Gonzaga Bulldogs ranked No. 13 in FOX Sports college basketball preseason Top 25

Another early poll has the Zags outside the top 10 heading into the 2023-24 season

With opening night three weeks away, many across the college basketball world are hesitant to believe the Gonzaga Bulldogs will live up to their usual standards for success.

Mark Few spent all offseason revamping his program following the departures of Drew Timme and Julian Strawther to the NBA. Point guard play was inconsistent last season, so Few brought in Creighton transfer Ryan Nembhard, one of the best playmakers in the country. He also brought in Wyoming transfer Graham Ike, a 6-foot-9 bruiser who earned Preseason Mountain West Player of the Year honors last season before going down with injury.

Eastern Washington transfer Steele Venters takes the place of Strawther as a sharpshooter on the wing, while Anton Watson and Nolan Hickman return to the starting lineup. The Bulldogs arguably have three of the top 50 players in the country, though some analysts and experts are lukewarm on Gonzaga heading into the 2023-24 season.

FOX Sports ranked the Bulldogs at No. 13 in its men's college basketball preseason Top 25 released Wednesday. Reporter John Fanta recognized the importance of Nembhard to the squad, but his big key for the Zags is the play of Ike coming off a lower leg injury.

"The big key: Will Wyoming transfer Graham Ike play like the Preseason Mountain West Player of the Year that he was last season before going down with an injury?"

Ike did not participate in the Kraziness in the Kennel festivities last weekend out of precaution.

FOX Sports' rankings are similar to the Blue Ribbon Yearbook's preseason top 25, which also had the Zags at No. 13. Gonzaga was ranked outside the top 10 in early rankings from CBS Sports, The Field of 68 and 247Sports, but came in at No. 7 in ESPN's rankings. The Bulldogs haven't started a season ranked outside the top 15 in the Associated Press poll since 2017.

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