After an offseason that saw an entire era of Wildcat basketball graduates, there was much discussion about how Northwestern men’s basketball’s newcomers would determine the success of this season and the years
to come. The ‘Cats saw four of their five starters graduate, including Brooks Barnhizer, the team’s defensive tone setter and second leading scorer (17.1 points per game), and Jalen Leach, who commanded the floor as one of the Big Ten’s best point guards. To replace these losses, Northwestern welcomed four freshmen and three transfers.
Nine games into this season, it’s important to evaluate which players have been the most impressive newcomers for Collins’ squad, as the performance of these standout additions will shape Northwestern’s identity in the future years. Here’s a look at the best newcomers who have impressed so far this season:
Freshman: Tre Singleton
The four-star from Jeffersonville, Indiana, has started in eight of the ‘Cats’ nine games. At 6-foot-8 and 215 pounds, his physical attributes stand out amongst whoever else is on the floor, and a game rarely goes by in the Northwestern student section without someone saying, “That guy is HUGE.” And it’s true; Singleton’s athleticism has immediately given him a role in Collins’ rotation, allowing him the ability to compete with anybody on the defensive end.
Impressively, Singleton’s defensive presence is already backed up by the analytics. According to EvanMiya.com’s Defensive Bayesian Performance Rating (DBPR), which measures a player’s individual defensive value, Singleton already ranks third on the team with a 1.33 rating, trailing only Arrinten Page (1.54) and K.J. Windham (1.33). In fact, Singleton’s 1.33 rating puts him in the top 70 in the Big Ten, amongst the conference’s best freshman defenders. Considering Northwestern has struggled on the defensive end, allowing 73.1 points per game (12th in the conference), Singleton’s physicality will be key to the ‘Cats getting more consistent stops as the season continues.
Singleton has also shown promise offensively. The advanced analytics aren’t as high on his performance on the offensive end, but the Indiana native still managed to score 6.8 points per game on efficient 51.2 percent shooting. Singleton is still finding ways to create for himself, but the freshman takes advantage of the scoring opportunities that come his way. His efficiency allows him to still have big games on this side of the floor, like his 15-point performance against Cleveland State, where he shot 4-of-5 from the field and 6-of-8 on free throws. Already a major player in the ‘Cats’ rotation, Singleton’s story in Evanston just getting started.
Transfer: Arrinten Page
Through nine games, Page has been unbelievable, a new testament to the basketball world narrative that sometimes a player needs to find the right system to unlock his full potential. Last year, for an 18-15 Cincinnati team, Page played just 9.0 minutes per game, averaging 3.5 points, 2.3 rebounds, 0.4 assists, 0.5 blocks and 0.3 steals per game. Just one year later, Page looks like a whole different player, at least tripling his performance in almost every statistical category. Most notably, Page leads the ‘Cats in rebounds (7.1 per game), steals (1.2 per game) and blocks (1.1 per game) as the team’s best defender. Page has a 1.54 DBPR defensive value rating per EvanMiya.com, holding things down in the paint as Northwestern’s best defender.
Standing at 6-foot-11, 245 pounds, it was clear Page would be a massive help to the ‘Cats’ defensive campaign. Arguably more impressive has been Page’s development as an offensive standout, who can orchestrate the offense from the top of the key. This year, Page has played as a three-level threat. He proved that while he can get to work with his back to the basket, he can also knock down a jumper from the elbow, or facilitate the ball to an outside shooter if he draws help on a dribble drive. And Collins has demonstrated his confidence in Page’s offensive versatility, trusting the two-man game between him and Martinelli on the final possession of the South Carolina game with the score tied and just 10 seconds remaining. Page got positioning in the post, made his move, and converted a left-hand layup to put the ‘Cats up 79-77 with just two seconds left—a clutch, big-time bucket for the Atlanta junior. With a 2.35 OBPR offensive value rating per EvanMiya.com, Page rates as the fourth highest performing Wildcat on the offensive end since the 2019-20 season, trailing just Pete Nance, Boo Buie, Brooks Barnhizer and Nick Martinelli — three of whom have gone on to play NBA ball, and the other of whom is arguably the Big Ten’s current best scorer.
As Northwestern’s best two-way player, Page has become a massive part of the ‘Cats’ identity and is bound to be the face of the team next year at the start of the post-Martinelli era.
Honorable Mention: Max Green
No, Green hasn’t been involved in the rotation in the same way that Singleton, Page, or even Jayden Reid have been. But Green should be mentioned as a newcomer who has really impressed relative to expectations. He has played just 10.8 minutes per game for the Wildcats, but has become one of the team’s most capable scorers. After getting used to his new threads in the ‘Cats’ first two games, Green has shot 14-of-23 from the floor for an extremely impressive 60.86% field goal percentage. His shooting percentage over the last seven games would place him first on the team in statistics among qualifying players. On top of that, Green leads the team in three-point shooting at 45.0%, while his 57.14% three-point shooting percentage over the last seven games places him as one of the best shooters in the Big Ten.
Green has been a liability on the defensive end, with a -0.34 DBPR value rating according to EvanMiya.com, making it understandable why Collins has played him just 10.8 minutes per game in the opening part of the season. However, his offensive performance should not be overlooked, because his scoring efficiency from all levels of the court is some of the best the program has seen over the past decade. With Green being a sophomore, and standing at 6-foot-6 and 190 pounds, he has room to grow as a more confident and physical defender in Collins’ system. Though his role is limited to being a sparky offensive bench player at the moment, it wouldn’t be surprising if Green becomes a leader for this team in his upperclassmen seasons as one of this program’s best true shooters and scorers.
