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Junior guard Gelaun Wheelwright leaves Weber State program

CIT Oral Roberts Weber St Basketball

Weber State guard Gelaun Wheelwright shoots over Oral Roberts’ Steven Roundtree during the first half of their CollegeInsider.com Tournament quarterfinal basketball game, Wednesday, March 27, 2013, in Ogden, Utah. (AP Photo/Standard-Examiner, Benjamin Zack) TV OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT

AP

After spending two seasons as a solid reserve at Weber State it looked as if guard Gelaun Wheelwright would be in position to earn starter’s minutes in 2013-14 due to the graduation of Scott Bamforth, who averaged 14.0 points and 3.8 rebounds per game on a team that won 30 games last season. Alas that won’t be the case, as the school announced that the program and Wheelwright have parted ways.

“It was a mutual decision between me and Gelaun and we both decided it was time for him to have a change of environment and move on to a different situation,” Weber State head coach Randy Rahe said in the release. “We appreciatee all Gelaun has done for us and we wish him nothing but the best in his future in whatever he decides to do. We will help along the way in anyway we can.”

In two seasons at Weber State the Corona, Calif. native averaged 6.0 points and 2.2 rebounds per game, shooting 41.7% from the field and 32.5% from beyond the arc. With the aforementioned Bamforth out of eligibility, the thought of many was that Wheelwright would slide into the vacated position alongside seniors Jordan Richardson and Davion Berry.

Losing Wheelwright hurts from an experience standpoint, but according to Jonathan Reed of Big Sky Basketball by no means is this a crippling blow to the Wildcats’ hopes of winning the Big Sky crown.

In the end, it seemed like Wheelwright was coming into a great situation, but things never clicked 100%. At times, it seemed like he wanted to do his own thing, or make the fancy play rather than the simple one. However, he’s very talented, and his absence will test the great depth the Wildcats would have enjoyed. It’s not an insurmountable loss, but it’s a blow for Randy Rahe.

Weber State adds two true freshmen on the perimeter in Richaud Gittens and Jeremy Senglin, but neither is seen as a player capable of spelling Richardson at the point when he needs a rest. Could this mean more on-ball duty for Berry, who led the Wildcats in scoring (15.2 ppg) and assists (3.8 apg) in 2012-13? That may indeed be the case, as Berry finished the season with an assist rate of 23.7 and a turnover rate of 15.7, ranking 11th and 20th in the Big Sky in those respective categories per kenpom.com.

Coach Rahe and his staff will have some adjustments to make, but Weber State will still be one of the favorites to win the Big Sky this season.

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