After an 18-14 campaign and the departure of seniors Kevin Lisch, Tommie Liddell III and Barry Eberhardt, Billiken basketball fans probably are wondering what to expect when the boys in blue take the court again next year. Offseason training and development, overall team youth and the unknown factor of a recruiting class that features two standout Australian players make any expectations about next year’s team severely mercurial.

In all likelihood, next season’s basketball team will be made up of several freshmen and sophomores and one junior.

No seniors. Nada. Zilch. That would make SLU the youngest team in the country next year.

There certainly will be some growing pains associated with throwing such a young team on the floor; however, this bunch of new recruits might be every bit as good, if not better, than the freshmen we saw on the court during Chaifetz Arena’s inaugural season.

Physical development should again be an issue with some of the recruits, but expect the Aussies to arrive prepared after a summer of international competition. Whether or not freshman such as Willie Reed can develop more physically will greatly influence the consistency of play next season.

It’s difficult to say much about starting roles with so many new faces joining the team, but if there’s one player Billiken basketball fans can count on earning a lot of minutes, it’s Kwamain Mitchell.

Building on the skills that he showed this season and his leadership abilities will be major factors in determining just how good SLU basketball can be. The fact that Head Coach Rick Majerus named Mitchell next year’s captain should definitely say something about his character.

At the beginning of the season I mentioned that this year would be filled with learning experiences and inconsistency.

Although I expect that to stay much the same as the Bills move into next season, there could also potentially be some flashes of real greatness from players that have worked on their bodies and their games all offseason.