Kevin Kruger has added shooting threats to the UNLV roster. One day after landing a three-point threat from Kent State in Michael Nuga, Kruger snagged a commitment from Josh Baker.
Baker is a coming to UNLV from Hutchison Community College. Over the last two seasons Baker hit 46.1 percent of his threes, while taking 5.1 triples per game.
This past season Baker was second on the team, averaging 16.6 points per game.
Kruger’s initial batch of transfers was devoid of any proven shooting. But now the Rebels have at least players that project as above average shooters in Nuga, Baker and Justin Webster, a transfer from Hawaii.
Suddenly, UNLV has plenty of options in the backcourt. The Rebels have three point guards with Jordan McCabe (West Virginia transfer), Marvin Coleman (returner) and incoming freshman Keshon Gilbert. And five off-ball guards with Donovan Williams (Texas transfer) and Nick Blake (returner) joining the the three shooters.
There will likely be quite a battle for playing time, as there are not enough minutes to go around for all eight guards.
Given Kruger’s roster construction, we may see four guard lineups. With 12 of 13 scholarship spots filled, the Rebels have just four front court players compared to the eight guards.
David Muoka is the only true center on the team. Transfers Royce Hamm (Texas) and Victor Iwuakor (Oklahoma) would likely compete for power forward minutes with returning sophomore Reece Brown relegated to a depth role.
It will all be dependent on what style of basketball Kruger wants UNLV to play. He has yet to divulge any details on how UNLV will play.
But based on the current roster, the best offensive lineup would likely feature four guards and just one of the bigs. But Muoka, Hamm and Iwuakor may be able to force their way on to the floor if they are good enough defensively.