Will Wade Deploys 10-Man Roster For LSU Tigers Basketball's First Exhibition

For a while, the LSU Tigers men's basketball roster has only shown four players on it. It has been a popular talking point for detractors of the way Will Wade has built this roster, but the coach has been adamant that they do have the players to put a team on the court.

With the first exhibition on Thursday night against the McNeese St. Cowboys, Wade was forced to reveal the roster that they are currently working with. There are mostly no surprises, but a couple of new depth names as well.

It's also not a complete, finished product, as the team is still trying to get standouts like Saliou Niang and Brice Dessert eligible. As of now, though, here is what the Tigers are working with as of Thursday night, per a pre-game lineup shared by LSU Reveille's Tripp Buhler:

G Abdi Bashir, No. 1

F Jordan Bender, No. 5

G Skyy Clark, No. 55

G Donovan Dent, No. 3

F Mo Dioubate, No. 10

G Brad Fife, No. 4

C Strake Pearson, No. 22

C Michael Ruzic, No. 32

G Luke Stanbury, No. 0

G Divine Ugochukwu, No. 99

One name that might be expected to be here, but wasn't, is guard Austin Nunez. Nunez was one of those four players who were listed on the roster, but he could be seen before the game in a walking boot. He will likely miss some time, so don't expect to see him right away.

Being able to bring in both Clark (still awaiting final eligibility) and Dent was massive for their guard and ball-handler depth. Those two, plus Ugochukwu, will see the court a ton this year. Stansbury is the son of Tigers assistant Rick Stansbury and hasn't played much throughout his career. Fife is an undersized freshman out of Catholic High School.

Pearson and Bender are two freshmen whom the team will likely call on to play, unless they start to get some of these other players eligible. Bender was a solid rebounder in high school and played under Florida Gators legend Mareese Speights. Pearson is a seven-footer.

This is far from a perfect roster, but there are some solid leaders to lean on, and Wade has managed to assemble a full group. They'll be even better if they get some good news in the coming days regarding the players they are waiting on, and the program is hopeful they will get it.