THE CHEAP SEATS with STEVE CAMERON: Zags have the pedigree — and the money — to land a deep roster

How long ago was this buzz making the rounds?

Five months?

Five minutes?

In any event, it seemed like a fairly recent crisis, this notion that Gonzaga faced a serious depth problem.

The usual yearly routine felt disrupted, just a bit.

Sure, the Zags got knocked out of the NCAA tournament by Purdue at the Sweet Sixteen level, and the fan base immediately wanted to know how things were going to look for NEXT season.

That’s fair enough, I guess, since “next season” (or every season) breezes along to another 25- or 30-win romp and a serious run in the NCAA dance.

“Everybody thinks it’s easy,” Mark Few noted in a press availability this week — repeating his mantra of every other postseason.

“You guys (the media) make winning sound like it just happens, but that’s not true.

“It’s hard. Each year is hard.”

Few’s disclaimers aside, fans in the Zag Universe rarely have to worry when looking down the road, since the Zags have an invitation to 26 straight tournaments (Mark counts the COVID year, when there was no event, since they’d already qualified by winning the WCC tournament).

Oh, and the Zags are sitting on a streak of making it through the first weekend nine straight times, the longest stretch in the country.

SEE MY point here?

It’s been a while since Zag junkies have had to look ahead and worry a little bit.

This summer, though?

Gonzaga returns six of its top seven scorers from last year’s team, with savvy senior Anton Watson graduating after five seasons.

The gang coming back has plenty of talent, with 6-9 Graham Ike — a redshirt junior — having proved himself a relentless scorer in the post, with Ben Gregg happy to hammer the boards alongside him.

Guards Nolan Hickman and Ryan Nembhard played nearly every minute (see the depth issue?) and although both had overall good seasons, their shooting was occasionally streaky.

Freshman Dusty Stromer was solid as a combo guard/forward off the bench, and the coaches insist he’ll have a breakout season.

Meanwhile, 6-11 backup post Braden Huff is an excellent shooter who needs work on defense, but is already a high-level scorer and rebounder.

Steele Venters, a 6-7 wing and reliable marksman who transferred from Eastern Washinton after being named the Big Sky Conference MVP, could have added scoring punch from outside last year — but he tore his ACL in the Kraziness in the Kennel scrimmage.

Venters is back and hopes to be fully healthy this time around.

A wild card among the returnees is Korean sophomore Jun Seok Yeo, a 6-8 forward who needs to convert his strength and athleticism into the Zags’ structure at both ends of the court.

The staff (and fans) see some likeness — physical skill and the need to play under control — between Yeo and Rui Hachimura at roughly the same points in their transition from dominating in Asia to learning the elite college game.

SO, ARE we looking at another average year, again harmed by lack of depth?

Um, maybe not.

Few and his staff have hit the phones and airports, with NIL money to offer (more on that in a sec) and specific targets in mind.

Most important, they needed shooting and rim protection on defense.

Success?

“The best thing I think we did during this offseason was we added pieces that bring different aspects to the program that we don’t have,” Few said Tuesday.

The coaches believe Stromer and Venters can connect from outside, but there are proven numbers arriving with Michael Ajayi, the 6-7 transfer from Pepperdine who led the WAC in scoring (17.9) and rebounding (9.9).

Another incoming guard (and locked-in scorer) is 6-5 Khalif Battle from Arkansas, who led the nation in free throw attempts.

In the Razorbacks’ last 10 games, Battle averaged a shade under 27 points per game.

OK, and defense?

Well, there might be an AWESOME rim protector coming, but he’s only 17 and could need a year of work.

Ismaila Diagne, an athletic 7-footer who grew up in Senegal but has been playing professionally for Real Madrid’s youth team, eventually may OWN the post for Gonzaga — but there’s a question about how fast he might develop.

Meanwhile, Emmanuel Innocenti, an Italian who has played on that country’s U18 team and then a season at Tarleton State, is a terrific defender at 6-5 — so perhaps he can help make entry passes a problem.

Finally, the Zags signed solid point guard Braeden Smith, a transfer from Colgate — and Patriot League Player of the Year — who plans to redshirt and then take the reins for Gonzaga.

It’s been a staggering haul for Few and Co., and in this era where nothing comes for free, a couple of questions jump out at us.

First, how much money has been gathered up to pay for this new (and huge) roster full of talent?

Second, who’s paying for it?

It’s been assumed that Gonzaga had a solid source of NIL money on hand, enough for a few elite players — but not much beyond that.

Obviously, we’ve all been guessing low.

I mean, WAY low.

This current group of Zags will hit somebody for millions.

Welcome to college hoops.

Email: scameron@cdapress.com

Steve Cameron’s “Cheap Seats” columns appear in The Press four times each week, normally Tuesday through Friday unless, you know, stuff happens.

Steve suggests you take his opinions in the spirit of a Jimmy Buffett song: “Breathe In, Breathe Out, Move On.”