UM men’s basketball team has 11 new faces. Here’s a primer heading into 2024-25 season

Nijel Pack is the only remaining player from the University of Miami’s 2023 Final Four team and there are 11 new faces on the roster.

But Hurricanes coach Jim Larranaga has reason for optimism heading into the 2024-25 season because this Hurricanes team includes eight upperclassmen, six of whom are working on their Master’s degrees.

The upperclassmen combined have played 633 games. Five of the six transfers have NCAA Tournament experience. Three Hurricanes have surpassed 1,000 career points (Nijel Pack, Jalen Blackmon, Matt Cleveland) and two others are close (Brandon Johnson and A.J. Staton-McCray).

“These guys are 22 or 23 years old, they’re men,” Larranaga said. “They understand the game. They’ve been competing at the college level for sometimes four years, and as a result, when you put something in, they really understand what you’re asking them to do.”

Some of Larranaga’s best teams over his five decades of coaching were his more experienced teams, with a few young, key players.

“Older players normally adapt quicker and can execute better under game conditions because they’ve done it for so many years,” he said. “But the balance of having youthful enthusiasm, talented young guys to join a veteran crew is the best-case scenario.”

The UM veteran crew includes returnees Pack and Matt Cleveland, and transfers Lynn Kidd (a 6-10 center from Virginia Tech), Brandon Johnson (a 6-8 forward from East Carolina), and Jalen Blackmon (a 6-2 guard from Stetson).

Johnson averaged 14 points and 8.6 rebounds per game last season. Kidd averaged 13.2 points and 6.5 rebounds while shooting 66.8 percent from the field, which ranked fourth best in the nation. Blackmon was the 10th-highest scorer in the nation with 21.3 points per game.

In a scrimmage on Saturday, Pack scored 29 points, Kidd went 11 for 13 from the field and Johnson had seven or eight assists, according to Larranaga. “These guys are older, very smart, and know how to play well together.”

Pack, a fifth-year point guard coming off an injury-plagued season, is enjoying playing alongside other veterans.

“They’ve been leaders on their teams, and especially at this age, they’re taking everything very seriously,” Pack said. “All our seniors know this is our last chance. We want to take advantage of it.”

Cleveland agreed: “The biggest difference this year is the experience and leadership we have. We have seven seniors, guys that have been through pretty much everything in their years of college basketball. Everyone’s basketball IQ is high. You can see it, even in practice.”

Cleveland described Johnson as “a Swiss army knife,” a guy who has emerged as a team leader by doing it all. He can shoot, pass, dribble, defend, and rebound. He has also been impressed with Kidd.

“Lynn is probably the best big that I’ve ever played with,” Cleveland said. “His touch is great, his footwork, he can shoot with either hand and he’s doing a great job listening to what the coaches want from him defensively. Both he and Brandon have been really great additions.”

Kidd, a Gainesville native, was recruited by UM coming out of high school, but chose Clemson. He transferred to Virginia Tech after one season and transferred to Miami for his graduate year.

Asked why he didn’t initially pick UM, Kidd said: “I was young, kind of worried about coming to Miami. I felt it would be a distraction. At that age if I came here, I would have been all over the place. I’m older now, I’m a homebody. Now, this is the perfect fit. I was familiar with Coach L, their playing style, being in the ACC, love the weather.”

Kiree Huie, a 6-9 transfer from Idaho State, was expected to play considerable minutes but he injured his left shooting hand a few weeks ago, required surgery and there is no timetable yet for his return.

UM’s top 10 recruiting class includes Jalil Bethea, a 6-5 five-star guard from Philadelphia, guard Austin Swartz from Concord, N.C., and forward Isaiah Johnson-Arigu of Minneapolis. Divine Ogochukwu and Xander Alarie joined the freshman class later.

UM plays an exhibition Oct. 30 against St. Leo and opens the regular season Nov. 4 at home against Fairleigh Dickinson.