Will Gonzaga's Braden Huff take another step forward as a redshirt sophomore?: 2024-25 player preview

Braden Huff was a high-volume scorer in bursts for the Bulldogs in his first year of college basketball; what does he have in store for year two?

Cole Forsman | 16 Hours Ago

Oct 5, 2024; Spokane, WA, USA; Gonzaga Bulldogs forward Braden Huff (34) participates in the three-point contest during Kraziness at the Kennel at the McCarthey Athletic Center. Mandatory Credit: James Snook-Imagn Images / James Snook-Imagn Images

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Gonzaga Bulldogs

Even in a sporadic role as a redshirt freshman, Gonzaga men’s basketball forward Braden Huff didn’t need much time on the floor last season to validate why he’d been called the team’s “most annoying redshirt” by Drew Timme just over a year ago.

Huff, who led the Zags in scoring through the first two games of the 2023-24 campaign, seized about every opportunity he had to showcase his impeccable footwork and touch around the rim, whether it was in short bursts off the bench or in extended runs with the starters due to foul trouble elsewhere. His ability to stretch the floor complimented Graham Ike’s dominant presence on the low block and made for an interesting one-two scoring punch in Gonzaga’s frontcourt.

“Going [into last season], I wasn’t really sure what my role was going to be,” Huff said. “I knew we had Graham, obviously Anton [Watson], Ben [Gregg]; a bunch of guys who’ve contributed big ways in the past. So I was ready to just get in and do what I could to be on the floor and help the team win so, to be able to just be out there especially after a year of kinda not playing competitively was a great feeling.”

Huff’s ability to spark the offense with his knack for putting the ball in the basket earned him some trust points from the coaching staff amid some of the biggest moments from last season’s Sweet 16 run. In what was perhaps Huff’s introduction to the national stage, the 6-foot-10 post helped guide Gonzaga down the stretch of a crucial win over Kentucky at Rupp Arena, as he scored 10 of his 12 points in the second half and had a run of eight-straight points in crunch time while Ike had to sit on the bench with foul trouble. In the NCAA Tournament, Huff helped lead a strong finish to the first half of the Bulldogs’ wire-to-wire victory over Kansas in the second round.

“B-Huff came in and made a great impact on the game,” Ike said after that game. “Both ends of the floor. He was playing his tail off. Super proud of him and the growth he's made the whole season.”

Of course, Huff’s first season wasn’t without a few growing pains. He was willing to admit his impact on the defensive end wasn’t as consistent as he would’ve liked. While he poses the length and size to be a disruptor down low, some opponents were able to expose Huff in the pick-and-roll game and target him on the low block.

But that might be even more reason to believe a big jump is in store for Huff as he heads into his redshirt sophomore season.

“My whole time here I’ve just kind of been looking at the bigger picture,” Huff said. “I understand it’s a process and I think there’s definitely another jump that could be made here and I’m super excited.”

Here’s a more in-depth look at Huff’s strengths, offseason work and much more heading into the 2024-25 campaign.

STRENGTHS: ALL-AROUND SCORING, TOUCH NEAR THE RIM

Gonzaga Bulldogs forward Braden Huff (34) jumps up for a bucket under pressure from USC Trojans forwards Jalen Shelley (9) and Rashaun Agee (12) during the first half of their exhibition game at Acrisure Arena in Palm Desert, Calif., Saturday, Oct. 26, 2024. / Andy Abeyta/The Desert Sun / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

All that time spent guarding Timme in practice and observing his every move from the bench, plus the extra gym time with the coaching staff as a redshirt player, went a long way in setting a solid foundation for Huff’s playing career.

“Braden really came here with not being much of a back-to-the-basket scorer,” Gonzaga assistant coach Brian Michaelson said. “Now I think he's probably one of the better back-to-the-basket scores there are.”

That’s quite the progress report on Huff, who played a lot of point guard during his high school days at Glenbard West (Illinois).

While he showed last season that he can initiate the break on occasion, Huff obviously isn’t in the rotation to be a facilitator. As such, a strong low-post game and utilizing space on the perimeter to knock down 3s have become essential tools in Huff’s arsenal as a college player.

Huff led the West Coast Conference and was top 15 in the country in 2-point shooting percentage (70%). He made 77 of his 103 field goal attempts at the rim, per hoop-math.com, and was 22 of 65 (33.8%) from downtown. Not a high volume of attempts for a stretch forward, though it’s still enough to catch the attention of opposing defenses.

