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Nevada Basketball: Eric Cooper Jr. To Transfer From Program

The sophomore guard has decided to leave Nevada, according to his father.

By Daniel Connolly Updated
Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

After losing Marqueze Coleman, Tyron Criswell and Lucas Stivrins to gradutation, the Nevada Wolf Pack have lost another member of their CBI Championship team. Sophomore guard Eric Cooper Jr. has decided to transfer from the school, according to his father.

Cooper will still have two years of eligibility remaining after he sits out a year. He came in under former coach Dave Carter and performed well as a freshman despite being on an abysmal 9-22 team. Expectations for the guard were moderately high coming into this season, and he didn't take much of a step forward. While his production in most major categories increased, his minutes remained the same and he fell behind DJ Fenner and Lindsey Drew on the depth chart by the end of the season.

Cooper likely would've started the season as the fourth guard, behind Fenner, Drew and transfer Marcus Marshall. It's fair to say that Cooper underwhelmed this season, as I mentioned him as a potential go-to scorer for the Wolf Pack in my season preview. Nevada shouldn't have a ton of trouble replacing Cooper's production, especially with 4-star PG Devearl Ramsey committed for next season, as well as Marcus Marshall becoming eligible to play.

With Cooper gone, the Wolf Pack will now have an open scholarship for the 2016-2017 season. Nevada is a little thin in the frontcourt, so I wouldn't be surprised to see Eric Musselman go after a graduate transfer this summer. Here's a full look at Nevada's scholarship situation for the next four years:

UPDATE:

Nevada beat writer Chris Murray is saying that the coaching staff told Eric Cooper Jr. that his playing time would go down next season.

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