USC Basketball: Key Contributor Still Believes in Trojans Ability to Turn Season Around

The USC senior guard is confident his team can turn it around with little time left.

The 2023-2024 USC Trojans' season quickly turned into a disastrous one. Entering the season, the Trojans were ranked in the top 25, and were primed for a promising season. 

It looked that way as the Trojans started the season by winning their first four of five games. However, things only went downhill from there. Since that 4-1 start, the Trojans have only won six games and have gone 6-15. 

This season has not been ideal for USC; however, not all hope is lost within the team. In a recent interview with the media, including L.A. Times staff writer Thuc Nhi Nguyen, USC senior forward DJ Rodman says he still believes the team can turn things around with little time left. 

“We were one of the favorites to win at the beginning of the year and we still have the same team,” Rodman said. “I don’t know why that’s not a possibility.”

-DJ Rodman, via L.A. Times

I love the optimism by Rodman, but the chances of USC turning things around with four games left, plus the Pac-12 tournament, look bleak. 

The USC Trojans' offense and defense are nowhere near elite or even average levels. The Trojans score 74.7 points per game, 121st in the nation, while giving up 75.5 points per game, 266th in the nation. 

The Trojans are not a good shooting team from the two or three-point line, and they also give up high percentages from those levels. This team is not a title contender, let alone a Pac-12 contender. They sit at 4-11 in the Pac-12 and have tough matchups against the Washington and Arizona schools left. 

Crazier things have happened in college basketball, but I have a hard time seeing it happening for the Trojans. You have to love the confidence from Rodman, though.