Theo Lawson

Nikolas Khamenia, a four-star forward who’d been on Gonzaga’s recruiting radar for three years, committed to Duke over the Zags and UCLA on Tuesday afternoon.

LAS VEGAS – Julian Strawther couldn’t necessarily point to a single “welcome to the NBA” moment that defined his rookie season with the Denver Nuggets.

LAS VEGAS – Earlier this summer, Gonzaga coach Mark Few took time to visit with Boston Celtics President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens at UNLV’s Mendenhall Center.

With the 2024-25 NBA campaign approaching, we take a look at the 11 former Gonzaga players and four former Washington State players currently on NBA rosters, breaking down who’s playing where and what the situation looks like for each former Zag and Coug entering the season.

LAS VEGAS – During his sixth NBA season, Zach Collins dealt with an ankle injury that sidelined him for games in December and January, then suffered a torn right labrum in the third quarter of a regular-season finale against the Detroit Pistons, roughly 20 minutes before the San Antonio Spurs were scheduled to begin their offseason.

LAS VEGAS – Cedric Coward entered the transfer portal, took the phone calls, listened to the recruiting pitches.

LAS VEGAS – A cordial conversation unfolded between Mark Few and Randy Bennett on Thursday afternoon on the second floor of Resort World.

LAS VEGAS – It’s true, Kamie Ethridge acknowledged, the Washington State women will have to adjust to a new set of rosters, coaches, playing styles and road venues as a result of their move to the West Coast Conference.

LAS VEGAS – Lisa Fortier mostly took things easy this summer while undergoing chemotherapy and radiation treatment for Stage 2/3 breast cancer.

A few weeks back, Gonzaga and Baylor finalized what many expected would be a top-10 college basketball matchup on the opening night of the 2024-25 season.

By most accounts, Drew Timme looked impressive while returning to the court this summer coming off the foot injury he suffered in January.

After pit stops in the Pacific Northwest and Upper Midwest, former Gonzaga guard Malachi Smith will resume his professional basketball career down south this season.

Gonzaga’s home sellout streak should eclipse 300 games early this season, but the Bulldogs will unofficially play in front of their first capacity crowd Saturday at the annual Kraziness in the Kennel event.

Gonzaga’s schedule release on Wednesday didn’t reveal anything new in terms of opponents, dates or destinations, but viewing the Zags’ 13 nonconference opponents on one page may have given fans and college basketball purveyors a better sense of what Mark Few’s team is up against this season.

Gonzaga was at the epicenter of the conference realignment world on Tuesday, formally joining the reconstructed Pac-12 Conference as its eighth member, and only nonfootball member. With its future secured, it could be a while before Gonzaga’s name resurfaces in conference realignment and expansion conversations – a drastic change from the past decade-plus, when the Spokane school and its powerhouse men’s basketball program were frequently in the middle of realignment rumors, courted by multiple conferences in different time zones.

Not long after Gonzaga and its fledgling athletic department joined the West Coast Conference in 1979, the school’s longtime athletic director, Mike Roth, began hearing murmurs.

BOISE – In a game largely defined by the 259-yard rushing clinic from Boise State sensation Ashton Jeanty, most of the plays and moments Washington State would prefer to have back from Saturday night’s loss at Albertsons Stadium came on long, hard-fought runs, where it wasn’t uncommon for the junior to break anywhere from three to seven tackles, pinballing between white jerseys on his way to the end zone.

Gonzaga will get a tune-up game against a high-major program before diving into one of the country’s most challenging nonconference schedules.

Colby Brooks’ time with Gonzaga’s basketball program ended in March, but the former walk-on’s time in the West Coast Conference will resume this fall.

After a slew of high-profile games against the likes of Baylor, UConn, Kentucky, San Diego State and possibly three high-major opponents at the Battle 4 Atlantis, Gonzaga will host a midmajor opponent from the Patriot League to close out the home portion of its nonconference schedule.

Gonzaga and San Francisco will return to the Chase Center for a regular-season West Coast Conference finale on March 1, the schools announced Wednesday morning.

SEATTLE – For anyone who happened to miss the final dramatic moments of Saturday’s Apple Cup, Washington State edge rusher Andrew Edson offered a short, chronological summary of the play that left Cougars fans thrilled and Huskies fans stunned underneath a wet sky at Lumen Field.

Gonzaga is adding the finishing touches to its nonconference calendar with the 2024-25 college basketball season approaching.

Gonzaga will have to continue building its 2025 recruiting class without one of the top prospects in the country.