“Recruiting is the lifeblood of our program.” -Head Coach Travis Steele. If that is the case, Xavier is hemorrhaging right now. Decommitments and fickle teenagers are part of life for a college basketball program, but in Xavier’s case recently, the defections have become an issue worthy of concern at the very least.
Since Steele took over, Xavier has lost Evan Boudreaux, Samari Curtis, Jake Walter, and now Elias King. Keonte Kennedy also left and re-opened his recruiting, but did eventually return to Xavier. That adds up to four players missing off this season’s roster, plus Kentrevious Jones starting his freshman year at Oklahoma State.