BYU basketball: Three things the Cougars can do post-Eric Mika

Eric Mika has hired an agent and is going to the NBA Draft. So, BYU basketball has to adjust. Here’s what the Cougars can (try to) do.

On one hand, you have to be happy for Eric Mika. It takes stones to do what he’s doing, jumping to the professional ranks, knowing he’ll likely go undrafted. On the other hand, it sucks because BYU basketball fans had been envisioning big things.

While BYU basketball fans had dreamed of deep tournament runs, it now seems like just getting to the Big Dance would be an accomplishment.

There’s still talent in Provo, and the return of Heath Schroyer was a smart move. But, in my opinion, the Cougars aren’t replacing Mika.

At least not all at once. Here are three potential options for Dave Rose and BYU basketball moving forward.

Go small, and own it

Okay, so the Cougar big men are all over the place. No one is as polished as Mika was offensively, and there’s no reason to think that any of the bigs will even begin to fill the hole he left.

So you go small.

When I say ‘go small,’ I don’t mean go small for select periods and dabble with it. I don’t mean use it a couple times a month.

I mean go small and force teams to adjust.

The best way to do that would be starting Zac Seljaas at the four-spot. Sure, the Cougars will give up rebounding… but they’ll have an offensive edge. Spacing kills (if you don’t believe me, watch the Golden State Warriors), and you can eventually force teams to adjust to your style of play.

That’s one thing Dave Rose has struggled doing – forcing teams adjust. In the past, it seemed like he was hesitant to stray from non-traditional lineups. Maybe he didn’t trust the players, maybe he lacked the confidence to do so. But with no Mika, going small is a smart move.