BYU basketball: Deep is the word

PROVO — While last basketball season was promoted as one of opportunity for members of the BYU men's basketball team, this season begins more with a theme of players just fighting to keep their jobs.

Only Lee Cummard is gone from last year's starting lineup, which means, logically, that only one starting spot is up for grabs. Most expect starters Chris Miles, Jackson Emery, Jonathan Tavernari and Jimmer Fredette to return to their same roles, just more experienced and likely a little bit improved.

In theory, that leaves players like Charles Abouo, Noah Hartsock, transfer Logan Magnusson and freshman Tyler Haws competing for Cummard's spot, and the rest vying for time in back-up roles.

At Wednesday's media day, however, head coach Dave Rose and his players all talked about how deep the Cougars are this season, and how competitive it will be to earn playing time when practice begins Friday and games begin early next month.

"We have a really deep team, and we're going to have a lot of really good competition at every position," Emery said. "But that's only going to make us all work harder and be better."

Still, it's hard to imagine that Fredette, the Mountain West Conference preseason player of the year, or Emery, a first-team MWC defensive player last year, or Tavernari, a two-year starter, or Miles, the Cougars' biggest and most physical player, don't have an upper hand.

"It's just my philosophy that the experienced players, the starting players, have an advantage," Rose said. "They know how we like to play, they have confidence in the fact that they've been successful here.

"But when we start on Friday, we'll change this lineup around and everybody will have a chance to play. How we practice for the first two or three weeks will determine how we're going to start and play against Bradley (in their season-opener), because that's the only way I know how to do it."

Regardless, it's going to be hard to keep those who saw significant playing time last year — Hartsock, Abouo, center James Anderson and guard Lamont Morgan Jr. — off the court. Add in redshirt guard Michael Loyd, Haws and fellow freshman Brandon Davies, returned missionary Brock Zylstra and Magnusson, and it's easy to see why it might be difficult for Rose to make everyone happy.

"This is a new team and we have to figure out how we're going to play together," Rose said. "So when we start on Friday, we'll have five spots open and another five spots behind that, and we'll just try to put a lineup together in the next three or four weeks."

The biggest advantage of BYU's depth, experience and versatility is that Rose will be able to use interchangeable and more flexible lineups this season.