It was like a reflex.
We asked Dennis Gates about retention, development and their importance toward achieving this team’s goals. The Missouri basketball coach heard the word “goals,” slotted in the middle of the question, and he immediately — like it was a trigger word — reminded us exactly what those are.
“Final Four,” Gates began, “(and) national championship.”
It’s Year 4 of Gates’ tenure with the Tigers — a timespan that has seen Mizzou make the NCAA Tournament on two occasions, sandwiching an injury-riddled sophomore season for the coach that ended with an 0-for SEC record.
The Tigers’ two trips to the Big Dance under Gates have produced one win and a pair of upset losses, first against Princeton in 2023 and then against Drake in the Round of 64 of this year’s tournament.
The goals haven’t changed.
There’s no quit in Gates’ ambitions. Every year, it’s the same refrain.
The preseason voters, at least, don’t quite agree that Missouri’s year will end with banners in the Mizzou Arena rafters and cut-down nets. But, those same voters are more bullish on Missouri than they have been in quite some time.
The Tigers were picked to finish seventh in the conference preseason SEC media poll. That’s Mizzou’s highest spot in the preseason predicted order of finish standings since it was picked fifth ahead of the 2017-18 campaign.
If the Tigers match or surpass that billing, they will return to the NCAA Tournament.
Matching on surpassing that quite-high billing — remember, 14 SEC teams went to the tourney earlier this year — hinges on what Mizzou returns.
There is reason to be encouraged about in-state high school commits Aaron Rowe and Nicholas Randall. Absolutely, there are some intriguing names in MU’s five-player transfer portal haul.
But by and large, retention and development is going to be the driving force behind any success Missouri has this season.
It’s why, per Gates, Mizzou has mostly avoided one-and-done transfers.
“Retention and development is very important. You can’t just build a national championship team just from the portal,” Gates said. “You have to have a high school recruiting class that’s going to keep developing.”
That begins with the three returning starters from last season: point guard Anthony Robinson II, forward Mark Mitchell and forward Trent Pierce.
Gates lobbied for Robinson to be the preseason SEC defensive player of the year. Mitchell was a second-team All-SEC selection in the preseason media poll. Pierce was vastly improved last season although sometimes inconsistent, and Mizzou would like to see another jump from him as a junior.
That trio could be the centerpiece of Mizzou’s team. That’s a good starting point for MU.
But perhaps even more crucial is the second-season jump from the Tigers’ 2024 freshman class.
Now sophomores (and one redshirt freshman) in point guard T.O Barrett, wing Annor Boateng and center Trent Burns all figure to feature in a major fashion this season.
Barrett is likely to split ball-carrying duties with Robinson and UCLA newcomer Sebastian Mack, making him a vital cog in MU’s backcourt.
Mizzou is, from our preseason vantage point, searching for an answer or two at the perimeter spots. Boateng, a top-10 recruit in program history but only a bit-part player as a rookie, has an opportunity to be a major presence on the wing, where there isn’t a clear-cut No. 1 option for the Tigers at this point.
“I want those two guys to make the jump that’s necessary in their career,” Gates said, “that allows them the opportunity to push their team forward and play significant minutes.”
Burns is 7 foot 5 and can shoot. Think that can help a team?
The big man is noticeably bigger and sturdier now, but still recovering from a foot injury that caused him to miss all of last year. Once he’s able to return, Gates wants to see Burns’ name on the SEC All-Freshman team.
Missouri, quite simply, needs all three players to carve out playing and productive roles.
“That’s why we concentrate on not having one-year portal guys, but two-year guys,” Gates said. “Tamar Bates benefited from that. Caleb Grill benefited by way of injury.”
Then there’s Jacob Crews, who utilized the blanket NCAA waiver for all former junior college players to get himself back to Columbia this season and might have as big of a role as anyone on the roster.
Gates wants Crews to make — not just shoot — 100 3-pointers this season. As the Tigers try to make up for the shooting production lost to the professional world in Bates and Grill, it cannot be understated how much Mizzou needs to find a deep-shot threat.
Grill and Bates combined for 130 made triples last year, for what it’s worth.
If you’re counting, that’s seven returners.
That’s enough to fill up a major chunk of even Gates’ lengthy rotations.
Gates spent a significant amount of his time Monday talking about KenPom rankings. Part of why the analytics site quite likes Mizzou — enough to put MU in its highest preseason ranking in more than a decade at No. 28 — is that group of familiar faces.
It’s Year 4 under his direction, and the goals are exactly the same as when he first got here. Gates is nothing if not consistent.
Is this his most talented roster? Time will tell.
But it’s almost certainly his most familiar roster. Mizzou has shown it can develop players year-over-year.
This season, the Tigers will rely on it.
“You have a group of guys that could pull a group forward, and I’m excited with what I’ve seen with their leadership internally,” Gates said. “Now, from an external standpoint, we got to see it all come together with our newcomers.”