We are just a few weeks away from Gopher basketball. Before you know it, we will be watching Gopher hockey on Friday, football on Saturday and dedicating a couple more nights every week to men’s and women’s basketball. We are just a little more than a week away from the team’s opening scrimmage against Omaha and then it is just a couple of weeks from game one against North Dakota.
But as we all know, roster turnover is now an annual tradition in college basketball and the challenge at this point of
the pre-season is learning who is on the team and guessing at what we can expect. Surprisingly, Minnesota is returning a significant amount of production from last year’s squad.
One might look at that and not exactly be overwhelmed with optimism just because you return the 4th most points in the league when the team finished with a record of 8-12. However, the optimism Gopher fans have for this upcoming season is only partially because of the returning talent. The excitement is that Niko Medved is returning a quality core of players and adding some interesting pieces to it. Adding depth, adding talent in key areas and perhaps this is a team that will flip that 8-12 conference record to a winning record.
Let’s get to know the 2026-27 roster.
The Returners
G – Isaac Asuma
It seemed to take Asuma a month or two to adjust to Medved’s systems on both ends of the floor, but beginning in January he seemed to be much more comfortable and confident. It started with his 18-point game in a win over Northwestern and he ended up averaging two more points per game in 2026 than he did in the first 13 games of the season.
Asuma isn’t going to lead the team in scoring and he’s not going to be the guy atop the opponent’s scouting report, but he is the glue to this team.
IDEAL SEASON: Asuma improves his three-point shooting to closer to 35% and he averages around 13 points per game.
F – Bobby Durkin
Durkin started the season coming off the bench and averaged just over 6 points per game. Then, due to the excessive injuries this team endured, Durkin moved into the starting lineup and thrived. In the month of November, Durkin averaged just over 6 points per game and then nearly doubled his scoring with 11.5 ppg in the 25 games that he started.
Durkin is a lethal shooter. His 6’7” frame and length give him the ability to get shots off and he ended up leading the team in three-pointers made and was fifth on the team in scoring. His defense was sneakily good and again, with all of the injuries sustained, he became vital to the team’s success.
IDEAL SEASON: Durkin is a starter, unless Cade Tyson returns. It would be elite if Tyson is starting at forward and Durkin can be a dangerous scoring threat off the bench. Probably not ideal for him, but would be for the team.
PF – Jaylen Crocker-Johnson
The team’s leading rebounder and second-leading scorer from a year ago is back. Crocker-Johnson helped smooth the transition to Medved and quickly became a solid Big Ten PF until he suffered an injury early in February and missed the final eight games of the season.
He is a great mix of being a physical presence on both ends of the floor who rebounds and defends, but then he also adds the ability to shoot threes at a 32% clip.
IDEAL SEASON: JCJ will be the team’s starting PF, if he can have a similar season to last year and stays healthy, that will be perfect. With more depth on the team, he won’t be required to carry as much of the load in terms of scoring and minutes played.
C/F – Grayson Grove
Perhaps more than anybody else on the roster, Grove benefited from the injuries and subsequent playing time. Grove looked lost and completely out of his league in the early part of the season and ended up being a fan favorite who started 12 games and was critical to the team’s success. Once JCJ went down, he was inserted into the starting lineup and averaged 38 minutes in the last six regular-season games.
Grove was just a redshirt freshman last year and showed very nice improvement through the season. He is not going to be one of the stars of the team, but he works hard on defense and he attacks the boards on both ends.
IDEAL SEASON: He shoots better free throws, plays about 25 minutes per game as one of the first big men off the bench. He has a power forward body with a center’s game, but he can find a role on this team and at this level.
G – Kai Shinholster
The one Ben Johnson recruit who stuck with Minnesota and Shinholster played a minor role as a freshman. There were flashes of seeing how Shinholster can be a solid defensive player and a smooth perimeter player.
IDEAL SEASON: Is one of the guards coming off the bench and is much more comfortable with the speed of the game at this level. One could easily see 12 minutes per game for Shinholster and averaging around 4-6 points per game.
G – Max Lorenson
One of the team’s walk-ons. Redshirted last year and did not see any action.
The Transfers
This is where things get interesting, and you see how the staff added some players at key positions to give this team more depth and talent. The beauty is that these are not one-year transfers; all of them have eligibility beyond 2026-27.
PG – Kyan Evans
This was the target that everybody wanted to see end up at Minnesota. Evans was with Medved two years ago at Colorado State and the assumption was that he would follow Medved to Minnesota. But North Carolina got involved and Evans jumped at that opportunity. But things didn’t go all that well at UNC, Evans started 17 games, saw all of his stats drop from the year before, the coach was fired and it was all-around not a great season in Chapel Hill.
But Evans is back with Medved; he’s back in a system that fits his game and he has the opportunity to be a great point guard for the Gophers.
IDEAL SEASON: Evans starts every game at point, he sees his 3-point % creep back up to 40% or higher, he averages around 14 points per game and is a leader for an offense that once again shares the ball like no other team in the Big Ten.
C – Malick Kordel
Getting help in the frontcourt was a priority for this past offseason and Kordel was brought in to compete for the starting center spot and give the team significantly more size inside. Kordel was a national champion at Michigan last year and played just a few minutes per game because he was stuck behind one of the biggest and most talented frontcourts in the country.
