Last year was a remarkable season for college basketball in San Diego. San Diego State & Big West champ UCSD both went to the Big Dance, USD continued to develop under Steve Lavin & D-2 power Point Loma won the PacWest title & hosted the West Regional. Looking forward to 2025-26.

The addition of Ferrari & Arop to the coaching staff underlines the importance of the Aztecs Way — a wonderful tradition that has helped SDSU grow into one of the most respected D-1 basketball programs on the West Coast & a perennial Top 20 team.

Ferrari is the second straight Aztec player to be added to Dutcher’s staff. Last year, former SDSU forward Aguek Arop was hired as the Aztecs player development coach & AG has excelled in his role. He brings lots of energy to the job & a respected young voice to inspire the Tecs.

“I’m having a lot of fun & learning every day from the coaches,” Kimo said. “I enjoy working with the players & all of the staff. I really look forward to this year to see how far this team can go.” It could be a special time for Kimo as he ponders his future in or outside hoops.

As a player, Kimo was known as a high basketball IQ guard with a competitive edge & a deadly perimeter shot. As a coach, he hopes to share with the current Aztecs what helped him throughout college & be someone who helps Dutcher & his talented staff in practice & the games.

In following the Aztecs Way, Dutcher named former Aztec guard Kimo Ferrari as a grad assistant on the 2025-26 team. The fan-popular Ferrari played four years at Brown & then last year with the Aztecs. Kimo’s from San Diego & enjoyed a rock solid college career. He likes coaching.

Velasquez is a great defensive coach & highly respected across the D-1 spectrum. He’s had terrific success on the Mesa & steered clear of other head coaching jobs. But Coach Dave bleeds red & black & many insiders believe he will be the next SDSU head coach when Dutcher retires.

And if you’ve followed the program, you’ll see how Fisher & Dutcher developed & promoted their players & managers into being valuable coaching staff members along the way. Longtime assistant Dave Velasquez is a prime example, rising through the program to become an elite coach.

One of the incredible things about the San Diego State men’s basketball program first under Steve Fisher & now Brian Dutcher is the building of a winning culture influenced heavily by a tight-knit family tradition. It’s the Aztecs Way & has produced 30 years of success at SDSU.

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In more scorers, I mean several players can get buckets & more guys can knock down 3’s this year. In my 8 years following the Aztecs, this may be Dutcher’s most talented overall roster. This all brings tons of optimism. But there’s a lot of work to be done & health will be a key,.

My takeaways from Wednesday’s workout: 1. These Aztecs are extremely physical & will pound the glass. 2. Size matters & SDSU has the size & strength to compete with the bigger D-1 teams. 3. The Aztecs will attack the rim more on offense & play at a higher tempo. 4. More scorers.

Rounding out the SDSU roster is 6-3 sophomore Cam Lawin, a terrific 3-point shooter, & 6-5 sophomore Kai Lee, a skilled young player looking to grow through experience.

Latrell Davis seems to fit well into Dutcher’s plans this season & he might be an Adam Seiko-like shooter who can come in to spark the offense when the Aztecs offense needs a lift. Harrington & Simmons give SDSU two of the better freshmen in the MWC on a loaded Aztecs roster.

Two other players who could play important roles for the Aztecs are 6-3 junior transfer Latrell Davis, a scoring guard who averaged 11 ppg last year at San Jose State & is deadly from 3; & 4-star freshman Elzie Harrington, a 6-6 multi-talented guard with enormous potential.

7-foot redshirt freshman Thokbor Majak may see some reserve minutes behind Goon & the other SDSU big dudes. Majak is a mountain peak near the basket & will develop more as he gets more game experience. He’s a project but all Aztecs seem to improve during their time on the Mesa.

Improving 6-10 junior Miles Heide plus super sophomores — 6-8 Pharaoh Compton & 6-5 Taj Degourville — will all push for starters’ minutes. But their size & strength will help Goon & Byrd on the glass plus transfer 6-9 Jeremiah Oden & promising freshman Tae Simmons add to the mix.

The 6-foot-1 Newman averaged 7.4 assists per game last year at Louisiana Tech. That was third best in D-1 & his pass-first skillset & sniper’s vision could rack up a ton of assists this year, including lots of alley-oops for dunks at sold-out Viejas Arena or on the road.

Junior guard BJ Davis is a stud on defense & should be much more efficient scoring the ball this year. The versatile Davis & incoming senior PG Sean Newman, Jr. will push the ball in transition & SDSU should score more points in a higher tempo style. Aztec fans should love it.

Also looking to have a highly productive year is returning senior Reese Waters, who sat out last season with a foot injury. The 6-6 Waters is an elite shooter & has looked really good all summer. His perimeter shooting & deadly free-throw shooting will be key weapons for SDSU.