On paper, it looks like Western Michigan University is starting the men's basketball team from scratch.

There are only three players returning – redshirt junior forward Max Burton, sophomore point guard EJ Ryans and redshirt sophomore forward Michael Sulaka – who saw any minutes on the floor last season for the Broncos (12-20 overall, 9-9 Mid-American Conference).

So, fourth-year head coach Dwayne Stephens had a lot of holes to fill…but he managed to fill them with college veteran players who might not have played for WMU last season, but they did play for teams like Penn State, Robert Morris, FIU, Purdue Fort Wayne and the University of Calgary.

Stephens brought in six players from the transfer portal to go along with four talented freshmen.

"The landscape of college basketball has changed for us, so we have to bring in players who have experience at different levels, junior college, other conferences like ours and some come from higher conferences," Stephens said. "The biggest things we have been working on are just making sure the team chemistry is right, the guys buy into their roles and buy into the team concept because that can be hard with so many new players coming in."

The six transfers are redshirt junior Trey Lewis (Purdue Fort Wayne), junior Jalen Griffith (Navarro College), sophomore Hudson Ward (Penn State), redshirt senior Justice Williams (LSU, Robert Morris), senior Jayden Brewer (FIU) and senior Declan Peterson (University of Calgary).

The four freshmen are Sharod Barnes, Brady Swartz, Carson Vis and Camden Thompson. Returning are Burton, Ryans, Sulaka and redshirt freshmen Nicholas Errica and Junior Sileu.

"With all the newcomers, what really helped was bringing the guys in for the summer," Stephens said. "The NCAA gives us eight weeks in the summer to put in the nuts and bolts and what it is we're trying to accomplish.

"When practice started earlier this month, the guys knew most of the drills."

Added Burton: "With so many new guys, this is just the normal landscape now. When I started my sophomore year is when the whole NIL and transfer portal started to boom."

The sad part for Burton is that he is the only player remaining in his WMU recruiting class to still be on the team.

"It's really weird being the old guy," he said with a smile. "But the summer was a big part of this team. If we just started coming here as school started in August, we had just a month or two to know each other, it wouldn't go well.

"The summer was for getting comfortable with everyone and getting to know everyone's style of play."

Again, with the veterans and freshmen Stephens has brought in, the battle for floor time is going to be ongoing throughout the season.

"The crazy thing about this team is there isn't a ton of separation and I feel that is a positive for us," he said. "We have good depth and we can play a lot of bodies, so we don't lose much when we go to the bench."

Vying for the point guard spot are Ryans, Griffith and Barnes. Ryans averaged 14 minutes per game last season, starting eight games. Griffith averaged 15.4 points, 5.3 assists and 2.1 steals at Navarro.

"Those guys have been super competitive," Stephens said. "I've been pleased with how all three have taken care of the ball.

"Jalen is probably the best shooter at this point, but all three are working on their shot from distance."

The off guard spot is between Williams, Errica, Vis and Brewer.

"Justice has played and seen a lot over his career," the head coach said. "He's a very good defender, has great length, can create for others and has been shooting the ball well.

"Nick has been shooting the ball extremely well, but he has to do a little better job of taking care of the ball. Carson can do a little bit of everything and is a strong, tough kid. Jayden is an elite athlete and is unbelievable in transition. He can get to the basket and get fouled."

The centers are Burton, Sileu, Peterson and Sulaka, who could also play forward.

"Max has put on 15 pounds, so he's stronger, in better condition and is shooting the ball well from range and scoring around the rim," Stephens said. "Junior is a work in progress who is developing a nice touch around the rim.

"Declan is always around the ball and also has a good touch underneath. Michael can play at either center or forward, has a high motor and is maybe our best shot blocker. The game is starting to slow down for him."

The guard/forward spots are between Lewis, Ward and Swartz.

"Trey is a good shot-maker and can play the three or four," Stephens said. "Hudson is a strong rebounder who can get to the basket or make 3s. Brady was a big-time scorer in high school and I'm extremely happy with his work around the boards."

The interesting member of the team is Thompson, who is also playing football this fall.

"He is an elite athlete," the head coach said.

Stephens is looking at Akron, UMass, Kent State, Ohio, Toledo and Miami as being at the top of the MAC.

"We're in that middle section and we want to elevate to the next level," he said.

What he would like to see is the Broncos get off to a good start.

"In the last couple of years, we have started slowly, then picked it up at the end to get to Cleveland (for the MAC Tournament)," Stephens said. "This year, I'm hoping to get off to a better start, but scheduling is a big part of it.

"I think you let your guys get that confidence early on, then it can only help you when you get to conference play and I feel like in the past, we have been beat up going into the MAC."

Added Burton: "I feel like this is the most skilled team we've had since I've been here, so if we can combine the skill part with how we want to play as Western Michigan, to grind it out, stick to our principles of defend, rebound and run, then I feel the sky is the limit."