The offseason is now underway for Missouri men’s basketball following its Round of 64 loss in the 2026 NCAA Tournament, meaning a flurry of important decisions must be made. The Tigers have already lost five players to graduation and multiple others to the transfer portal, signaling a fair amount of roster turnover is on the horizon.
Along with losing multiple players, Missouri will also bring in three highly touted recruits, each of whom will be fighting for playing time. Their arrival, along with potential additions from the portal, means the Tigers’ coaching staff has a lot to figure out before the start of next season. With that said, three priorities stand out if Missouri wishes to replicate or exceed its recent success.
Retain and develop talent
Although the Tigers have already lost multiple impact players to the transfer portal, such as junior guards Anthony Robinson II and Sebastian Mack, there are still key players they must retain to maximize this offseason. Although having everyone return would be ideal, retaining sophomore T.O. Barrett and redshirt freshman Trent Burns is especially pertinent.
Barrett came on for Missouri in the latter half of the 2025-26 season, starting the final 14 games of the season and averaging 12.4 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game over that stretch.
The 6-foot-4-inch guard gave the Tigers a much-needed scoring and playmaking boost late in the season, and improvements to his jump shooting and decision-making could make him the perfect backcourt mate to incoming freshman Jason Crowe Jr. However, with the recent news regarding Barrett entering the portal, Missouri is now in a predicament as to whether to heavily pursue him in hopes he returns or look elsewhere in hopes of filling the point guard position.
Burns, on the other hand, had more of a roller-coaster season, battling back from preseason foot surgery and carving solid minutes out for himself by the season’s end. Despite his clear improvement, the 7-foot-5-inch center still has a long way to go with his development.
His slim frame allowed opposing players to push him out of position, limiting the value his height brings, and his subpar ball skills made it difficult for the Tigers to trust him to make plays with his dribble. With that said, his tools and physical traits are so unique that maximizing his development could do wonders for Missouri’s future.
Acquire big man depth
One of the Tigers’ biggest weaknesses this season was their lack of big man depth, particularly at the center spot. Senior Shawn Phillips Jr. gave Missouri great minutes, particularly in the later parts of the season, but keeping him on the floor proved to be especially challenging.
Between mental errors and foul trouble, the Tigers were forced to consistently turn to their bench to fill his absent minutes.
Despite Missouri having big bodies to throw in its second unit, said players rarely gave them positive minutes, forcing odd, out-of-place lineups. As previously mentioned, it should be a priority for the Tigers to retain and develop Burns, but odds are he won’t be ready to handle starting center minutes next year, meaning the staff will have to look elsewhere.
Five-star freshman Toni Bryant is expected to contribute at center, but his underdeveloped frame and perimeter-based skill set make him project as more of a four. Because of this, Missouri will likely have to turn to the portal to find its big man for next season, which is a difficult task given the demand from every team for good center play.
Find new identity
Arguably, the most important task Missouri has to complete this offseason is to find a new identity. All signs point to the offense taking a turn from the high-paced, downhill-heavy transition team they were the previous year and turning into more of a half-court-centric offense built around the incoming freshman class.
Crowe, a five-star McDonald’s All-American, seems like the likely candidate to take over the reins of the offense. His play style will be far different from Mark Mitchell’s, who led the team in scoring the previous two seasons, meaning some changes will have to be made regarding roster construction.
With that said, the Tigers’ questions do not center on Crowe’s production. As a cerebral scorer, he will have no problems producing and making an impact. Instead, the questions lie in the surrounding pieces of the team and how they will fit together, leaving a tall task for the Missouri coaching staff to figure out in the looming offseason.
