STANFORD MEN’S BASKETBALL
Last season: 14-18, 8-12 (tied for ninth in Pac-12)
Coach: Kyle Smith, first season, 0-0
Season opener: Monday vs. Denver University, 2 p.m.
Projected starters: Junior guard Benny Gealer (4.2 points, 1.6 rebounds, 2.3 assists), junior guard Oziyah Sellers (5.2 points, 0.9 rebounds, 0.6 assists at USC), sophomore guard Derin Saran (10.1 points, 3.4 rebounds, 1.6 assists at UC Irvine), senior forward Maxime Raynaud (15.5 points, 9.6 rebounds, 2.0 assists), junior forward Chisom Okpara (16.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists at Harvard)
Key reserves: Graduate guard Jaylen Blakes (1.8 points, 0.8 rebounds at Duke), sophomore forward Jaylen Thompson (1.0 points), sophomore guard Ryan Agarwal (2.4 points)
Strengths: New coach Smith’s patented “Nerdball” could help Nerd Nation get back on track at The Farm. Smith’s analytics-heavy approach led Washington State to a 25-10 record and NCAA Tournament Round of 32 appearance in 2023-24. Smith has generally won with every college team he has coached, including a successful three-year tenure at USF, where the Dons won at least 20 games in each season. His career head coaching record is 258-193.
Weaknesses: A new regime brings change, and in today’s college athletics, change means transfers – in and out. Stanford lost freshman standouts Andrej Stojakovic and Kanaan Carlyle in the portal, as well as second-leading scorer Brandon Angel.
Outlook: It’s a brave new world for Stanford men’s basketball in 2024. The Cardinal return just four players who recorded stats last season but managed to retain Raynaud, last season’s leading scorer, who entertained the portal before withdrawing. Stanford brought in five transfers to help close the gap, including graduate student Cole Kastner, who was an All-American lacrosse player at Virginia but has never played college basketball.