Recall back to Gonzaga’s West Coast Conference regular-season finale against Saint Mary’s game in Moraga, California. Mark Few stuck Huff in the left corner to keep Mitchell Saxen, the WCC Defensive Player of the Year, away from the rim to open up driving lanes for Ryan Nembhard. That’s exactly what happened, and the results were a layup from Nembhard followed by a kickout to Huff for a 3-pointer on back-to-back possessions.

Similarly, the Bulldogs utilized Huff’s outside shot to open up the floor against 7-foot-1 All-American Hunter Dickinson and the Jayhawks as well.

“It allows me to see the game differently than the typical big,” Huff said of his time at point guard in high school.”What I’ve really gotten better at here is being able to post-up [because] playing that guard spot in high school, I wouldn’t say my post skills were where they needed to be when I got here. But after a lot of time with [coach Michaelson] we eventually got that figured out and I feel a lot more comfortable.”

OFFSEASON WORK: DEFENSIVE FOOTWORK, ADDING MUSCLE

Photo by Erik Smith, Myk Crawford

The biggest area of growth for Huff lies on the defensive end of the floor. While he tied the team lead for blocks last season, his pick-and-roll defense in particular did not yield similar results. According to EvanMiya.com, Huff had the lowest defensive performance rating of anyone in Gonzaga’s main rotation last season.

“I was happy with how the offense was last year,” Huff said. “But defensively, just wanting to be on the court and affect the game in different ways other than putting the ball in the basket, cause it’s not always going to fall. So that’s a big thing.”

Huff won’t be asked to shoulder a majority of the defensive responsibilities, though he’ll certainly need to be more consistent in this area to stay on the floor against some of the Bulldogs’ tougher opponents. Saint Mary’s made it a point to attack Huff down the stretch of last season’s matchup at The Kennel in February, as Huff gave up a layup from Aidan Mahaney and a 3-pointer from Joshua Jefferson in consecutive possessions, opening up a 60-55 lead for Saint Mary’s. Granted, Huff was in that position because Ike was on the bench with four fouls, though it’s still true that being able to defend in space and switch screens are valuable skill sets that Few covets from his big men.

NBA OUTLOOK: IDOLIZES OF NIKOLA JOKIC

Photo by Erik Smith, Myk Crawford

While his head coach helped bring home the gold medal with Team USA this summer, Huff was paying close attention to the Americans’ biggest threat during their run at the Paris Games: three-time NBA MVP and Serbian big man, Nikola Jokic.

“The way he’s able to pass out of the post and score but [also] make his teammates better is really cool,” Huff said of Jokic.

Huff grew up watching Kevin Durant, another skilled 7-footer albeit in a much different way than Jokic, though lately, the redshirt sophomore has taken a liking to the Denver Nuggets superstar and how he can dictate the flow of the game through his playmaking. This is a valuable skillset for someone like Huff, who will likely face his share of double-teams at some point in his Gonzaga career, if not this upcoming season.

Along with some improvements on the defensive end, Huff’s ability to make quick decisions in the post and knock down 3-pointers with greater consistency will go a long way in forming his stock as a future NBA player. His background as a point guard, even if limited, makes for an intriguing combination of skillsets for the next level. Former Gonzaga All-American and current Toronto Raptors Kelly Olynyk, who also took a redshirt year during college and was known as more of a guard in high school at 6-foot-11, is another current example of a versatile forward who can spread the floor, share the ball and make high-IQ decisions without relying heavily on athleticism.

PREDICTION: ALL-WCC HONORABLE MENTION

Photo by Erik Smith, Myk Crawford

When given the opportunity last season, Huff showed he could fill up the stat sheet. In the five games that he logged 20 or more minutes in, he averaged 19.8 points and 6.4 rebounds. Those numbers likely would’ve earned him an All-WCC First Team nod and possibly the player of the year award as well.

The reality, though is Huff played 13.5 minutes per game as a redshirt freshman, a number that’s surely going to go up in the 2024-25 season. If he reaches anywhere near the 20-minute mark every game, Huff should contend for all-league honors. The Zags added some depth to the frontcourt with the addition of 7-foot center Ismaila Diagne, though it remains to be seen how he’ll impact the team right away as a freshman.

"I think he has the most upside of anyone who’s coming back," Adam Morrison said of Huff on an episode of The Perimeter. "If he gets 22-28 minutes, I think he has the most upside to be a 15-20 point per game scorer."