Breaking down UCF’s basketball roster

Johnny Dawkins has a tall task ahead of him. A very tall one.

The Knights in 2016 were below average. They struggled to put together quality wins against the American Conference. Their six wins in conference came against the three teams that finished below them in the standings. And then they lost to Tulane in the American Conference Basketball Tournament.

Donnie Jones was fired right after and Johnny Dawkins was brought in.

The program was and still is seemingly a mess. Local product and star Adonys Henriquez transferred. Fan-favorite center Justin McBride followed suit. The program is still trying to piece together its roster.

And last year’s team was certainly imperfect already with injuries to B.J. Taylor and the team trying to piece things together without much consistent shooting. It is hard to see UCF being much better personnel wise than that 12-18 season.

Except for any belief the program might have in Johnny Dawkins. What he has to work with is certainly going to be an interesting mix though. This still feels like an imperfect roster and Dawkins will have his work cut out for him to make this team better than it was last year.

A quick look at the depth chart for this team reveals some of the problems:

As you can see in this abbreviated depth chart there are some major issue with the team for next year. There is not a lot of front-court depth, which is a huge problem considering Tacko Fall can probably play about 20 minutes per game. And, on top of that, the team will have to play small with either A.J. Davis or Nick Banyard starting at power forward.

If there was one thing the team could say about itself last year it was that it had a ton of positional versatility. That certainly should be the case this year around Tacko Fall.

Players like B.J. Taylor and Chance McSpadden could platoon at point guard and shooting guard throughout the season thanks to their scoring and shooting ability in addition to their point guard play.

McSpadden averaged 5.6 points per game as UCF relied on him and senior Daiquan Walker to try to fill the void left by Taylor. He posted a 51.6 percent effective field goal percentage. With that kind of shooting percentage, it is very possible Walker can take the step up and provide shooting for the team.

Between Taylor — a 34.9 percent 3-point shooter as a freshman — Walker and Matt Williams — a 32.9 percent 3-point shooter last year — the team has some shooters with room to improve. They are not knock-down shooters by any stretch of the imagination. McSpadden and Taylor will be relied on as the main drivers.

A.J. Davis fits in as a slasher and probably the most important wing player on the team since he is the team’s best perimeter defender and has tremendous length to play either forward position.

Especially with the Knights’ lack of depth in the front court, Davis’ ability to play multiple positions and play power forward is going to be key. He will have to improve his rebounding from last year, when he averaged a team-best 6.0 boards per game.

Nick Banyard too is a wild card. The Illinois State transfer averaged 5.2 points per game and 4.3 rebounds per game playing about 20 minutes per game last year. With the Knights’ general lack of depth in the frontcourt.

And the thought of what happens if Fall gets into foul trouble is a very uncertain one. Chad Brown is the backup center after playing the second fewest minutes on the team last year. The Knights are expecting very big things from him now that McBride has transferred.

The recurring theme when it comes to this UCF basketball roster entering the 2017 season — at least at this early juncture — is the lack of depth. It is hard to figure out how Dawkins is going to impress a distinct style on this group. With Fall, it feels like the team is going to have to play a slower game in the half court.

Players will improve, of course. The Knights are still a relatively young group and still have plenty of potential to reach.

It could still be an incredibly tough season for the Knights on the hardwood. At least until Dawkins can get his first recruiting class in.

Shelby Turnier signs pro contract

UCF softball pitcher Shelby Turnier officially became a member of the Chicago Bandits this weekend.

The second-round selection was the third pitcher selected in the NPF Draft last month, joining the team after completing a stellar career at UCF where she set the program’s all-time wins record.

“I am so thrilled to be able to continue playing the sport I love,” Turnier said in a press release.  “As an athlete, you dread the day your career will come to an end and I can’t thank the Bandits organization enough for providing me the opportunity to extend my career.”

Turnier is expected to be inserted right into the rotation with the departure of two starting pitchers, including college legend Monica Abbott. It is an amazing opportunity for one of the Knights’ best players in the program’s short history.

Turnier will be back in Orlando with the Bandits to play the USSA Florida Pride on July 16-18 at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports at Disney.

Kevin Molino named to MLS Team of the Week

Kevin Molino’s last-second goal Sunday helped him earn a place on the MLS Team of the Week. Molino also scored the equalizing goal in Wednesday’s draw with the Philadelphia Union.

Molino has scored six goals and three assists so far this year. He is second on the team in goals scored and goals per 90 minutes.