Mark Few remade Gonzaga’s roster almost from scratch, and the result is a group that could be loaded if the NCAA clears everyone in time.
The Bulldogs are coming off a 31-4 season that ended with a second-round NCAA Tournament loss to No. 11 seed Texas, but only four players are back in the mix for 2026-27: senior Braden Huff, sophomores Davis Fogle and Parker Jefferson, and walk-on Alonzo Metz. Around them, the staff has spent the past few months bringing in 11 newcomers to Spokane.
That group comes with one major complication. Five of the 11 are still in eligibility limbo. Xaivian Lee, Javon Bennett, and Chauncey Wiggins are all fighting for eligibility as members of the high school class of 2022, while Izan Almansa and Nathan de Sousa are international commits waiting on NCAA clearance for this season.
If all of them get the green light, Gonzaga’s roster looks deep and dangerous. And at the top of the newcomer list sits the biggest frontcourt addition of them all: Massamba Diop.
Diop, a 7'1 big man from Arizona State, averaged 13.6 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks as a freshman last season. He fits cleanly next to Huff and gives Gonzaga the rim protection it has been missing since Holmgren’s departure in 2022. There’s real buzz around what he could become in Spokane, with the possibility of All Pac-12 First Team recognition or even 2027 NBA draft attention.
The backcourt shakeup got plenty of notice after Mario Saint-Supery left in mid-July for a pro opportunity in Spain, and Gonzaga’s response was landing Lee after Donovan Dent had long been viewed as the top target before he chose LSU. Lee, a 6'4 guard who started at Florida last year, brings a polished game to Spokane after spending three years at Princeton and then helping the No. 1 team in the country for multiple weeks.
He is a strong finisher, a sharp pick-and-roll operator, and a dependable defender who held up in the SEC. If he’s eligible, he becomes the engine of the offense and changes the profile of the entire team.
Wiggins is another potential difference-maker, and he may end up starting at the three. That would slide Fogle to the two and give Gonzaga one of the tallest starting lineups around.
The 6'10 forward looks more like a guard than a traditional wing, and he knocked down 39% of his 6.0 three-point attempts per game last season at Florida State. His perimeter shooting makes him a vital fit in the rotation.
Almansa could be just as important, though his path is complicated by eligibility questions. The 21-year-old 6'10 big man from Spain has already played for the G League Ignite in 2023-24, the Perth Wildcats in the NBL in 2024-25, and Real Madrid last year.
That history could work against him even though he is still within the five-year competition window. On the floor, he would bring rebounding and finishing and give Gonzaga a needed third big behind Diop and Huff.
Harwell arrived as Gonzaga’s first transfer commitment of the class, coming from Houston after the Bulldogs had chased him hard during his high school recruitment. The 6'6 guard averaged 3.6 points last season, but another year removed from a serious leg injury and a new setting could help him break out as one of the team’s better perimeter options and likely its top on-ball defender.
Bennett’s status remains unsettled after the NCAA was granted stay requests in both the Ohio and federal Colorado lawsuits. If he becomes eligible, he profiles as Lee’s backup at point guard, with outside shooting and a change-of-pace role off the bench.
Among the incoming freshmen, Foster carries the most immediate intrigue. He is Gonzaga’s top-ranked recruit in the 2026 class, a 4-star wing from Link Academy in Branson, MO, and he showed scoring touch and perimeter range there. He has also stood out this summer in Spokane, and his role could grow if the shot keeps falling, especially if Wiggins is unavailable.
De Sousa may be the toughest newcomer to place. In the ideal version of Gonzaga’s roster, he is the third point guard behind Lee and Bennett and plays a smaller role as a creator and shooter.
But if Lee and Bennett are both unavailable, de Sousa could be thrust into the starting job. The 6'3 guard shot 36% from three and averaged nearly five assists per game last year for Cholet in France, so he can handle a larger load if needed.
Ekanga-Ehawa, an 18-year-old 6'6 wing from France, brings upside as a scoring wing but is still developing his outside shot. He is expected to begin his college career as a reserve while he adjusts to the college game in the United States.
Funches, a 7'0 center from Mississippi, was heavily recruited before choosing Gonzaga last October. His 7'5 wingspan and shot-blocking give him real long-term appeal, though he projects as emergency depth in year one.
Nilson, the son of former Gonzaga walk-on Mike Nilson, who won WCC Defensive Player of the Year in 1999-2000, probably won’t see much action this season. Even so, he could become a favorite with the home crowd at The Kennel.
In Other News...
Gonzaga Women Offer First Look At A Team Built To Contend
Lisa Fortiers Gonzaga women are heading into the 2026-27 season with a roster that looks strikingly familiar, which is exactly why the program has a chance to open the year with real weight behind it. Most of last seasons group is back, along with a mix of returning starters and new transfers, giving the Bulldogs the kind of continuity that usually matters once conference play starts to tighten.
The first public look comes at the annual FanFest on Oct. 10 at McCarthey Athletic Center, where the team will be introduced before a night that also includes on-court events. For Gonzaga, it is a useful early snapshot of a group that enters the season with expectations attached and a familiar question hanging over the roster picture as the final details continue to settle. [Read more 🡒]