Gonzaga’s Ryan Nembhard named one of college basketball's top point guards

Bulldogs point guard was among 20 candidates named to preseason watch list

Photo by Erik Smith, Myk Crawford

Gonzaga men’s basketball senior Ryan Nembhard enters the 2024-25 college basketball season as one of the early favorites to take home the nation’s top point guard award.

The Bulldogs’ floor general was named to the 2025 Bob Cousy Award watch list that was announced Monday. It’s the second straight season Nembhard was tabbed to the award’s preseason watch list, though he came up short of making the semifinalist cut near the midway point last season. Still, he finished top 10 in the country in total assists and guided Gonzaga to its ninth straight Sweet 16 appearance while breaking the program record for assists in a single season.

Nembhard led the West Coast Conference in assists per game (6.9) and assist-to-turnover ratio (2.9, 4.0 in WCC play). He was in the top 15 in the conference with 12.6 points per game and was sixth in the league at 1.4 steals per WCC game.

With a lot of familiar faces at his side, Nembhard is expected to helm another highly prolific offense in Spokane. The Bulldogs, who came in at No. 6 in the Associated Press preseason Top 25 poll, rank No. 2 in adjusted offensive efficiency going into the season according to KenPom.com. Nembhard’s ability to dictate the flow of games with his playmaking and quickness has a lot to do with that projection.

Nembhard was considered by many to be one of the best at his position when he decided to return to school for one more season, though he faces quite the field of competitors in his pursuit of the Bob Cousy award. 

Alabama’s Mark Sears headlined the list of 20 candidates, as the preseason AP All-American continues to rack up the accolades prior to his final season of college hoops. Two other All-SEC first-team choices joined Sears on the Cousy list in Tennessee’s Zakai Zeigler and Florida’s Walter Clayton Jr. The nation’s top dime-dropper last season — Purdue’s Braden Smith (292 total assists) — is also an early contender for the Bob Cousy Award.

The Zags will see at least one player from the Cousy watch list during nonconference play. Gonzaga plays Jeremy Roach and Baylor on Nov. 4 to tip off the new campaign. Indiana and Myles Rice could be on the schedule depending on how the Battle 4 Atlantis plays out.

Fans are encouraged to vote in each of the three rounds starting on Friday. The 20-player watch list will be narrowed to 10 in late January, then to just five in late February. The five finalists will be presented to the Hall of Fame's selection committee in March. Players can play their way on, or off, the watch list throughout the season.

2025 Bob Cousy Award Candidates
Mark Sears (Alabama)
Jeremy Roach (Baylor)
Tyrese Proctor (Duke)
Walter Clayton Jr. (Florida)
Malik Mack (Georgetown)
Ryan Nembhard (Gonzaga)
Myles Rice (Indiana)
Tamin Lipsey (Iowa State)
Dajuan Harris (Kansas)
Josh Hubbard (Mississippi State)
Elliot Cadeau (North Carolina)
Markus Burton (Notre Dame)
Bruce Thornton (Ohio State)
Ace Baldwin Jr. (Penn State)
Braden Smith (Purdue)
Dylan Harper (Rutgers)
Zakai Zeigler (Tennessee)
Jordan Pope (Texas)
Wade Taylor IV (Texas A&M)
Elijah Hawkins (Texas Tech)