ctinsider
Dan Hurley has enjoyed his first live look at the revamped UConn men's basketball roster, as the summer workout period opened last month.
The Huskies will return just two starters from last season's Final Four squad and welcome 10 new players into Storrs this year, signaling the next era of UConn basketball after losing several key contributors to the program's recent success.
Still, as Hurley stepped away from his new-look Huskies to appear on ESPN's broadcast of the NBA Summer League Friday, the 53-year-old remained confident that UConn will turn in another stellar season and continue to produce professional talent.
"I see a lot of talent, a lot of new faces," Hurley said on ESPN about his UConn roster.
"We've cycled through so many great players the last couple of years, whether it's Steph Castle, Donovan Clingan, Cam Spencer, Alex Karaban guys that have been fixtures.
Now, we've got a new talented cast of guys that are in Storrs and guys that will be in this summer league." Karaban was among two UConn players selected in the first round of the 2026 NBA Draft, joining center Tarris Reed Jr., and senior guard Solo Ball will use a medical redshirt this upcoming season after undergoing surgery on his wrist that's 279 wins and six Final Four appearances missing from UConn's roster for the upcoming season.
In all, just 35% of UConn's minutes next season are expected to be allocated toward returning players, according to the 2027 T-Rank College Basketball Projections.
However, in the current era of unregulated transfer-portal chaos, the Huskies' continuity appears better than most entering the 2026-27 campaign.
The national average for projected returning minutes percentage is just 26%, placing UConn in the 72nd percentile, and the Huskies ranked seventh in this metric among teams projected inside the top-15 of Bart Torvik's preseason efficiency ratings.
The backcourt is seemingly settled, with Braylon Mullins and Silas Demary Jr.
returning.
Hurley has also landed some fairly promising transfer portal products to round out the starting five.
Najai Hines figures to start at center after ranking second nationally in block percentage as a freshman with Seton Hall, while some intriguing positional battles are taking shape at the forward spot.
Duke transfer Nik Khamenia received some new competition at power forward, with UConn signing Egor Amosov from Real Madrid this week.
At the same time, highly-touted recruit and 2027 NBA Draft prospect Colben Landrew will look to unseat returner Jayden Ross at the 3-spot.