The Big Ten really didn't see Johnny Davis and Keegan Murray coming last season when the two sophomores went from relatively unknown to breakout stars and NBA lottery picks.
A league typically recognized for being the deepest in the country with competitive teams not only sent a record-tying nine teams to the NCAA tournament last season but also had nine NBA draft picks.
At Big Ten media days this week, there was no consensus from coaches on who could be next in line to follow that path besides returning all-league players Hunter Dickinson, Trayce Jackson-Davis and Zach Edey.
The emergence of Davis and Murray, though, put Wisconsin and Iowa in position to greatly surpass preseason expectations last season, respectively.
So several Big Ten teams are hoping they experience a similar scenario this season, including Ben Johnson's Gophers with lethal lefties Jamison Battle and Dawson Garcia.
"There's going to be somebody out there that jumps out that has a year none of us expected or you didn't see," Johnson said Wednesday at Target Center. "If you're going to be a Wisconsin or Iowa that wasn't projected [high], you got to have a Davis or somebody who has a really good year. Why can't we have that guy?"
Johnson might have two potential breakout Big Ten players in his second season with Garcia and Battle, who have as much offensive talent as anyone in the league, Johnson said.
"Those guys are aligned early, which is good," he added. "They have a pretty good understanding of how they play and feel on the court with each other. They play off each other really well."
Battle, the third-leading returning scorer in the Big Ten behind Michigan's Dickinson and Indiana's Jackson-Davis, isn't really under the radar as far as name recognition.
The 6-7 junior from DeLaSalle was named to the 10-member all-league preseason team. After transferring from George Washington last season, Battle helped lead Johnson's team to a 10-1 start to put himself into early Big Ten Player of the Year conversations. He had 11 games with 20 or more points.
The fact the Gophers finished in last place in the standings led to Battle getting snubbed on all-conference selections, so winning alone could help his stock this season.
"You kind of saw Jamison's talent and he had some really great moments," said Northwestern coach Chris Collins about Battle, who had a 39-point game at Maryland last season. "Now with some of these guys who have gone to the NBA, you could see guys like that really emerging to be all-conference caliber players."
Garcia, a 6-11, 230-pound North Carolina transfer, definitely had a national reputation that followed him back home to Minnesota. He was a member of the all-freshman Big East team at Marquette in 2020-21. He had a 26-point performance against Purdue after transferring to play for the Tar Heels last year.
"He was a great player when we played them," Purdue's 7-4 center Edey said at media day. "He shot the ball really well. Trying to limit the amount of shot attempts and looks he gets from the perimeter [in the Big Ten opener vs. the Gophers on Dec. 4] will be a big thing."
Johnson envisions Battle and Garcia being matchup problems for towering posts like Edey because they can finish at the rim, handle and pass off screens, and stretch the floor from three-point range. Battle led the team with 75 threes last season. Garcia shot 37.5% from beyond the arc at UNC.
The Gophers' offensive style is pretty position-less. But Battle's at his best spotting up from deep on the wing. And he's more comfortable now defensively on the perimeter after losing nearly 20 pounds. Garcia's tough enough to guard centers, but he's likely best suited for the power forward spot since he's so effective facing the basket.
Battle doesn't mind where the Gophers need him to play — and he's so humble he predicts that Garcia will be the player who takes the Big Ten by storm this year after not getting much preseason hype.
"People forget how good Dawson really is," Battle said. "He was a five-star [recruit] and McDonald's All-American. He's ready to prove something this year."
