Tag: Eric Musselman

Eric Musselman sees March Madness value in USC basketball schedule

USC hopes to take a big step toward March when it plays a Thanksgiving tournament in Palm Desert.

USC coach Eric Musselman is creating the Trojans’ nonconference men’s basketball schedule for the 2024-2025 season.

Two new nonconference games have been announced. USC will take part in a two-day Thanksgiving event on Nov. 28 and 29 in Palm Desert, California. USC plays Saint Mary’s on Thursday and either New Mexico or Arizona State on Friday. Eric Musselman sees value in these games. He was thinking about March Madness positioning when he scheduled these games, as the Palm Springs Desert Sun reported:

“Any time you can play in an event with both games being challenging, you’re going to find some areas that surprise you in a positive way, and then any areas of concern or areas of weakness will be exposed early,” Musselman said. “To be able to play a multi-team event against such quality opponents. Three great coaches in (Randy) Bennett, (Bobby) Hurley and (Richard) Pitino. It makes sense. They’re all going to be difficult, high-quality games. Whoever wins it’s going to help their résumé come March.”

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Eric Musselman USC staffing decisions pay off in transfer portal win

Eric Musselman’s latest transfer portal success story comes from his recent staffing moves.

The USC basketball program added Wesley Yates from the University of Washington in the transfer portal on Thursday. How was Eric Musselman able to do this? Simple: He had two former Washington Husky assistants on his staff who moved from Seattle to Los Angeles. One of those assistants was Will Conroy. The other, better-known assistant is Quincy Pondexter.

We wrote about Pondexter a few weeks ago:

“Pondexter, a nine-year NBA veteran and Fresno native who has experience coaching against USC in the Pac-12 era at Washington, has been hired as a Trojan assistant coach by Eric Musselman.

“The University of Washington alum spent the last three seasons as an assistant coach on the Huskies’ bench under Mike Hopkins. The Huskies went 50-46 over the last three seasons while Pondexter was there on the bench. Hopkins was fired and replaced by Danny Sprinkle. Musselman has rounded out his coaching staff after replacing Andy Enfield at USC several weeks ago.”

These coaching staff moves have borne fruit with the portal recruitment of Yates, a former top-50 recruit who gives USC some real potential.

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USC, Eric Musselman add former top-50 recruit via transfer portal

Eric Musselman makes one more addition to USC in the portal.

Eric Musselman continues to add to his USC basketball roster. Musselman has not produced a dazzling or overwhelming transfer portal class with huge high-end names, but he has certainly been able to get players with upside who might reasonably be viewed as hidden gems. It’s up to Musselman to polish them and turn them into highly productive players. The latest transfer portal addition for USC basketball is Wesley Yates III. The transfer comes from the Washington Huskies, making Yates both a Pac-12 and Big Ten transfer.

Yates was a top-50 recruit in the Class of 2023. He redshirted last season. If Musselman can create a great fit at USC, Yates could be a centerpiece player for the Trojans in the coming years — maybe not this season, but certainly in two years if the player and the coach form good chemistry and stay on the same page. USC basketball has just one player returning from last season, Harrison Hornery. Everyone else is either an incoming recruit or (mostly) a transfer.

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Musselman says he took making NCAA Tournament for granted

Muss’ family is still in Fayetteville and the former coach said leaving was not as easy as some fans might think.

Former Arkansas coach Eric Musselman may have left Razorbacks fans with a bad taste in their mouths, but time will heal and Musselman will ultimately be remembered for the massive success he achieved in Fayetteville.

For now, however, the what-have-you-done-for-me-lately mantra holds. Arkansas fans remain frustrated by the team’s performance in 2023-24 and have thrown just about everyone involved with that team to the dogs. Even when Trevon Brazile announced his return Tuesday, the reception was only lukewarm compared to what it should have been.

Musselman said he understands fans’ reactions. He was angry at himself, too.

