Bryce Hopkins has a chance to be one of the greatest, and most beloved, Friars of all-time with a monster junior season
Also in this week's newsletter: Bill Ricci on the critical role of Ticket Gaines, what to watch for in the opener against Columbia, our latest podcast previewing the upcoming season, and more
For a large portion of the Big East schedule last season, Bryce Hopkins might have been the most overwhelming offensive force in the league.
As the Friars ripped off a nine-game winning streak from the beginning of December through mid-January, there was little conference opponents could do to stop him.
That went for the league’s elite as well.
Regular season and conference tournament champion Marquette? Hopkins manhandled them on the inside to the tune of 29 points, 23 rebounds, eight offensive boards, and 18 free throw attempts in a double overtime Providence victory in December.
Eventual national champion Connecticut got it two weeks later: Hopkins finished with 27 points and took 15 more free throws before fouling out of the Friars’ 73-61 win at the AMP.
As late as a Feb. 22 matchup at UConn, the Big East Player of the Year Award wasn’t out of the question for Providence’s latest star, a forward who dusted himself off after a year of waiting for an opportunity at Kentucky that never arrived.
Providence still had designs on its second consecutive league title heading to Storrs in February. At that point, Hopkins was averaging 16.9 points and 9.2 rebounds per game, while shooting 48.5% from two and 39.3% beyond the arc.
The Huskies were just starting their late-season surge at the time, and blew the Friars out, 87-69. PC was 20-7 heading into that game (12-4 in the Big East), but finished 1-4 over their final five games. The season ended in a most painful manner for Hopkins — with an NCAA Tournament loss against his former teammates and coach at UK.
It was a dream matchup turned missed opportunity for Hopkins and his PC teammates, as the Friar offense went lifeless amid the backdrop of rumors their coach was leaving for Georgetown.
Fatigue may have set in for Hopkins by that point. He played huge minutes and took a physical beating on a nightly basis.
Over the final five games of the season, Hopkins averaged around 10 points and five rebounds a night, and saw his shooting numbers fall significantly during that stretch: 34.8% overall, 40% on twos, 18% from three.
And after the likes of Shaka Smart and Dan Hurley pointed out how many free throws Hopkins took against them, the whistles all but stopped.
As I wrote about last season, Hopkins took 67 free throws through the first seven Big East games. PC was 6-1 during that stretch. Over the next seven games he attempted 29. He shot just two free throws in a Valentine’s Day double overtime win over Creighton, and didn’t take one at Georgetown or in the home finale versus Seton Hall.
Regardless, Hopkins was one of just two players unanimously named 1st Team All Big East last season following a year in which he averaged 15.8 points, 8.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 5.8 free throw attempts per game. He also shot 36% from 3.
He had gone from an afterthought in Lexington to one of the best players in the country at Providence.
Following the departure of Ed Cooley in the spring, there were significant questions about what a potential rebuild would look like at Providence. Those questions flipped to sky-high expectations after Hopkins and Devin Carter announced their returns on the same day.
Hopkins was named Preseason 1st Team All Big East by the league’s coaches (although, not unanimously somehow), and CBS Sports named him to their Third Team Preseason All American squad this fall. The writers at CBS Sports also ranked Hopkins as the tenth best player in all of college basketball heading into this season.
“It’s nice to receive the notoriety, especially coming from my previous situation,” Hopkins said on The Kim English Coach’s Show on Thursday night. “But once the ball is tipped that’s out the window.”
The former top-40 prospect out of Illinois will play for his third head coach in three seasons when Kim English leads the Friars into their season opener against Columbia on Monday.
While the returns of Hopkins and Carter were certainly blessings, they come with a heightened sense of urgency for English in year one. Instead of a two-to-three-year rebuild, the hope in Providence is that English can maximize on what is likely one final year of Hopkins in black and white — and in the process show high school prospects and transfer portal candidates what a star looks like in his system.
The new staff aims to have Providence spreading the floor and playing more in transition this season. Hopkins would be lethal either way. He is the rare power forward who can dominate the glass and lead a fast break the other way. He’s terrifying in the open court or when playing downhill. English has repeatedly stated that Hopkins will shoot a lot more 3-pointers this season, but the offensive glass and damage at the free throw line will remain staples of his game.
“I love playing for him, honestly,” Hopkins said of English “His style is modern, a similar style to the next level, the NBA. He wants to shoot a lot of threes, get out in transition, and score fast. I’m adjusting to it well.”
Hopkins was a willing mid-range shooter last season, and while much has been made of English’s desire to spread the floor and shoot more threes, the staff believes Hopkins can still incorporate an element of the mid-range jumper to his game this season.
We’ll see if Hopkins cuts down on mid-range attempts in favor of more looks from beyond the arc (where he shot nearly 40% on 3s from above the break) or fine-tunes his mid-range game further so that he can attack in more ways from 17-20 feet.
The new coaching staff may also toy with shrinking down their lineup and play Hopkins for stretches at the five. And while Cooley always bristled whenever asked about fatigue, English once talked of how one of the biggest takeaways from his first season as a head coach at George Mason was pushing his starters too long.
Hopkins is down over ten pounds from last season, and it’s more than apparent in practice. He is exploding off the floor and dunking with his head at the rim. His increased athleticism is one of the first things everyone notices when watching this newest iteration of the Friars.
“Bryce has been in the gym at 6am every single morning for five straight weeks now,” English shared on his Coach’s Show.
“Coach wants to play faster, so I’ve got to get my body right,” Hopkins said.
We’ll see if increased conditioning, having gone through a full year at this level, and potentially managing his minutes more conservatively will lead to a stronger close to the season.
And while expectations are far different from when Hopkins started last season after being a bit part at Kentucky, there is now role clarity from the jump. Hopkins was picking his spots as the Friars played through an uneven November, but his game exploded last December. Unsurprisingly, the Friars went from a .500 club to one of the hottest teams in the country for roughly two months when Hopkins went into takeover mode.
Providence was picked to finish seventh in the league by the Big East’s coaches this October, mainly due to question marks pertaining to their new coach, inexperience at point guard, and a lack of proven depth on the interior. Still, on a majority of nights the Friars will have the best player on the floor — a mobile, versatile, hybrid forward who has proven he is capable of physically overwhelming elite competition.
“We know that we’re not the seventh (best) team. We put in a lot of work this summer and we’re going to prove people wrong,” Hopkins told ABC6’s Nick Coit on Big East Media Day.
After Hopkins dominated the second half against URI in early December last season, Cooley set a high bar for the remainder of his PC career: “Give him a damn chance to develop and grow, and I think you’re going to see one of the best players in the history of the school.”
He looked the part for most of last season.
Hopkins is certainly one of the most talented players to ever come through Providence, yet historical greatness is ultimately achieved in the postseason. If Hopkins can lead the Friars to success in March, after everything that has taken place over the past year, he will go down as one of the best, and most beloved, players in Friar history.
More from Friar Basketball:
The season is here… finally. This article details what to look for in the season opener — from Columbia’s top players to the Friars’ rotation, and much more.
Bill Ricci has a great piece on the role of Davonte “Ticket” Gaines, and his potential impact in his graduate season at PC.
In our latest from The Friar Podcast we preview the season for about 50 minutes, this time talking through the questions on our fan survey — both the reader reaction and our thoughts/predictions on each of the questions posed.
We will also be hosting our first pregame show from 110 Bar and Grille in Providence before Monday’s game against Columbia. Please stop by and say hello!
Where can I find those shooting by region stats?
Love the site!