We are going to spend the next week getting you ready for Summit League action, which kicks off as does the entire college basketball world. It seemed the best way to kick off preview week is to give you one player from each Summit League team that is worth watching and one player from each team that might surprise you this season. So let’s get into it.
Denver
Player to Watch
G Tevin Smith, FR
Smith is the highest-rated recruit in Denver program history and finds himself in a prime situation to showcase his abilities. One thing that I can safely say that the thing that may make Smith the player to watch is he would likely already win if Denver held a dunk contest. Blessed with a good ability to get to the basket, a decent midrange game, and the ability to fly. Smith will have Pioneer and Summit league fans saying “did you see that” all season. Smith will be in a prime position to play a lot of minutes all season and maybe a core building block to the Jeff Wulbrun era.
Could Surprise
F Mikey Henn, SR
A 6’8 grad transfer from Portland, Henn likely walked right into the starting lineup the day he walked onto the Denver campus. Henn walks into a similar situation to that Will Carius walked into last year with Western Illinois and appears to have a somewhat similar skill set. Henn averaged 7.8 points per game last season with Portland in the West Coast conference but seems to be in a situation where he will play major minutes and be counted on to do a lot of scoring. Henn shot 40% from three last year and appears as comfortable on the perimeter as he does down low.
Kansas City
Player to Watch
F Josiah Allick, SO
Allick jumped from 5 points per game in his first year and 15 in his second. Now with Brandon McKissic transferring to Florida, Allick becomes the star on this Kansas City team and seems up to the task. Word is Allick continued to build on his ability from range in addition to his already polished ability in the post. Sometimes stepping up in your role can be challenging for a player, but it seems like Allick will be unphased. His confidence continued to grow all year last season and he’s got help on the offensive end in Kansas City. We may be looking at the next Summit League star.
Could Surprise
F Arkel Lamar, SR
Injuries have derailed Lamar the last couple of seasons, but those brief glimpses we have seen have shown the injuries have not derailed the talent. In only 5 games last season Lamar averaged 11 points and 6 rebounds. Lamar showed constant effort, and range in that brief time last year. At 25 Lamar knows this is his last season and will be motivated this season. If Lamar can stay healthy this season, Lamar might be in consideration for postseason honors.
North Dakota
Player to Watch
G Bentiu Panoam, SR
If there was a knowledge bowl with Summit League basketball teams, North Dakota may run away with it. Whether it is Panoam who has his master’s degree or forward Mitchell Sueker who is going for his doctorate in something I can’t pronounce and likely working on curing a disease I can’t pronounce. The Fighting Hawks are doing it in the classroom. Not only in the classroom, but on the court when North Dakota needed a big shot, big play, or just big hustle, it seemed Panoam was always in the middle of it. Expect more of the same this season.
Could Surprise
G Caleb Nero, SO
Nero never seemed to quite find his rhythm and confidence last season. He would have stretches where he looked like a legit Summit League scorer and others where he couldn’t find his way on the court. With the losses of Filip Rebraca and Tyree Ihenacho, the Fighting Hawks are going to need players to step up. It seems chances are good that Nero could finish the season leading North Dakota in scoring this season.
North Dakota State
Player to Watch
F Rocky Kreuser, SR
We could be talking at the end of the season about player of the year candidate Rocky Kreuser. Kreuser averaged 15 points and 7 rebounds and could be in a position to put up even better numbers this season. Early last season Kreuser showed that he had taken a step forward in a battle with Kansas. Expect more of that player this season. Often last year on the podcast we asked who is the guy on North Dakota State to take a big shot, and this season I think that answer is clear that it will be Kreuser.
Could Surprise
G Andrew Kallman, SR
Maybe the least surprising answer to this question in Summit League circles is Grant Nelson, which is why I am going a different way. Kallman, a transfer from Northern State makes the jump to Division 1 for his last college season. There is a lot of depth on this Bison team but I still think Kallman carves out a big role. He’s just too good a player. Kallman may be the addition this season to put the Bison over the top. Expect similar numbers to the 10 points and 4 assists Kallman put up at Northern State last year.
Omaha
Player to Watch
F Isaiah Poor Bear-Chandler, SR
Poor Bear-Chandler’s transition to the Summit League from the power 5 level will be an interesting one. He has great size and can be a force down low. Big time minutes will be available in the frontcourt and Poor Bear-Chandler is the most experienced frontcourt player and has the best frontcourt size on the Maverick’s roster.
Could Surprise
F Devin Evans, SO
Going way out on a limb on this one. Especially considering the Mavericks frontcourt seems to have far greater depth than their backcourt. Evans will be competing with holdover Wanjang Tut, Nebraska transfer Akol Arop, and highly touted freshman Frankie Fidler for minutes. So this might be the most likely could surprise to fall flat. However, Evans missed a ton of time last season with covid and only played in 12 games so never really got in a rhythm. When Evans did play decent minutes he always seemed to get noticed. In his 3 games where Evans played more than 15 minutes, Evans had 5, 6, and 6 rebounds. If he finds his way to 20 minutes a game this season, Evans could find himself at 8-10 points and 7 rebounds a game.
