Evan Blanchard:
As a student manager who followed the team from the very beginning of the season in July to the end in March, I can’t say anything about this season besides calling it a disappointment. I love the guys and staff who were a part of this team, but I can’t help but feel like we left a lot on the table.
An 11-9 finish in the conference was not what this group anticipated during the summer. Sure, the early non-conference schedule was a gauntlet, but it isn’t anything new for a Greg Kampe team. The real disappointment came in the conference schedule, where Oakland struggled to succeed consistently. It seemed like the guys would play one fantastic game, then turn around and lay an egg in the next one.
After going 6-3 in conference play with a four-game win streak in January, February was a measly 3-4 with wins over IU Indy and Detroit Mercy. This team struggled greatly to shoot the ball all season, shooting 30.5% from three throughout the season, dead last in the Horizon League. OU also averaged the third-least points per game, highlighting their offensive difficulties.
Looking ahead to next season, a lot relies on the decisions of Allen Mukeba, Buru Naivalurua and Isaiah Jones. Mukeba earned all-conference second-team honors and had a monster campaign. If he wanted to, he could potentially leave for a much higher level of competition and earn a good deal of money. Naivalurua’s stock in the transfer portal may not be as high as it could be because he was left off the all-conference teams. For Jones, he struggled with a foot injury early in the year and didn’t experience the breakout junior year that he was bound to have.
If two out of three of them return, Oakland should finish in the top four in the league. If all three return, it’s championship or bust. With DQ Cole, Jayson Woodrich and Malcolm Christie all graduating, the Golden Grizzlies must reload on the perimeter with shooting. Freshman Nassim Mashhour showed great promise all season and will feature prominently on next year’s team, while fellow freshman Warren Marshall will play lots of valuable minutes after redshirting his freshman year.
Outside of those two, the cupboard is looking bare. Cooper Craggs could return for his junior season. Craggs played a handful of minutes here and there, but his ceiling is limited at this level. Deng Majak also could return as a backup big man. Majak greatly improved during the season; I imagine he will stay if one of Mukeba or Naivalurua leaves.
Seeing how the offseason unfolds with name, image, and likeness deals and the transfer portal will be fascinating. Oakland is very used to reloading their rosters season after season; this next one will be no different. Who knows? Maybe the staff will find the next Jack Gohlke or Naivalurua among the junior college levels.
Kurt Szymanski:
Ahead of the start of the regular season, I wasn’t the most optimistic about how this Golden Grizzlies team would perform compared to the previous season.
In a preview to the season, I predicted the team would finish fifth in the Horizon League standings come the end of the regular season, which is slightly above average.
Oakland ended up finishing the season in sixth place, so despite not finishing in the top five in the league, I think the Golden Grizzlies put together a solid regular-season campaign, especially considering the shooting struggles the team dealt with at the start of the season and the complete roster overhaul Oakland had to go through.
When it comes to how the team did in the Horizon League playoffs, just on paper, the Golden Grizzlies exceeded expectations.
If the highest seed had won every matchup in the playoffs, Oakland would have been dropped off in the quarter-final. However, the Golden Grizzlies instead made the semi-final before losing to Robert Morris in overtime, backed by Mukeba, who was named to the all-tournament team.
However, the loss to Robert Morris stung. It was the last way any team would want to end its season.
To Golden Grizzlies fans, the season might be seen as a disappointment, considering Robert Morris ended up winning the Horizon League tournament, earning their berth to play in the NCAA Division I men’s basketball tournament.
Still, I think there’s reason to be optimistic about this team moving forward. As Evan explained, there’s a chance for some important names to return to the roster. Should that happen, this season will look more like a stepping stone to what next year’s team can accomplish.
