Gonzaga's Brian Michaelson on building toward next season: 'We can’t just be satisfied'

'[The players] know we have to make huge jumps, and I think they’re excited about that and willing to work on that,' Michaelson said on Gonzaga Nation.

Gonzaga assistant coach Brian Michaelson / Photo by Erik Smith, Myk Crawford

Based on how the 2023-24 season ended and what's already known about next season's roster, the Gonzaga Bulldogs are a trendy pick to start the fall as a top-10 team, and for good reason.

Mark Few is expected to return six of his top seven players from a team that advanced to the Sweet 16 and finished the season ranked No. 15 in the AP Top 25 poll. The Zags will also welcome a healthy Steele Venters, a 6-foot-7 sharpshooter who missed last season with an ACL injury. With Michael Ajayi potentially coming in from Pepperdine, the roster checks nearly every box on paper.

But as evidenced by the 2023-24 season, not everything on paper translates to on-the-court success right away. The Bulldogs didn't meet outside expectations early on given the inexperience and lack of continuity between the fresh faces on the roster. Obviously, the 2024-25 team is expected to have a lot of familiarity, though there's no discounting the loss of Anton Watson and his impact on the locker room each and every day.

As such, don't expect complacency from the coaching staff and players this summer.

“This group, with how the season finished, had a good feel for what could be possible," said Gonzaga assistant coach Brian Michaelson on Gonzaga Nation. "We can’t just be satisfied and think that’s automatically going to repeat next year."

Michaelson shared his thoughts on the season, Watson's path to the NBA and much more with former All-American Dan Dickau on a new episode of Gonzaga Nation.

Watch Brian Michaelson's full interview on Gonzaga Nation's YouTube channel.

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Produced by Thomas Gallagher.