The Basketball Tournament 2024: The Nawf Team Profile

After a narrow loss in their debut, the Nawf have learned from their mistakes, and look to make some noise in The Basketball Tournament.

Last year, this team wasn’t really seen as much of a threat by the media, but they almost gave them a reason to. They lost by just five points as the 8 seed, and the inexperience of the players in the Elam Ending format was definitely one of the reasons for their demise.

This year, they return 65 of their 72 points from last year, and they truly believe they have what’s needed to represent The Nawf and come out of Lexington on top.

For more TBT team profiles, click here.

Current Roster:

• AJ Cheeseman (New Orleans & UMES)
• Alphonso Willis (Texas A&M Commerce)
• D’Marcus Sminods (Georgia State)
• Damion Rosser (New Orleans)
• Dejon Waters Jr. (Pitt State University)
• Derek St. Helaire (University of New Orleans & Jacksonville State)
• Ish Hollis (Western Carolina & North Georgia)
• Kareem Brewton (Memphis)
• Kendall Lewis (Illinois State)
• Qiydar Davis (Louisiana Tech & Illinois State)
• Roberto Gallinat (Pacific)
• Simeon Kirkland (New Orleans)
• Tavin Cummings (Miles College)
• Westley Hinton (Troy)

Coaching Staff:

• Dwight Jackson (GM)
• Mark Welch (Asst. Coach)
• Nicholas Osborne (Asst. Coach, Sponsor)
• Patrick Shokpeka (Asst. Coach, Booster)
• Shay Agboola (GM)
• Wesley Witherspoon (Asst. Coach)

Region: Lexington

All-time Record: 0-1

First Matchup: vs. Woco Showtime (July 19 at 1 p.m. on TBT Live)

Team MVP: Derek St. Helaire

St. Helaire was phenomenal for The Nawf last year. He scored 21 points in addition to 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals. At 6’1, he what he doesn’t have in size he makes up for with speed and basketball IQ. He can score on all three levels and feels comfortable taking the big shot. Don’t be surprised if we see Fletcher McGee and St. Helaire going at it in their first game.

Make-or-break Player: Qiydar Davis

While St. Helaire was the Team MVP last year, Davis wasn’t far behind, he scored 20 himself and knocked down 3 three-pointers. They’ll need his shooting again. While they did score 72, they really struggled from deep besides Davis. At 6’6, Davis can provide decent height, and while he only grabbed three rebounds, he could sneak a couple more this time around.

Defensively, he needs to be better than last year. If he can hold his matchup to 10 or less, that’s a success and will allow more flexibility for the guards since they aren’t particularly great defenders. The Nawf have a really talented player in Davis, and hopefully, for them, he can once again shine.

Team Outlook

The good news for The Nawf is the team they’re facing doesn’t have a win in The Basketball Tournament either. The bad news is it’s Woco Showtime, who bring in an extremely loaded roster. The Nawf get a six seed, a bump from 8 last year, but they’ll have an uphill battle if they want to make it out of Lexington. If they win their first game, they’ll face La Familia, the Kentucky alumni team that is considered by many the best in this tournament.

Many people don’t realize how different TBT is from most organized basketball for these players, and there’s definitely a learning curve for some. That learning curve is gone, so don’t let this team fly under the radar or they might upset not only your bracket, but the teams in their way.