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BYU basketball got some huge news today with the announcement that LJ Rose will play his last year of eligibility with the Cougars. Rose is eligible to play right away since he has already graduated. Rose is listed as a 6-3 guard who was used primarily as a point guard at Houston. This is welcome news after the announcement that Jordan Chatman is going to attend law school and will no longer play basketball at BYU.
Rose was a cog in the Houston lineup for his sophomore and junior seasons. He played 28 minutes per game his sophomore year and 34 minutes a game his junior year. His numbers for those season were fairly similar, averaging 8.9 points per game then 9.8, and over 5 assists both seasons.
The one key concern that BYU could have is that Rose has had foot problems over the last two seasons. He missed the last 6 games of 2015 season and only played 2 games of the 2016 season due to having broken his right foot three times. It goes without saying that if Rose is going to be able to contribute this season, he will have to be healthy in order to do it.
With the addition of L.J. it now means that there are two players on the roster with experience playing the point guard position at the NCAA level, Rose and Elijah Bryant. Nick Emery could probably be counted in that group also, but played most of last season off the ball as Kyle Collinsworth ran the show for Coach Rose. The guard lineup now consists of seven players-Emery, Bryant, Rose, T.J. Haws, Steven Beo, and walk-ons Zach Frampton and Davin Guinn.
While the transfer, and news of Frampton attending BYU, provide some much needed guard depth it still raises one concern-size on the guard line. Out of the seven players listed, five of them are listed at 6-3, the only exceptions being Bryant and Guinn who both stand at 6-5. Coach Rose usually plays three guards at a time and even used Zac Seljaas as a big even though he is really a perimeter player.
L.J.'s playmaking abilities will be a welcome addition to this team nonetheless. Welcome to BYU!