Dayton basketball sends two players to the Summer League, but has impact roster set for 2021-22.
Projected Rotation
PG: Kobe Elvis (6-2, 170, So.)
2021 stats: 5.2 points, 1.9 assists, 1.6 rebounds
Projected stats: 7.3 points, 3.8 assists, 2.2 rebounds
SG: Elijah Weaver (6-6, 205, Rs.-Jr.)
2021 stats: 5.4 points, 2.0 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 34.5 3P%
Projected stats: 11.3 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 38.5 3P%
SF: Toumani Camara (6-8, 220, So.)
2021 stats: 12.8 points, 7.7 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 1.1 blocks (Georgia)
Projected stats: 16.0 points, 8.2 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.8 blocks
PF: Zimi Nwokeji (6-7, 220, Rs-Fr.)
2021 stats: 5.9 points, 2.4 rebounds, 0.6 assists
Projected stats: 8.1 points, 3.4 rebounds, 1.5 assists
C: Mustapha Amzil (6-10, 220, Rs.-Fr.)
2021 stats: 9.9 points, 5.6 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 38.2 3P%
Projected stats: 12.2 points, 6.1 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 39.5 3P%
6: R.J. Blakney (6-6, 195, Rs.-Fr.)
2021 stats: 4.8 points, 2.4 rebounds
Projected stats: 6.9 points, 3.0 rebounds
7: Moulaye Sissoko (6-9, 250, Rs-Fr.)
2021 stats: 1.4 points, 2.7 rebounds
Projected stats: 3.3 points, 4.6 rebounds
8: Koby Brea (6-6, 174, Rs.-Fr.)
2021 stats: 2.9 points, 1.8 rebounds
Projected stats: 5.3 points, 4.1 rebounds
9: Malachi Smith (6-0, 155, Fr.)
247sports 3-star rated recruit
Projected stats: 3.5 points, 1.4 rebounds
10: Richard Amaefule (6-9, 230, Fr.)
2021 stats: 1.5 points, 2.4 rebounds, 0.2 assists
Projected stats: 2.9 points, 3.2 rebounds, 0.6 assists
Team MVP: Toumani Camara
Toumani Camara is coming off a freshman year at Georgia, and he led his team with 28 blocked shots. He tied for the league lead with eight double-doubles and ranked fourth in rebounding overall (7.7 rpg) and in SEC play (7.4 rpg). Camara’s style of play is going to make him a huge asset for Dayton basketball. His ability to create shots, be aggressive on the boards, and be an excellent athlete moving into an “easier” conference will let him shine as he should be in talks for conference player of the year. Camara is going to be a terror for the rest of the A-10.
Camara’s hunger for the ball and bounce is going to be big. He doesn’t allow easy buckets. He rebounds the ball and cuts past defenders to grab rebounds on both ends. Hoping he can continue to grow his outside game and court visual could also increase Camara’s assist and scoring numbers. The A-1o needs to be put on notice for this player and Dayton basketball.
Make-or-break player: Kobe Elvis
Dayton basketball really doesn’t have a point guard, so if they want Elijah Weaver and Toumani Camara to become the scorers, this team will need to use Elvis in the starting PG role. Elvis comes from DePaul, playing in the Big East, and showed his ability last season.
With the depth of DePaul’s guards, he was able to find playing time as a freshman. He has the edge as the only player on the roster to have already played Division 1 basketball exclusively as a point guard. Elvis needs to work on his turnover ratio and creating his own shot to assist the team. Elvis being able to drive and kick or drive and reset will be a huge asset for this Dayton team. He earned four starts at DePaul, but there are still a lot of areas he can mature in.
Bench Rating: 6/10
Dayton basketball has a lot of young talent and length. They are weak in terms of really solid returners, but still have enough players that played at least a year in Division 1. They have big guards – all over 6-foot-6 – with the point guards each being over six feet tall. The forwards’ perceived talent will be huge as they should be easily able to spell Camara and give good minutes. The Flyers only have one true center, so a couple of these big forwards will need to add that position to their repertoire.
Team Outlook
Dayton basketball has been a well know team among mid-majors. Since Anthony Grant took over in 2017 as the head basketball coach and struggled his first season with Jalen Crutcher, the team finished 14-17. However, he bounced back his next season after recruiting and landing Obi Toppin and transfer Ibi Watson. Having length seems to be a huge part of Dayton basketball’s success. This will continue this year. This team has some strong forward options coming in, as well as big guards.
Show ‘Stapha 🇫🇮 pic.twitter.com/oVcYKeKYpC
— Dayton Basketball (@DaytonMBB) February 20, 2021
Toumani Camara, Ziwi Nwokeji, and Mustapha Amzil will be a hassle for anyone driving into the paint. Neither is a true or tried big man, but both have enough experience and numbers to turn that around this season.
Hustle leads to an easy put back 😤@Rblakney23 ✈️🏀 pic.twitter.com/lfhKtNQKfx
— Dayton Basketball (@DaytonMBB) February 17, 2021
Overall, it isn’t the same team from 2019-2020, but it could be with incoming talent. Grant is looking for similar players from Dayton’s best team a few years back, and I can easily see this team playing postseason.
Passing Leads To Scoring @Jalen_NoRose1 ➡️➡️ @ibi_watson_2 ➡️➡️ @ZimifeNwokeji 🏀🏀
— Dayton Basketball (@DaytonMBB) February 17, 2021
We LOVE to see it ‼️ pic.twitter.com/bXIVxHyIqY
The speed and ability of the Flyers to take off could cause some serious havoc. The biggest issue is all these moving parts coming from the transfer portal, and young recruits. Dayton basketball will need to build chemistry and do so quickly for success to come quickly. Finishing this year with 20 wins seems very probable. Dayton basketball will be looking to finish high in the A-10.
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