Gonzaga's Secret Weapon: Why International Sophomores Are About to Break Out

Mark Few has been mining international talent for over 20 years, and the Bulldogs are about to cash in big. Gonzaga's current roster already features Mario Saint-Supery from Spain and Jack Kayil from Germany, but here's what's really happening: the team just pulled off a massive transfer portal move by landing 7'1 center Massamba Diop from Arizona State, who previously played for Real Madrid in Spain. And this wasn't a random move. Few is playing the long game with international talent in the transfer portal era.

The Year-Two Breakthrough Nobody's Talking About

Here's the thing about bringing in international players to college hoops: they usually struggle year one. The adjustment is brutal. It's not just the style of play or how the game flows, it's the officiating, the culture shock of moving across the world, everything. Players get overwhelmed. But year two? That's when they start to click. Diop was excellent at Arizona State last year, and there's a pattern here: give international guys 12 months to acclimate, and they become monsters. Gonzaga isn't recruiting random European talent. They're targeting players who have already survived their first season in the States, who already have one brutal year behind them.

The Portal Play: High-Risk, High-Reward Talent Still Available

Take Mihailo Petrovic, the 6'3 Serbian guard who just hit the portal from Illinois. He was supposed to be a plug-and-play contributor when he arrived for the 2025-26 season. Before that, he played multiple years in some of Europe's top leagues, averaging 14.3 points and 7.3 assists in 28 games with Mega Mozzart in the ABA. He was even teammates with Jack Kayil. But Illinois freshman Keaton Wagler emerged early, and Petrovic got buried. He ended up playing just 19 games, averaging 1.6 points and 1.1 assists in 5.7 minutes, with 12+ minutes only three times. The early-season injury didn't help either.

But at 22 years old with multiple years of elite-level European experience already on his resume, Petrovic is exactly the kind of sophomore-year breakout candidate Gonzaga should be chasing. He's had his culture shock. He's already one year in the States. Year two is when guys like this actually contribute.

Gonzaga's transfer portal strategy is clear: let someone else deal with the adjustment period. Few is targeting the international players who made it through year one and are ready to explode in year two.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.