The shake-up in Missouri Tiger basketball has been immense since the 2021-2022 season ended. First, Cuonzo Martin was fired two days after a second-round loss to LSU in the Southeastern Conference Tournament in Tampa.
That decision set moves in motion by Director of Athletics Desiree Reed-Francois that led to the hiring of Cleveland State head coach and long-time Florida State assistant Dennis Gates as the new head coach at Missouri. The 42-year old Gates was charged with reigniting passion within a floundering program that has fell below expectations since joining the SEC a decade ago.
With Gates in place, the dominos to the roster began to fall. Veteran guard Javon Pickett was first to announce an intention to transfer, leaving Missouri with one season of eligibility remaining. Last season, Pickett was the second-leading scorer for Mizzou, averaging 11.1 points per game, leading the Tigers with 32 minutes per game.
Two members of Martin’s 2021 recruiting class, both Springfield, Missouri natives, will be transferring, as Trevon Brazile and Anton Brookshire are expected to leave MU. Brazile had the more solid freshman season of the two, establishing himself as a defensive presence in the paint, while averaging 6 1/2 points and five rebounds per game.
Meanwhile, prized recruit Aidan Shaw of Kansas City, Missouri announced that he had reneged on a commitment to play for the Tigers, citing Martin’s firing as his reasoning. However, Gates has spoken with Shaw within the past week, and it remains possible that Shaw could stay with Missouri.
Shaw’s original commitment to the Tigers came on September 17th, choosing Mizzou over Kansas, Arkansas, Iowa, Oklahome State, Iowa State, and Maryland. The four-star recruit has indicated an announcement for his new commitment could come in April.
On Monday, 7’3″ center Jordan Wilmore entered the transfer portal, choosing to leave the Tiger program after struggling to find the floor due to injury and coach decisions. The native of Laurel, Maryland scored 11 points against Northern Illinois on November 18th, but was subsequently slowed by a back injury that kept him out of Missouri’s final 18 games of the season.
Wilmore’s departure leaves three open scholarships for next season for Coach Gates.
