Wichita State bolsters its frontcourt by adding Anton Grady

Thanks to the return of stars Fred VanVleet and Ron Baker, the arrival of sweet-shooting Kansas transfer Conner Frankamp and the addition of Rivals top 100 recruit Landry Shamet, Wichita State appears very well stocked on the perimeter next season.

The bigger question for the Shockers is whether their frontcourt will be an asset or a detriment

Wichita State took a big step toward addressing those concerns Friday when it landed a proven big man capable of filling the void left by Darius Carter's graduation. Cleveland State graduate transfer Anton Grady averaged 14.3 points and 7.9 rebounds last season, earned all Horizon League honors and was also named to the Horizon League’s All-Defensive team

Grady, who chose the Shockers over the likes of Iowa State and Xavier, will play his final year of eligibility next season. He'll likely start in the Wichita State frontcourt alongside Evan Wessell if Gregg Marshall opts to go small or Rashard Kelly or Shaquille Morris if the Shockers coach opts to go bigger.

How good that frontcourt is likely depends on whether Kelly becomes more consistent and Morris improves his strength and conditioning to tap into his potential, but at least now Wichita State has an established option. Grady should thrive in pick and rolls with VanVleet and should be the beneficiary of the deft passing of VanVleet and Baker.

The only concern with Grady is that the 6-foot-8 forward didn't perform as well against the best opponents Cleveland State faced last season. He went 0-for-8 from the field against Louisville, 4-for-13 against Virginia and 2-for-6 against VCU, all of which were losses for the Vikings.

Wichita State already projected as a preseason top 15 team next fall even without Grady. Adding him to the fold can only make the Shockers even better.

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Jeff Eisenberg is the editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at daggerblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!

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