Kruger excited about adding Isaiah Cottrell to UNLV basketball

By Mike Grimala (contact)

Wednesday, May 4, 2022 | 2 a.m.

Though Isaiah Cottrell first rose to prominence while starring at nearby Bishop Gorman, Kevin Kruger never really got to know him. Cottrell transferred to Huntington Prep in West Virginia for his senior year in 2019-20, which was Kruger’s first season as an assistant at UNLV, so the two never got a chance to overlap on the recruiting trail. That left Kruger’s scouting report a little thin.

Luckily for Kruger, when Cottrell entered the transfer portal in March the coach was able to turn to one of his in-house scouts for all the inside info.

Kruger asked UNLV senior point guard Jordan McCabe, a former teammate of Cottrell’s at West Virginia, for his opinion on the newly available big man.

“As soon as he hit the portal I asked Jordan what he thought,” Kruger said. “Jordan vouched for him. He said he was a good teammate and a hard worker and thought he’d be good for the culture and the growth of our program.”

With McCabe giving the green light, Kruger went after Cottrell and eventually landed a commitment from the 6-foot-10 forward last week.

It was an important addition for the Scarlet and Gray, who were looking less than robust in the frontcourt before Cottrell signed on. The former 4-star recruit has changed that dynamic, as he brings offensive talent and three years of eligibility to the program.

Cottrell’s freshman campaign at West Virginia was cut short by an Achilles injury. He returned as a sophomore to start 28 of 33 games, logging 16.1 minutes per contest and averaging 4.2 points and 2.8 rebounds.

Kruger said Cottrell has completely recovered from his injury and could fill a variety of important roles at UNLV.

“He’s going to continue to grow his skill set offensively,” Kruger said. “We love his shot. His shot looks good. We want to get him some reps, give him some practice at that within the flow of how we want our offense to run. I think he can be a great option not only to stretch the floor offensively, but provide a strong rim presence. And then of course defensively be a good rim protector and rebounder. I think he’s also got the ability to switch and guard multiple positions. That’s why we’re so excited about him.”

With Cottrell on board and senior guard Josh Baker hitting the transfer portal, UNLV’s 2022-23 roster is inching closer to its final form. The team now has 10 players under scholarship — five returners and five incoming transfers — not including senior wing Donovan Williams, who is weighing his NBA Draft chances.

Cottrell and 6-foot-10 center David Muoka are the only players above 6-foot-7, but Kruger said he doesn’t feel pressure to add another big man unless it’s someone who augments and enhances what is already on the roster.

“We don’t ever try to necessarily take the same player twice,” he said. “While we have scholarship availability, we wouldn’t just be looking to stack bodies. If there was another taller, bigger guy who maybe did something a little bit different than David or Isaiah, I think that’s where we’ve narrowed our focus, as opposed to adding someone similar to those guys.”

Williams could be the key to UNLV’s success next season. As a junior he scored 12.7 points per game and made 43.6% from 3-point range, and at 6-foot-6 he can defend multiple positions. Williams has signed with an agent and is working out in Dallas; if he chooses to return to college for another season, he has said it will be at UNLV.

Kruger has maintained a dialogue with Williams and will support him no matter his decision.

“We text back and forth,” Kruger said. “Donovan is in a unique situation where I think he’s got an opportunity to open a lot of eyes in the NBA world. But if he wants to come back and use another year of college, we’d be excited for him to come back. His versatility would give us a lot of options to do things from a style approach where maybe we play a little smaller, a little up-tempo and more disruptive than we were last year.”

Mike Grimala can be reached at 702-948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Mike on Twitter at twitter.com/mikegrimala.