Oral Roberts
Player to Watch
G Max Abmas, SO
With Grant Nelson, I avoided the obvious pick, however not since Mike Daum was at South Dakota State have Summit League Fans had a chance to watch a player this special. Add in the fact that in many Summit League arenas fans were either not allowed or limited, so many Summit League fans did not get a chance to watch Abmas during his special season last year. There’s a real chance Abmas is close to 30 points and over 6 assists a game this season. Summit League fans need should give themselves a chance to watch this young man play in person this season.
F Deshang Weaver, SO
The void left by Kevin Obanor’s departure will need to be filled by someone or a host of someone’s. Weaver might be the best bet to take the largest piece of that pie. Weaver’s ability to score down low and step out and shoot the 3 makes him most likely to fill that role. Injuries have taken their toll on Weaver’s career, but later in the season last year, Weaver looked like he had his athleticism back.
South Dakota
Player to Watch
F Tasos Kamateros, SO
Of the returners on South Dakota’s roster, for some reason, it feels like if the Coyotes are to compete for the top of the conference a step forward by Kamateros is the most critical piece. Kamateros scored a total of 5 points in the first 4 games of the season and then continued to grow into being a critical piece by the end of the season. Kamateros finished the season by scoring at least 14 points in each of his last 4 games. Summit League voters seem to agree as Kamateros was voted to the preseason All-Summit 2nd team.
Could Surprise
G Erik Oliver, SO
The Coyotes will be looking for scoring to replace what was lost when Stanley Umude transferred or when AJ Plitzuweit was lost due to injury. Players like Kamateros, and Xavier Fuller are obvious candidates, but it’s also possible that Oliver becomes a big part of the scoring for South Dakota. Oliver averaged over 20 points per game last year at the JUCO level while shooting almost 50% from behind the arc. Given Coach Todd Lee’s ability to find quality JUCO players, maybe Oliver is the next JUCO star to star for the Coyotes.
South Dakota State
Player to Watch
G Noah Freidel, SO
Not only is Freidel a player to watch because of his ability on the court, but his return from time off due to mental health concerns is critical to the Jackrabbits’ success. Freidel has the potential to be, not only a Summit League first-team performer but has player of the year ability. All reports are that Freidel is back, ready and healthy this season. If the Jackrabbits get a healthy Friedel back they may remain the best team in the Summit.
Could Surprise
F Luke Appel, JR
Appel showed that he was a productive interior player last season. In fact, many times the only thing stopping him from being more productive was his own foul trouble. Appel averaged 7.5 points per game last season in a limited role that grew as the season went on. There’s a real chance that Appel will pass up more established members of the Jackrabbits frontcourt as the season goes on this year.
St. Thomas
Player to Watch
G Anders Nelson, SR
Really the entire St. Thomas roster is the player to watch. Never in NCAA history has a division 3 team made the jump to Division 1 and all eyes will be watching that transition. Nelson is the leading returning scorer and assists man from last season. Nelson averaged 19.4 points last season, so what does that look like against a division 1 schedule? The basketball world is about to find out
Could Surprise
F Courtney Brown Jr., JR
A Cottage Grove, MN native, Brown returns home to be one of only 2 players with division 1 experience on the St. Thomas roster. Brown is also one of the few players with true frontcourt size on the roster. Last season, starting 14 games at Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Brown averaged 5.4 points and 3.9 rebounds. Given his ability and opportunity in St. Thomas’ inaugural division 1 season, it would not be surprising to see Brown average 10 points and 7 rebounds this season.
Western Illinois
Player to Watch
G Trenton Massner, JR
Massner is a transfer from Northwestern State out of the Southland Conference. Massner was a bit of a Swiss Army Knife last season averaging 13.7 points, over 4 rebounds, and over 2 assists last season. He was also able to do some things on the defensive end last season averaging over a steal per game. It was clear that the additions Western Illinois added last season helped them climb from the Summit League basement to towards the middle of the pack. However, it was also still clear that the Leathernecks needed to get better defensively, especially in the backcourt. It seems Coach Jeter addressed that specifically with the backcourt transfers they brought in, including Massner, George Dixon (Eastern Illinois), and Quinlan Bennett (Lamar). All of which have strong defensive reputations.
Could Surprise
F Luka Barisic, SR
Barisic, a transfer from UTSA out of Conference USA, stands an impressive 6’10. Putting Barisic and F Tamell Pearson out there with F Will Carius could provide some matchup nightmares for opponents this year. Barisic has the ability to score down low and shoot from the outside, which would allow for the 3 big men to be paired together at times this season.