Even with Aday Mara and Morez Johnson Jr. moving on to the NBA, Kordel decided to make a move to Minnesota. He is 7’2” and is a native of Germany, where he didn’t begin playing basketball until 2021.
IDEAL SEASON: Kordel is the Gopher’s starting center, plays about 22 minutes per game and is a shot-blocking force who also manages to find a few buckets and rebounds around the rim.
F/G – Malachi Palmer
Palmer is on his third school in three years after starting his career at Maryland and transferring to Villanova for his sophomore season. While at Nova, Palmer played in all 33 games and ended up averaging just under five points per game. He brings a combination of physicality on the wing to go with decent athleticism and a solid jump shot.
IDEAL SEASON: Palmer is a part of the rotation and plays a similar role as Langston Reynolds. Not as a point, but as a guy who gets to the rim when his team needs him to be a physical driver and frustrates opponents with his physical defense. Plus he’ll be able to actually hit an open three-pointer.
G/F – Winters Grady
Another Michigan freshman who played sparingly on their national championship team. Grady is a former four-star and top-100 recruit who brings athleticsm and an elite shooting touch to the Gophers. Out of high school, Medved recruited Grady, but he ended up a Wolverine for one season.
IDEAL SEASON: Grady comes off the bench to be an elite shooter who then catches the team off guard when he’s able to get by defenders and score in the mid-range. He is a slightly more athletic and less experienced Bobby Durkin. But he gains valuable experience this season.
G/F – Nolan Groves
A former four-star recruit from the state of Minnesota who chose Texas Tech for the early part of his career. Groves is a very physical player who gained some notoriety last year when he was tasked with guarding Duke’s Carlos Boozer when there was foul trouble for the Red Raiders. He, like Grady and Kordel, did not play much as a freshman but brings all of the right tools to Minnesota to play a role in his sophomore season.
IDEAL SEASON: Bench player who plays limited minutes per game but becomes known for knocking down open shots, playing physical defense and playing with a high IQ on the offensive end.
The Freshmen
PG – Cedric Tomes
A true point guard recruit for the Gophers and this is a guy we should be excited about. Tomes is very quick and was an elite shooter in high school.
F – Nolen Anderson
I saw Anderson in person a couple of times last year and this kid is extremely smooth and unexpectedly explosive. It struck me how his game has some strong similarities to Cade Tyson. Anderson is potentially a better shooter, while Tyson is more physical, but one can easily see how Anderson will fit into that role, in due time.
IDEAL SEASON: Anderson will come off the bench to see minutes at PF and SF. How many minutes he plays will be directly tied to whether or not Tyson is allowed to play this year, but I see around 18 minutes per game and ideally around 6-10 points.
C/F – Chadrack Mpoyi
I am very excited about Mpoyi as a Gopher, but it seems unlikely that he’ll be a significant factor this year. He is 6’11” and 245 pounds and he is extremely explosive. His body type and athleticism remind me a lot of Trevor Mbakwe, time will tell if he can be nearly the same rebounder.
IDEAL SEASON: Mpoyi plays sparingly, learns this season and explodes onto the scene next year. If he earns playing time this year, that is only a good thing for the Gopher program.
G – Blake Nixon Jr
Holy Angels graduate who will be a walk-on for the program this season.
IDEAL SEASON: If Nixon Jr is playing, it is a blowout or things have gone really bad for the team.
The Wildcard
F – Cade Tyson
Yes, the Cade Tyson who supposedly had expired all of his eligibility after averaging 19.6 points per game last year? Well, there’s a decent chance that he’ll be back for one more season. And if Tyson is back, the Gophers’ returning production goes from 53.7% to 82%.
IDEAL SEASON: Tyson is allowed to play one final year; he averages around 18-20 points per game but can play fewer minutes because the rest of the team is deeper and more talented.
We will find out tomorrow.
The Rotation
This is the crucial part. Who starts, who is a part of the regular rotation and how does it all work together?
PG – Kyan Evans
SG – Isaac Asuma
SF – Cade Tyson
PF – Jalen Crocker-Johnson
C – Malick Kordel
Bench – Bobby Durkin – he will play a lot, bumping Tyson to PF or giving Tyson some time on the bench.
Bench – Cedric Tomes – is the second PG but Evans can see minutes at the 2 while Asuma is on the bench.
Bench – Malachi Palmer – of the transfers, I think he plays the most minutes (even more than Kordel).
Bench – Grayson Grove – time at center will be split among Kordel/JCJ/GG.
Bench – Nolen Anderson – will see spot minutes at SF/PF, somewhere in the 12-16 range.
Bench – Kai Shinholster – some nights up to six minutes, some nights around two.
Bench – Grady / Groves – these guys will see minutes, but likely few on the perimeter
If Tyson is not allowed to play, Durkin moves into the starting lineup, everybody’s minutes bump up a few and there’s a greater chance that Mpoyi plays some C/PF minutes.
The Expectation
And when it all comes together, what does it mean for this team?
We can dive more into this as we get closer to the first game of the season, but if this team plays with the same togetherness as last year’s team, they have a very real shot at the NCAA Tournament. And that is not including Tyson.
If Tyson is back, the NCAA Tournament might be the floor. And that’s a remarkable statement.
Regardless, this team is going to be deeper and overall more talented. Medved’s strength is really getting his group of guys to play connected and play above their individual talent levels. If guys buy in and if they execute what asked, this could be one of the best Gopher teams we have seen in several years.
