Nolan Hickman: Gonzaga’s most essential player this season

It’s easy to forget that there was a time when Gonzaga fans were less than sold on Nolan Hickman. After an up-and-down sophomore season—his first as the starting point guard—Hickman seemed to vanish in the NCAA Tournament, contributing just 8 points and 10 assists in the entire tournament run. In the final two of those games, Hickman went 0-for-9 from the field and committed 2 turnovers. It was ugly, and questions among fans about his experience and overall fitness for the team arose in the aftermath.

Last season, Hickman agreed to hand over the reins at point guard and slot into more of a shooting guard role with the arrival of Creighton transfer Ryan Nembhard. Gonzaga’s best teams have always worked best with a kind of dual point-guard back-court and signing Nembhard gave Few a chance to return to this type of proven strategy. This was a big ask and it takes a very humble player to step back and get on board with a different role. To say it was the right move would be an understatement.

Now playing more off-ball, Hickman became the Zags’ primary perimeter scoring threat. He was freed up to find his spots and attack off the dribble. He could push the pace in transition and find the open man on dribble drives without worrying about leaving the back-court exposed defensively. Hickman was a new man last year, and his stats speak for themselves.

Last season, Hickman averaged 14.6 points per game on 47.1% shooting. He also shot a team-high 88.3% from the free-throw line and notched five different outings of 20 or more points by the end of the season. He had huge games against USF (20 points, 6 assists, 0 turnovers), Santa Clara (20 points, 5 assists, 0 turnovers), and Pacific (19 points, 4 assists, 0 turnovers) during WCC play. By the season’s end, Hickman had proven himself as one of the most skilled and versatile guards in college basketball.

In contrast to the disappearing act he pulled during his sophomore season, in this year’s NCAA Tournament, Hickman averaged 14.6 points, 2 assists, and 1 turnover, shooting nearly 56% over three games. He played all 40 minutes in the Bulldogs’ loss to Purdue. He did anything but vanish.

Why Hickman Is Essential This Season

The common denominator for many of the Zags’ losses last year (including to Purdue) was poor outside shooting. With the injury to Steele Venters, the Bulldogs could once again struggle from the perimeter and it will largely fall to Hickman as the team’s leading 3pt shooter to compensate for this loss. Luckily, Hickman’s outside shooting percentage has increased by 5-6% each of the past three seasons, and if that trajectory holds, he could average near 45% from beyond the arc this year. Far stranger things have happened in the history of Gonzaga guards leveling up during the off-season.

With the addition of Arkansas transfer Khalif Battle Hickman’s minutes will likely dip somewhat, but his efficiency could commensurately improve if given the occasional breather. He looked stellar last year, averaging over 35 minutes per game, but he could very well be even sharper with fewer minutes on the floor and more rest on the sidelines.

This is the first year in Nolan Hickman’s career in which he can focus solely on improving his role, rather than learning a new one. Sometimes, no news really is good news.

The turnover on this year’s team is minimal (the sixth most returning minutes in the NCAA, according to BartTorvik), the positional responsibilities are (fingers crossed!) solidified, the expectations are clear, and the hopes among fans are sky-high. Now entering his senior season, Nolan has a prime opportunity to prove just how good he really is. The lights will be bright this season, but Nolan’s been here before.