Ole Miss Rebels

2023-24 Result: 20-12 (7-11 SEC)

Chris Beard had an awesome portal season, bringing in guards Sean Pedulla, Dre Davis and Davon Barnes, forwards Malik Dia and Mikeal Brown-Jones, and 7 '1 4-star recruit, John Bol. Of the players that left, Allen Flanigan was the most significant, but he had a subpar season last year averaging just 9.9ppg. In comes a new cast of players to pair with returners Matthew Murrell, Jaylen Murray, and Jaemyn Brakefield. Including the transfers, Ole Miss has 8 guys on roster that averaged over 12 points per game last year. This means there will need to be some sacrificing and role reductions for the greater good of the team.

The most intriguing part of Ole Miss’ defense is John Bol. It’s unclear whether the 4-star will have a role this season, but he is a 7 '1 shot blocker that will eventually be a great backbone to this Ole Miss defense. Dre Davis, who came over from Seton Hall, should be a key part of the defense, as he is a 6’6 guard who averaged over 1 block and nearly 1 steal a game last year. They also have Jaylen Murray and Matthew Murrell in the backcourt, who should help lead a team that was 55th in the country in steals last year. If Malik Dia can be the player he was at Belmont, and Jaemyn Brakefield can help solidify the front court on this end, the Rebels should be in for another season of finishing in the top 60 in both blocks and steals. Where they really need to improve is on the defensive glass. Beard’s squad was 326th in the country in defensive rebounds per game and 324th in total defensive rebounds. They need their frontcourt additions plus Brakefield to help them improve in that area. Adding Dre Davis and Mikeal Brown-Jones, who both averaged 5.9+ rebounds last year should help ease some pressure from the big men.

Offensively, as mentioned earlier, some guys are going to have to accept a lesser role if they want to succeed. Whether that means less shot attempts or fewer minutes, or both, remains to be seen. Pedulla should be the orchestrator on the offensive end, where he will likely see a regression in points but an uptick in assists. The offense should start with returning leading scorer, Matthew Murrell, who averaged 16.2 points last season. After that it will be Brakefield in the frontcourt and Pedulla and Jaylen Murray in the backcourt. Malik Dia and Dre Davis should have significant offensive roles as well, but where they fall in regard to opportunities will likely be a game-to-game thing. Mikeal Brown-Jones, a transfer from UNC Greensboro will be able to provide a bench scoring punch in games where some of the others are struggling to make shots, as he averaged 18.9 on 54% shooting last year. It is unlikely that he will have a regular big role in the offense, but he will certainly have his games off the bench where he will help them win. The offense should be high-powered, but the concern is having too many guys that had big roles previously which could lead to a stagnant offense at times with little ball movement.

Ole Miss is very well coached. They had a great offseason. The challenge will be figuring out how all these pieces fit together, which Beard is more than capable of doing. With how deep the SEC is, they will likely be somewhere in the middle of the pack and in and out of the top 25. They will win enough big games over the course of the season to make their first NCAA Tournament since 2019, but their road likely ends in the first or second round. They are also more than capable of making the semifinals of the SEC tournament but are also just as capable of losing early in the tournament to the plethora of talent there. Ole Miss’ talent is there, so if they can figure out how to fit together, they are the type of team that is coached well enough and could get hot enough for a deep tournament run.