USC Basketball: Eric Musselman Appraises Trojans Roster, Acknowledges 2 Weak Spots

Musselman had to put together a whole new team.

Steve Roberts-USA TODAY Sports

When Eric Musselman took over as USC men's basketball next head coach, he had his hands full. The team was in disarray after former head coach Andy Enfield surprisingly departed for SMU after over a decade with the Trojans following a 15-18 record last season. With Enfield's departure, the vast majority of the team entered the transfer portal or declared for the 2024 NBA Draft. Even top commit Trent Perry switched his commitment and joined UCLA.

Musselman had to practically build a roster from complete scratch, though he did get some help from two of his Arkansas recruits — Jalen Shelley and Isaiah Elohim — joining him at USC.

During the Trojans' first week of summer practices, and practices in general under their new head coach, Musselman explained what he looked for in recruiting to bring in the transfer class that he did.

"For us, we tried to start with high quality, high character guys," Musselman told reporters. "At USC there's the academic piece as well, our pool of recruits is different than other places that I've been, so I think that that is an added piece to the recruiting process here. We wanted guys that really wanted to be here, and then from a stylistic [pointed] we wanted guys who could play multiple positions. We felt in year one it was super important that we had versatility, guys 6-foot-5, 6-foot-6, 6-foot-7. We do have some duplications of that, some guys are going to have to play out position."

Eric Musselman breaking down USC’s approach to recruiting a new-look roster — wanted high-character guys, versatility (6-5, 6-6, 6-7), acknowledged roster is thin currently at point guard and center. pic.twitter.com/ShZ2jUlKbV

— Luca Evans (@bylucaevans) June 13, 2024

Musselman added that the team is thin at point guard and center, and that his players will have to learn another position in the case of foul trouble.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Transfer Portal (@transferportal)

Musselman's group includes the two freshmen along with transfers featuring 6-foot-6 Desmond Claude, 6-foot-10 Josh Cohen, 6-foot-7 Terrance Williams II, 6-foot-7 Saint Thomas, 6-foot-7 Chibuzo Agbo, 6-foot-3 Bryce Pope, 6-foot-1 Clark Slajchert, 6-foot-6 Matt Knowling, and 6-foot-8 Rashaun Agee.

More USC:Bronny James Reportedly Worked Out For Powerhouse West Team