FAYETTEVILLE -- For perhaps the only time this basketball campaign, Arkansas Coach Eric Musselman in tonight's season opener totally determines the Razorbacks' starters and rotations.
Post tonight at Walton Arena vs. the Mississippi Valley State University Delta Devils the Razorbacks off games and practices sort their pecking order, Musselman asserts.
All sorts of sorting awaits.
Other than junior 2-year lettermen guard Desi Sills and forward Ethan Henderson tonight's game unveils a team of graduate transfers, freshmen and two who practiced with last season's team as redshirting transfers.
"Look, we've got so many new faces," Musselman said. "We haven't played a game. We've got to figure out who we are. That's a really, really important factor for us right now."
Though last season marked his Arkansas debut, it was easier for Musselman to sort. The numbers short roster also short on height developed two stars: Mason Jones and Isaiah Joe, both now turned pro. The lone senior, Adrio Bailey, only 6-6, played center.
Tonight's team numbers seem to beg expanding the rotation.
But Musselman isn't one prone to answering numbers begging. Especially since Monday he wasn't ready to proclaim a starting lineup.
"I'm certainly not going into any game thinking that we're going to do anything other than who's starting No. 1," Musselman said Monday. "I told them I'd like to tell them who's starting by tomorrow by the end of practice. Right now, (he ponders) our starters, who's the first guy off the bench, who's the second guy off the bench, maybe who's the third guy off the bench. Then from there, the game's going to dictate the rotation."
A top eight may seem Musselman's ideal number but it's not etched.
"I don't really have a set number," Musselman said. "Because I kind of think the players are really going to dictate based on productivity on who plays. We're charting (in practices and starting tonight games) makes, misses, turnovers... If you don't go to the offensive backboard, that's called a no-go. That's charted. We're charting defensive block outs because we know how bad we were last year in blocking out. The guys get all these stats every day. We're not going to hand out minutes. This is not fourth grade YMCA or fourth grade Boys and Girls Club. You've got to earn your minutes."
That said, Musselman said he wants whatever five playing feeling free to play and not upon a mistake wincing at that deep bench.
"Let's face the facts: If we had a really strong bench last year, Mason Jones (the SEC Co-Player of the Year) probably would not have had the year that he had just based on freedom," Musselman said. "In huddles, I would tell him, 'We're running Boston Keep, but if this stuff breaks down man, don't look at me. Freestyle. Go get us a shot. Go get something.' When you're playing more people, sometimes the freedom and playing free both mentally and physically kind of changes. I don't want to do that with our teams."