“But now myself and our staff members that are now here, we understand how hard it is just to make the tournament,” he said Jon Rothstein’s podcast. “When you make it year-after-year, you take it for granted. It’ll never be taken for granted (again). It’s hard to get in and it’s hard to win games.”

Musselman took Arkansas to the NCAA Tournament in three out of the four seasons one was held during his time in Fayetteville. The Hogs made two Elite Eights and a Sweet Sixteen before finishing 16-17 in the most recent season.

Musselman left Arkansas for USC shortly after the season ended. Arkansas hired John Calipari from Kentucky quickly after that.

Arkansas basketball player won’t follow Eric Musselman to USC

Trevon Brazile will play for John Calipari next season.

The USC basketball program won’t add an Arkansas player in the transfer portal. Eric Musselman will not bring Travon Brazile to Los Angeles. News broke on Tuesday afternoon that Brazile will stay at Arkansas to play for John Calipari.

Razorbacks Wire has more on the story:

“Brazile has played two seasons with the Razorbacks, but, really, only one-plus. He was lost to a torn ACL in December of his first year, 2022-23, after transferring from Missouri. At the time, he was averaging more than 10 points a game and had made his way into talk of being a potential first-round selection.

“He, like much of the rest of the Arkansas basketball roster, never appeared quite right in 2023-24. Brazile ended up playing in 26 games, but averaged just over 8 points per game, as then-coach Eric Musselman said he was working his way back, especially in the early-season.”

Brazile not coming to USC means no players from the 2023-2024 Arkansas roster followed Musselman to Los Angeles. It’s a sign of how that particular team didn’t come together under Muss, which gives the coach a fresh start with the Trojans.

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USC basketball, Eric Musselman could scoop up Arizona decommit

Eric Musselman could pick off a shooting guard who has decommitted from Arizona.

The USC Trojans might be about to pick up an Arizona basketball decommit. USC basketball is believed to be the front-runner for 2024 shooting guard Jamari Phillips. Eric Musselman could add an intriguing piece to his USC roster.

247Sports has more:

“The bigger issue for Phillips and the Wildcats is what the roster will look like next season and how the potential playing time has changed as well. Arizona is expected to bring back Caleb Love for another season with Jaden Bradley and KJ Lewis slated to be starting as well.

“Tommy Lloyd and the Arizona coaching staff also added Campbell transfer Anthony Dell’Orso, who is going to play an immediate role for the Wildcats. Previously, Dell’Orso was Second Team All-CAA honoree at Campbell University in 2023-24 and was the 2023 Big South Freshman of the Year for the Camels.”

Arizona simply has its backcourt roster spots taken care of. Phillips was not going to be able to get the minutes he hoped for. USC is now in a position to pounce. Let’s see what happens.

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Trevon Brazile pulls out of 2024 NBA draft, could be in play for USC

USC might not be the favorite for Trevon Brazile, but it can’t be ruled out completely.

Former Arkansas forward Trevon Brazile has withdrawn from 2024 NBA draft. The USC Trojans could be one of the top landing spots for the veteran power forward, for the simple reason that Brazile was coached by Eric Musselman at Arkansas. USC isn’t the favorite in this transfer portal saga, but the Trojans can’t be ruled out of the running.

College prospects who declared for the 2024 NBA draft have until Wednesday, May 29 to withdraw their name from the draft pool if they want to return to college basketball and retain their eligibility.

Brazile averaged 8.9 points, 1.2 blocks and 5.9 rebounds this past season after bouncing back from a torn calf injury in 2022. He joined Arkansas ahead of his sophomore year after beginning his career at Missouri. The rising redshirt junior was projected to be selected in the NBA draft’s second round by many mocks. He has been lauded for his athleticism and NBA-ready frame. In addition to his injury history, his struggle to find consistency during his Arkansas tenure was considered a potential concern.

In the 2021 recruiting class, Brazile was ranked the fourth-best prospect in the state of Missouri by 247Sports and the No. 178 prospect nationally.

