could lead to early foul trouble for both players, and we don’t have an answer to that. It is why I have been insistent on adding another frontcourt depth piece.
- What is a reasonable goal for this season? This season is a failure if they don’t make the NCAA tournament. It is tournament or bust for English in his third year at Providence. His seat is warm (and should be quite frankly). The school has supported him completely with NIL. There are no more excuses with players sitting out or players being injured. This roster is almost entirely Kim’s guys so this year we should see an ideal version of what Kim wants his team to look like. Anything less than an NCAA tournament bid is a failed season.
OK, so through this entire column Stefan Vaaks name was mentioned one time. My question is, have you seen this kid play in the European Pro League? Has all the tools to be a special player right from the jump. He’s playing in a league of grown men and at times is dominating. No question he can hit the three, he’s consistent at the FT line and see’s the entire floor when passing. So, where am I off? Or, was it just an unintentional slight? Seems to me that above all else, this team needs a high IQ bball player that can make everybody better on the court not just some high-priced one-dimensional athletes who bring high level energy and an attitude. Where am I wrong?