Could Emmanuel Innocenti see a bigger role for Gonzaga this season?

It is no secret that Mark Few is, and always has been, an offensively minded coach. Few’s offensive efficiency metrics for the past 10 years represent an unparalleled streak of excellence on that side of the ball; it is practically unheard of in college basketball to maintain such a high level of offensive performance for so many consecutive years, and the accolades this continued excellence has garnered are hard-won.

Some fans last year were quick to point out, however, that these offensive efficiency metrics may have been achieved at the expense of a commensurately excellent defense. The Zags lacked a lockdown defender in the backcourt last year and struggled with rim protection against bigger, more physical frontcourts. Few successfully recruits high level offensive players year after year, but it’s rare the Bulldogs have more than a couple defensive specialists on their roster at any given time.

To add to the precariousness of the Bulldogs’ defensive situation, with the loss of Anton Watson, the team will be without the beating heart of their defense in 2024. The question is whether they have done enough in the off-season to bolster their middle-of-the-pack defensive metrics to match that of their offense.

In June of this year, the Zags signed Tarleton State transfer Emmanuel Innocenti to do just that. Innocenti was one of the most prolific defensive stoppers in the country last year. His length, athleticism, and motor absolutely terrorized opposing offenses in the Western Athletic Conference and he could very well be a key rotation piece for the Zags in 2024. Of all the true freshmen in the nation, Innocenti ranked 8th in steals per game (1.76) and 4th in defensive rebounds per game (5.37) while averaging over 32 minutes on the floor each night. He was named to the All-WAC Freshman Team last year as well as the WAC Defensive First Team. Innocenti’s offensive skills are still raw, but with so many capable scorers on the roster, the Zags may not need much offense from Innocenti at all—at least for the time being.

Innocenti arrives in Spokane from Tarleton State in Texas, but prior to his NCAA career, he played for Stella Azzurra Roma, an Italian amateur program well known for its development of high-level young talent. Innocenti also saw minutes with the U18 Italian National Team in 2022, where he averaged 11 points and 7 rebounds over the course of 7 games.

Since the loss of Hunter Sallis to Wake Forest, the Zags have been without a reliable stopper to bring in off the bench and neutralize hot hands in the opposing backcourt. A player of this caliber certainly would have helped the Bulldogs in the NCAA Tournament last year when Purdue’s barrage of perimeter scoring put the Zags well on their heels. With Innocenti, they may have found exactly the type of weapon that could have been vital against many of Gonzaga’s opponents last year.

Prior to the Steele Venters injury, it was assumed Innocenti’s hopes of seeing the floor in 2024 were nonexistent. After Innocenti’s signing, there was even talk of him redshirting in 2024 and then coming in off the bench as a key rotation piece in 2025. Without Venters on the wing this year, Innocenti’s odds of playing have significantly improved. Minutes on the wing may now be split between Michael Ajayi, Dusty Stromer, and Innocenti. The starting position is presumably held by Ajayi with Stromer coming in off the bench early. It is highly unlikely Few would bring Innocenti off the bench ahead of Stromer, but they are also extremely different types of player.

The fact is that Innocenti excels in aspects of the game where Stromer struggled last year. Despite flashes of brilliance in terms of shot-blocking and rebounding, Stromer occasionally looked out of his depth playing defense on the perimeter. This coming season, if/when a lockdown defensive presence is needed for the Zags, Innocenti could provide the same relief that fans felt in 2022 when Hunter Sallis came off the bench to replace Rasir Bolton. Trading a pretty good offense presence for an extremely good defensive one gave the Zags a unique look in 2022 and it’s one they’ve been missing since.

Although he is young and there are plenty of areas of his game to develop, there is a path forward toward a professional career if Innocenti can enhance his offensive skills while at Gonzaga. In fact, it is likely that this is precisely why Innocenti chose Gonzaga in the first place: the team needed defense on its scout team, and Innocenti needed to develop his offense behind the scenes.

Despite his inexperience, Innocenti’s ceiling is sky high. He may very well offer valuable minutes off the bench for the Zags in 2024; his unique skills as a defensive specialist are certainly a look the Bulldogs did not have available to them last year. Much like the addition of Ismaila Diagne, though, it is more likely that the Zags have gained a crucial part of their 2024 practice squad in Emmanuel Innocenti. Any offense that practices against Innocenti and Diagne each day will emerge for the regular season sharper, faster, and more skilled than when they started. It could perhaps even be reasoned that Few did not bring in Innocenti solely to bolster his defense, but rather to continue sharpening his offense.