Crafting the West Virginia basketball depth chart
The West Virginia basketball team has made major strides with the roster and we take a stab at what the depth chart could look like in year one under Ross Hodge.
| Position | Players |
|---|---|
| Point Guard | Jasper Floyd, Amir Jenkins |
| Shooting Guard | Honor Huff, Morris Ugusuk, Jayden Forsythe, MJ Feenane |
| Small Forward | Treysen Eaglestaff, Chance Moore |
| Power Forward | Brenen Lorient, Jackson Fields, Deandre Thomas |
| Center | Harlan Obioha, Abraham Oyeadier |
The starting five at this stage of the off-season should consist of Floyd, Huff, Eaglestaff, Lorient and Obioha. But there are options here when it comes to either going with a bigger or smaller lineup.
The addition of Jenkins to the roster after reclassifying from the 2026 class has cleared up the depth chart at the point guard spot giving the Mountaineers another true viable option there. Before Floyd was the only true point guard on the roster which meant that others would have had to handle that role.
Huff is now able to play his more natural role at the two where he can play off the ball and utilize his shooting abilities. There is depth behind him as well with Ugusuk and Forsythe expected to play roles on this basketball team in the second and third wave.
Eaglestaff is coming off a season where he averaged just short of 19 points per game at North Dakota and demonstrated the ability to score the ball at a high clip even against high-major opposition. Eaglestaff is likely at the three in an initial lineup but has the flexibility to move to the two in order to create some bigger lineups given his skill set. Moore has the ability to put the ball on the floor and finish at the rim which is going to be a valuable asset for this team. He won’t be eligible for the first five games but is going to be a key piece to the rotation with the versatility and rebounding he brings to the table.
Lorient is the clear first wave option on the depth chart at the four and also has experience playing under Hodge due to his time at North Texas. While he appeared off the bench last season for the Mean Green, Lorient was an all-league player and the Sixth Man of the Year in the American Athletic Conference. West Virginia is going to depend on Lorient in the frontcourt. And it helps that there is some quality depth with Fields coming over from Troy as a second option and true freshman DeAndre Thomas.
The depth chart at the five is the most concerning at this stage of the off-season and is the one spot that might still need to be addressed to round things out. Obioha is an experienced big that has played well during his time at UNC Wilmington but was only asked to play a little over 20 minutes per game. That total is either going to have to increase or Hodge is going to have to get more out of the rest of the depth chart.
On top of Obioha, West Virginia has Oyeadier who is the only returning player on the roster. Still largely unknown at the position, Oyeadier redshirted last year and will look to prove ready for that leap. The coaching staff also could look at playing Fields at the five in certain situations in order to use a smaller lineup depending on how things are developing in games and in particular matchups.
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