Josh Pastner says UNLV has to build its 2026-27 roster around Tyrin Jones. The center gives the Rebels a returning rim protector; the guards and forwards around him have to make room for his finishes without leaving him responsible for every defensive mistake.
Sebastian Mack adds a guard who attacks the basket, while Terrance Ford Jr. is being asked to organize an offense that lost Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn. How much room those guards get will depend in part on which forward Pastner puts beside Jones.
They have freshmen who can grow inside the program and transfers who are being asked to help right away. They also have uncertainty, because Alyn Breed is waiting on a waiver and the final shape of the roster is not completely locked in.
Pastner said UNLV has to “build around him.” He also said “constructing our roster around him” was part of the plan because of “the type of talent that he is.”
Pastner has talked about “threading the needle” in the portal and playing a version of money ball. He is trying to meet those needs within UNLV’s budget, not adding players without regard to the jobs already filled.
Gibbs-Lawhorn is the biggest loss. He led the Mountain West in scoring, made 101 threes and could get a shot late in the clock when UNLV’s initial action failed.
Gibbs-Lawhorn is now at Texas Tech. UNLV also moves on without Kimani Hamilton, Howie Fleming Jr., Jacob Bannarbie, Walter Brown, Al Green, Naas Cunningham, Emmanuel Stephen and Ladji Dembele, leaving far more to replace than one player’s scoring.
Jones earned all-defensive recognition as a freshman. Keeping him gives Pastner a player whose work at the rim the staff already knows, while much of the perimeter rotation will be new.
Pastner said Jones played last season with a shoulder injury.
Jones was “really playing with one hand,” Pastner said.
Pastner also called Jones “a real culture warrior.” The Rebels still need him healthy as he develops in his second season.
Jones’ offensive development will affect which teammates can play beside him. Better free-throw shooting would make fouling him less rewarding. Stronger finishes through contact would help when a defender leaves the wing to challenge him at the rim.
Issac Williamson returns after averaging 8.6 points as a freshman. Pastner believes he can make a “huge jump.” His development gives UNLV a chance to retain some perimeter scoring instead of replacing all of it through transfers.
Williamson does not have to become the leading scorer. He does have to make shots and defend reliably enough to stay on the floor with the older guards. His place beside Ford and Mack will depend on that work, not simply on being a returner.
Jalen Cunningham is also back, and his status matters because the roster is still not completely settled. Cunningham was a walk-on last season, and Pastner has left open the possibility that his role could depend on how the final roster spots shake out.
UNLV has 12 players signed, with Breed waiting on a waiver. The final roster and Cunningham’s place in it remain unsettled.
Mack returns to Las Vegas after stops at UCLA and Missouri. He played at Coronado, averaged double figures at UCLA and was part of NCAA Tournament teams at both colleges.
He should not be asked to duplicate Gibbs-Lawhorn. Mack’s appeal is getting to the paint and drawing fouls. That puts a different demand on his teammates: a defender who can leave an unreliable shooter has a shorter trip to stop Mack’s drive.
Ford comes from Tulsa, with his best production at Arkansas State. He missed last season because of injury. Pastner has compared the plays he wants from Ford to Jose Alvarado’s, emphasizing contributions beyond scoring.
One possible group is Ford, Mack, Williamson, Tyler Harris and Jones. Ford could use Jones’ screen to get toward the lane, with Jones rolling behind a defender who steps up to the ball. If Harris or Williamson makes the help defender stay outside, Ford has a clearer pass to the rim. If that defender can leave either shooter, the roll becomes much harder to reach.
Cam Miles gives Pastner another ballhandler after his freshman season at Florida State and a scoring and playmaking role at IMG Academy. He offers competition for the minutes behind or alongside Ford.
For Miles, pushing the ball has to lead to a shot or a pass before the defense sets. Running faster only to drive into a waiting big man would leave UNLV with the same half-court problem and less time to solve it.
Dontrez Williams arrives from Lindenwood with scoring, rebounding and steal production. The steals give Pastner reason to try him in a pressure role; whether he can contain the ball through screens will determine how much help Jones has to provide.
Pastner has specifically mentioned Williams improving his play off two feet. Stopping under control after a drive can leave him a pass when Jones’ defender steps toward the ball, rather than requiring a finish over the help.
Harris comes from Vanderbilt after stops at Washington and Portland. UNLV needs the shooting he showed at Washington to carry over, particularly in groups where Mack is attacking and Jones is near the rim.
Harris at forward would ask an opposing big or wing to defend farther from the basket. He has to make shots to keep that defender there. In return for that room, UNLV would be relying more heavily on Jones and its guards to finish defensive rebounds than it would with another interior rebounder beside him.
MJ Thomas offers that larger alternative after two productive seasons at New Orleans. His rebounding gives Pastner a reason to try a group of Ford, Mack, Williams, Thomas and Jones.
That group could put more bodies around the glass, but Thomas and Jones would have to avoid arriving in the same space when Mack drives. If one screens and rolls, the other needs somewhere to receive a pass without bringing another defender directly into the roll. The added rebounding has to compensate for the room the guards could lose.
Jeremy Foumena gives UNLV another center at 6-foot-11 and 250 pounds. He comes from UCF after Mississippi State and Rhode Island and offers a way to rest Jones without immediately giving up size.
A reserve group with Miles, Williamson, Harris, Thomas and Foumena would still need the guards and Harris to draw defenders away from the lane. Defensively, Foumena would have to use his size to cover the ballhandler and roller long enough for the screened guard to recover, and show he can sustain that work over longer stretches.
Jackson Kiss, a freshman forward from New Zealand who played at Utah Prep, drew Pastner’s praise for his competitiveness and passing.
If Kiss can receive the ball after a guard draws two defenders and find the teammate left open, he could help UNLV keep a stalled drive from becoming a forced shot. How quickly he earns that work will depend on his adjustment to college size and speed.
Kota Suttle Jr. comes from Southern California Academy after Wheeler High School in Georgia. Pastner described him as tough, hard-nosed and a winner, and mentioned comparisons others had made to Marcus Smart.
Suttle will have to earn that role against older guards. Staying in front of the ball and making sound decisions would give him a way into the rotation.
Breed comes from NC State after McNeese State and Providence. His waiver remains unresolved, so he cannot yet be treated as part of an available rotation.
If cleared, he would add an older ballhandler to a group in which Ford is returning from injury and Miles has limited college experience. UNLV still needs to prepare combinations that work without him.
Pastner has identified shooting as an area where UNLV could still add. The alternatives around Jones explain why: playing Harris asks him to make shots and hold up defensively, while playing Thomas adds rebounding but can bring another defender closer to Mack’s drives.
Pastner also mentioned frontcourt help as a possible need. Jones is coming off shoulder work and may miss much of the summer, leaving Foumena, Thomas and the freshmen with preparation time that matters even if their eventual minutes differ.
The closing group remains open. Ford’s ballhandling, Mack’s drives, Williamson’s shooting and Jones’ finishing give Pastner places to start, but the fifth player changes what the other four can do. Harris and Thomas present different tradeoffs rather than interchangeable depth.
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