How has Jai Lucas taken on his second year and first full offseason?
First, it started with retaining Shelton Henderson and Dante Allen from entering the portal and testing the waters of the NBA Draft. Both rose to becoming among the best players on the team last season during the Hurricanes’ third-place finish in the ACC.
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Last season was a veteran take on what Lucas wanted his program to look like. It was his first season, and having players who knew how to win and close games was the biggest takeaway from his first year as a head coach.
After reaching the Round of 32, his three-star veterans are now off on their NBA journey, and his second iteration of a good basketball team has been laid out on paper.
Projected Roster for the 2026-27 season:
Starters:
1. Acaden Lewis
2. Dante Allen
3. Shelton Henderson
4. Caleb Gaskins
5. Somto Cyril
Bench:
Marcus Allen
DeSean Goode
Chris Birden Jr.
Quin Berger
Nick Dorn
Brent Bland
Egor Ryzhov
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A Younger Team
The team is younger, draws more athletic looks, and has better shooting abilities. It is the mold that Lucas placed last season to describe the type of team he wants. Fast, defenders, and grinders. This new batch of players could take his ideas for this program to the next level.
Compared to last season, the average age dropped by two years. The projected starting lineup will be sophomores, a five-star freshman, and a star defensive junior.
On the entire roster two juniors and five seniors. The rest are freshmen and sophomores. A perfect blend compared to last season’s wheel of players. It also helps that the Hurricanes are playing most of their young players, and they are better shooters, too.
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More Out of Conference Play Competiton
The Hurricanes are projected to play at least six top 25 teams in the country. That if you are going off preseason polls, which are too early to tell. The Canes were at the bottom of most preseason polls last season, but ended the year ranked. They are better than most people gave them credit for.
Most of them are coming from the SEC. Lucas has made an effort to get the Canes into more tournaments, bringing in more competition, and now looks to have an annual series against Florida.
Miami, coming off its past runs in the NCAA Tournament, showed what this program can be. Jim Larraaga didn’t want to take on the NIL challenge, but Lucas has come in and taken full advantage of it. It was one of the reasons that he was hired, along with his deep resume.
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Lucas will get star-level talent and unlock what is in them to become a new, consistent contender once again. There just had to be a level of belief in the program that could wake it back up to this level. It is there now with Lucas in charge.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/miami as Miami Basketball Flips Its Attack from Last Season, With Two Key Distinctions.