Arkansas, USC, North Carolina, Texas, Illinois, Miami and Florida State are all potential landing spots for the senior.

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Eric Musselman goes into transfer portal, lands San Diego wing Kevin Patton

Eric Musselman adds another piece to the USC basketball roster.

The USC Trojans continue to fill out their roster for next season. Eric Musselman has gone back into the transfer portal to pick up San Diego wing Kevin Patton Jr. USC basketball has a second transfer from San Diego, but let’s be clear about this: It’s not from the same school in San Diego.

Patton is from the San Diego Toreros in the West Coast Conference. The other San Diego-based transfer portal acquisition for this USC basketball cycle is Bryce Pope from the UC San Diego Tritons of the Big West Conference.

Kevin Patton, a 6-8 and 197 pounds, is a long and rangy defender who should get into passing lanes and create steals and deflections for the Trojans on defense. He should be able to offer a lot of value at that end of the floor while Desmond Claude and some of the other high-profile Trojans are likely to carry more of the scoring workload. Patton appears to be a solid complementary piece in a larger puzzle being assembled by Eric Musselman in the portal.

https://x.com/ShotgunSpr/status/1792686395250933988

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Another former Washington Husky assistant joins USC basketball, Eric Musselman

Eric Musselman has now hired multiple former Washington Husky assistants at USC. This should be interesting.

Quincy Pondexter is staying on the West Coast but is switching programs in the Big Ten. Pondexter, a nine-year NBA veteran and Fresno native who has experience coaching against USC in the Pac-12 era at Washington, has been hired as a Trojan assistant coach by Eric Musselman.

The University of Washington alum spent the last three seasons as an assistant coach on the Huskies’ bench under Mike Hopkins. The Huskies went 50-46 over the last three seasons while Pondexter was there on the bench. Hopkins was fired and replaced by Danny Sprinkle. Musselman has rounded out his coaching staff after replacing Andy Enfield at USC several weeks ago.

During his senior year at UW, Pondexter averaged 19.3 points per game and was named to the All-Pac-10 first team, leading the Huskies to the NCAA Tournament. He was selected 26th in the 2010 NBA draft by the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The 36-year old-Pondexter played for the Hornets, Grizzles, Bulls and Spurs in an injury-plagued nine-year pro career. In those years he averaged 4.5 points and 1.8 rebounds per game.

Pondexter joins a USC staff with another former Washington Husky assistant. Will Conroy also worked at UW before moving to USC. It will be fascinating to see how these former Huskies work with Musselman in Los Angeles.

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Eric Musselman players enter portal as John Calipari changes Arkansas

Former Arkansas player Trevon Brazile is in the portal as John Calipari engineers a makeover of the Hogs’ roster.

Eric Musselman hasn’t filled the remaining roster spot at USC. He is getting close, but he hasn’t completed the 2025 roster yet. As Musselman considers his next move, one of his former players at Arkansas has entered the portal while new Arkansas coach John Calipari remakes the roster in Fayetteville.

Arkansas forward Trevon Brazile entered the portal while Calipari is bringing in his preferred transfers. It’s an intriguing situation whose ultimate outcomes are still unfolding.

Razorbacks Wire noted the Calipari pickup of Florida Atlantic transfer Johnell Davis.

“Just one day after receiving a major commitment from former Tennessee forward Jonas Aidoo via the transfer portal, veteran college basketball reporter Jeff Goodman reported late Tuesday that the Arkansas Razorbacks and coach John Calipari are expected to add former Florida Atlantic guard Johnell Davis to their roster.”

Is the Brazile transfer a direct response to the other transfer moves Calipari is making? Quite possibly. Is Brazile in the market for USC? That is less certain, but Musselman is certainly weighing his options. Desmond Claude of Xavier and D.J. Wagner of Kentucky are two transfers who have been linked to Musselman and USC. We’ll see how it all plays out.

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