This year is shaping up to be an exciting one for Ole Miss basketball. With several key acquisitions made in the backcourt, the Rebels look primed for a strong season. Head Coach Andy Kennedy, who is the winningest coach in Rebel basketball history, is entering into his 10th season in Oxford.
“My staff has done a good job of locating the right pieces for us. I have always felt comfortable in our approach. Sometimes, quite frankly, we aren’t quite good enough. Sometimes we suffer an injury at an inopportune time and we are like 99.9 percent of the other teams in the country and can’t overcome that,” Kennedy said. “Hopefully that is not the case this year. But I like this team and the way they are approaching this season. I know we have some really hungry guys. We are looking forward to getting started.”
With two-time All-SEC guard Stefan Moody leaving for Turkey, the Rebels knew that replacing his contributions on and off the court will be difficult. Rasheed Brooks, a 6-foot 5-inch shooting guard returning for his second season, will look to pick up some of that slack.
Rasheed Brooks attempts to drive towards the basket during a game against Auburn last season. Brooks hopes to pick up some of the slack this season that was left behind as All-SEC guard Stefan Moody left for Turkey.
“Last year I was just a guy kind of out there, helping out in different spots,” Brooks said. “This year, we only have two seniors, me and (Sebastian Saiz), and I’m the more vocal of the two so I feel like my role changes in terms of leadership.”
The Rebels made no qualms about their desire to supplement their roster in the offseason. With four seniors from last year’s team gone, Kennedy went all out in his efforts to bring talent to Oxford. Chief among his acquisitions was Cullen Neal, a 6-foot-5-inch junior transfer from the University of New Mexico. Cullen looks to factor in at point guard and his maturity and skill on the ball have the coaching staff excited.
“Cullen has been tremendous. This has not been an easy transition,” said Kennedy, “I have been blown away with how coachable he is because at 22, we are all probably all set in our ways. I know I was at probably 12. He has been really open to terminology and how we do things differently. He has been doing very well.”
Adding to Kennedy’s perimeter options this year is 6-foot-2-inch junior guard Deandre Burnett. After transferring from Miami’s program last year, Burnette was forced to sit out due to NCAA regulations. Burnett is back this year, however, and ready to make an impact. He brings hustle and a three point shooting threat to a Rebel offense that desperately needs someone to fill Moody’s shoes.
“I’ve made no bones about that. The kid can score at all three levels and he can be a volume guy for us despite him never scoring a point for us yet,” Kennedy said. “But I think he is a guy that can do it.”
Perhaps the most exciting new face for Ole Miss basketball will be true freshman shooting guard Breein Tyree. Coming out of Somerset, New Jersey as a top 100 prospect, Tyree turned down offers from Kansas State, UMass and USC before committing to Ole Miss. His 6-foot 2-inch frame is large enough for the college game and his stats at high school basketball powerhouse St. Joseph’s back his offensive abilities up. While Kennedy knows transitioning to the college game will take time, he’s anticipating big things for the freshman.
“This is sacrilegious for me to say this, but the initial name that jumps off the board is that you have a Russel Westbrook-type savage intensity to him. He jumps off the page the way he attacks,” said Kennedy, “ I have never had a guard like him here. He is not as vertically gifted as (Stefan) Moody, and Moody was cat quick. But he is bigger, stronger off the bounce, more versatile in the things that he can do, and off one leg, he is as good as anyone as we have had prior to the injury.”
Brooks, entering his final season of eligibility, knows that if his team is going to make noise on a national level, they need to keep their heads down and put the work in now.
“I don’t want to talk too much but I think we’re gonna be pretty good, we’ve got a good bond, and we work hard and compete,” Brooks said. “Those are some good things but we’ve still got a lot to work on. I don’t want to say we’re the best team in four years but we could be.”
