The silence of June and July created suspense. August’s flood of fifth-years into the market produced opportunity.
The SEC’s late-summer legal tangle with LSU cast doubt. Then, the Tigers took the floor with essentially five players in two exhibitions. That muddied the picture.
First-year head coach Will Wade remained adamant that favorable rulings were coming. One could argue his usual fierce confidence appeared shakier. That may have been by design to cool things off in courts of law all over the country. It may have just been an honest few moments of doubt creeping in.
Ultimately, assuming Donovan Dent and Skyy Clark aren’t ripped from this team’s roster in an appellate court, LSU’s 2026-27 basketball roster appears built to compete in the Southeastern Conference.
BACKCOURT
Dent is an elite distributor with scoring skills. Clark is a sharpshooter who shot 43 percent from three last year. They combined to start 57 games for a UCLA team that went 24-12 overall, 13-7 in the Big Ten and earned a No. 7 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
That’s a proven power conference backcourt.
Divine Ugochukwu earned a starting role at Michigan State as a sophomore. That team went 15-5 in the Big Ten and earned a No. 3 seed before being bounced by UConn in the Sweet 16. He’s a good ball handler who shot it well in East Lansing.
Abdi Bashir rips the net from downtown as well as almost anyone in America. He shook off a brutal 1-for-10 three-point shooting night at McNeese and responded with a sizzling 6-for-12 against UCF en route to 26 points to lead the team.
Clark and Bashir provide two proven 40-plus percent three-point shooters on the outside to pair with Dent who was third nationally in assists a season ago.
When healthy, Austin Nunez provides 84 career college games and 23 starts of experience as a fifth-year player. He adds veteran depth, but he’s in a walking boot.
FRONTCOURT
Mo Dioubate and Saliou Niang are both 6-foot-8 slashing wings with excellent athleticism. They’re old, strong and can leap. When LSU sees a 6-foot-5 to 6-foot-8 scorer, these two will often draw that defensive assignment.
As far as offense goes, both will be slashers, but they’ll do it in a different way. Dioubate showed his strength at McNeese when he put the ball on the floor and muscled to the rim on three straight possessions.
Niang likes to cut without the basketball, catch it near the paint and finish above the rim. These guys need space to operate, and Bashir and Clark provide that with Dent handling the ball.
I don’t expect either of these two to shoot the ball particularly well, although Niang showed some promise on limited attempts last season in Europe. These two provide the length on the perimeter who can also help with rebounding and protecting the rim.
Brice Dessert’s eligibility might have been Tuesday’s biggest news for LSU. He stands 6-foot-11 with a 23-year-old frame and impressive agility around the basket. Dessert is a true post. He’s not going to float around the perimeter other than to set ball screens and crash the paint.
He is a better mover than I remember from the summer when he reportedly committed to LSU. He can jump, finish and loves to block shots. I think he’s clearly LSU’s best option at the five.
That says a lot because Michael Ruzic has really impressed through two exhibitions. Over that pair of games, Ruzic is 9-for-21 (43%) from the floor with 29 rebounds and five blocked shots. He’s got to be a little higher percentage shooter from the floor and free throw line (58%), but the tools are obviously there.
That leaves Gilad Levy, the 7-foot-3 center from Israel. He’s obviously got huge size and could help some off the bench if and when he is cleared. LSU expects that to happen.
LEAVING OUT LUIS
LSU decided to move on without RJ Luis who was granted a TRO against the NCAA and SEC. Wade said last week during the SEC’s Media Day that the school would follow SEC protocols with Luis, and the Tigers have.
Adding a former Big East Player of the Year would absolutely help. He’d provide an elite scoring option at the wing. However, his case was always going to be a longshot.
PROJECTED LINEUP
PG – Donovan Dent 6-2
SG – Skyy Clark 6-3
SF – Abdi Bashir 6-5
PF- Saliou Niang 6-8
C – Brice Dessert 6-11
RESERVES – Mo Dioubate (6-8), Divine Ugochucwu (6-3), Austin Nunez (6-2), Michael Ruzic (7-0), Gilad Levy (7-3)
Wade said he would like to “pay seven or eight guys” and that the roster would be filled out beyond that. There are other options on the actual roster, but this 10 will comprise the vast majority of the lineups LSU uses. That’s enough depth and some really solid talent.
The SEC is a monster, and I’ll need to see this group play together a little bit to make a real call as to what the ceiling is. That said, the drama of the late summer is now essentially put to bed.
Wade won’t be eyeing courthouse dockets moving into the rest of his second stay in Baton Rouge. High end high school talent and portal pieces will be the way moving forward.
This LSU team is old and experienced. It should make things interesting this year. That’s more than we’ve been able to say around here.
