Which Forward Spot for Villanova Senior Devin Royal? | Meet the Wildcats

This is one in a series of stories previewing each member of the 2026-27 Villanova Men’s Basketball roster.

Devin Royal surprised as Villanova’s top performer during their preseason slate, averaging 22 points and eight rebounds across three games played. A season after Duke Brennan flirted with the program record for double-doubles in a single season, Royal, a senior transfer from Ohio State, could go on a similar run.

Although he stands just 6-foot-6, Royal played power forward in the Big Ten for his first two seasons of college basketball — and went head-to-head with Kevin Willard’s Maryland teams during that time, giving both parties an idea of their future fit. Royal switched to the wing with the Buckeyes last season, a transition that came with plenty of growing pains, but the Wildcats will have a chance to deploy Royal in a variety of situations that suit him this year.

Tinkering With Lineups

Fellow forward Kwame Evans Jr. has the type of shooting and dribbling upside — even at 6-foot-10 — that could let him play the three in some lineups, while 7-foot-3 center Luigi Suigo could complement Royal’s smaller frame with his outsized paint presence. That’s before you take Royal’s own athleticism and tenacity into account.

“I feel like I’m a mismatch problem everywhere I go. Bigger guy on me, too slow; smaller guy on me, too small for me,” Royal said in an offseason interview. “I attack everybody off what I see. If they’ve got a big on me, I’ll attack them off the dribble, he’ll be too slow. If they put a wing on me, I’ll be able to post him up, drive to the rim, get an easy layup.”

Should Willard prefer to roll him out at the three, Royal spent the offseason working on his dribbling and shooting, and another season of experience should help him acclimate to the position. Wherever he ends up, the former four-star recruit’s track record led the Big East’s head coaches to give him preseason second team all-conference honors.