At this point the loss of Dez Wells has made the upcoming season look very gloomy, but its time to move forward and look at what Xavier has. After thinking about what the loss of Wells meant to Xavier and trying to find a player on the roster to fill his role and production, I was left with only one player. Call me an optimist, but I think this player has the potential to have a break out season and make it at least easier to forget about Wells. This player was very up and down last year and found himself during the middle part of the year riding the bench because of his inconsistent play and effort in practice. Yet, down the stretch when players like Lyons, Holloway or Wells would get into foul trouble he came in and had an impact on the game. In the NCAA tournament against Lehigh he came in off the bench and grabbed 7 rebounds and had 1 block in 13 minutes of play. Against Baylor he played 18 minutes with 5 rebounds, 1 block, and 6 points.
The player that Xavier needs now to step up and take hold of being a leader on the court is Justin Martin. Martin has all the talent and potential in the world to lead Xavier to a solid season this year, despite losing Wells. If he puts it all on the line this season and commits himself entirely to the team and Chris Mack, he could replicate the production that Wells would have given this team. It is now Justin Martin's time and hopefully he rises to the occasion. If he does, I think the doom and gloom will turn to bright sunshine.
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