La Salle MBB 2026-27 Season Preview: Can the Explorers Hit Reset With an Injury-Free Year?

La Salle Men’s Basketball finished in the basement of the A-10 last season, their first under head coach Darris Nichols. That Explorers squad was plucky but ultimately lost too many players to injury: forwards Noah Collier (6-foot-9, 220 pounds) and Jerome Brewer Jr. (6-foot-9, 220 pounds) and guard Jaden Johnson (6-foot-2, 210 pounds), all started games before suffering season ending injuries. They’re back with La Salle this season and, although the Explorers were picked to finish toward the bottom of the A-10 once again in a preseason poll, could be the catalyst for a much-needed rebound at 20th and Olney.

The biggest returning name for the Explorers is redshirt junior guard Rob Dockery (6-foot-6, 210 pounds), who led the team in points (12.5), rebounds (6.1) and steals (1.5) per game while making valuable contributions on both ends of the court. Dockery enters the 2026-27 campaign as a preseason all-conference pick; for their fifth starter, the Explorers’ best option might be Anthony Finkley (6-foot-7, 235 pounds), who was the sixth man at Saint Joseph’s last season and is a Philadelphia native who graduated forom Roman Catholic.

Reserves to Watch

Other returning Explorers who dealt with injuries last year are graduate guard Trey Moss (6-foot-3, 200 pounds) and Australian forward Bowyn Beatty (7-foot-0, 250 pounds); Moss is more likely to see significant playing time, while junior Arcadia transfer Jamison Lynam (5-foot-10, 165 pounds) averaged 17.7 points per game last season but will need to prove he can adjust to the A-10, making him a solid candidate for playing time off the bench.

Senior guard Kam Burton (6-foot-3, 200 pounds) played 18.5 minutes per game at Stephen F. Austin last year; Philadelphia native and Cristo Rey graduate Devin Booker (6-foot-4, 180 pounds) played sparingly at George Mason, while Croatian forward Vice Zanki (6-foot-8, 215 pounds) put up 21.1 minutes per game at Niagara. Each of those three should rotate in off the bench; junior Francois Nkoy-Eale (6-foot-11, 225 pounds) played at the junior college level last season and thus might need some polishing. Expect senior forward Max Lipacis (6-foot-7, 210 pounds), junior forward Eunique Rink (6-foot-10, 240 pounds), and sophomore guard Arlan Masharaliyev (6-foot-0, 175 pounds), similarly, to vie for some reserve minutes.

Last but not least, La Salle has an intriguing freshman class. Breylon Webb (6-foot-7, 185 pounds) averaged 10.5 points per game during a post-graduate year; Jay Nelson Mboudjika (6-foot-10, 220 pounds) hails from Cameroon. Both lanky prospects have the tools to star on defense, while RJ Smith (5-foot-9, 170 pounds) is a Philadelphia native who won three city championships between Imhotep Charter and Roman Catholic.