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Ben Johnson is getting his first crack at coaching college hoops at his alma mater, and that's a fantastic story. Now, how well can he coach?

What type of offense does he run? What are his defensive principals? What are his non-negotiables as a coach? Right now, we have no film to decipher any of this. He obviously has a knack for connecting with players, as we've seen from the reaction from former Gophers who've weighed in on the decision, but can he coach and win games in the Big Ten?

You can recruit all you want, and keeping some of the prospects in the talent rich state of Minnesota will surely increase program interest and ticket sales, but winning games is ultimately the only thing that matters at the end of the day. Right now we have no evidence of what a Ben Johnson coached team looks like, and that's a scary reality for Gopher fans as they consider their feelings about this hire.

With any young and inexperienced head coach, there needs to be a good group of assistants around him that can help ease the transition of becoming a head coach, especially at a major level.

Whoever Ben Johnson's associate head coach is going to be, that's the first thing that should be looked at. One name that has circulated a bit through the grapevine is someone that has been brought up for months in Gopher land, and that's current Colorado State assistant, and former De La Salle legend Dave Thorson.

Thorson coached Johnson during his career at De La Salle, and he's a name that has floated for that associate head coaching job since the hire was made just hours ago. With his experience, connections to Minnesota high school basketball, and the respect that he has here, that would be a home run right off the bat if Johnson is able to pull him away from Colorado State.

Then what? You have two open spots left. This is probably a bit of an unconventional hire for a program like Minnesota, but one move that would surely keep the Minnesota train full steam ahead would be adding someone like D1 Minnesota's Al Harris to the staff.

He was rumored a bit last year when Minnesota had an opening but they ultimately went another direction. Bringing him to the University of Minnesota would give the Gophers points with a 2022 class that has tons of top-end talent, and many of them received Gopher offers from the former staff already. Not to mention that, but some very interesting former in-state recruits are in the transfer portal that played for D1 Minnesota, including George Washington's Jamison Battle, and Ball State's Ishmael El-Amin. Plus, with Marquette firing their head coach, could Golden Eagle star, and former Prior Lake, Minnesota standout Dawson Garcia be next to enter the portal? If so, Harris could give Minnesota an early advantage there with his presence on staff.

I also wouldn't think that keeping a guy like Ed Conroy on staff would hurt, either. He's done a really nice job with guys like Daniel Oturu, and, of course, his nephew Liam Robbins has a chance to return next year. Johnson and Conroy were on staff together a few years ago under Richard Pitino, and have hit the trail together. Conroy also has built a decent connection with 2020 four-star Tre Holloman of Cretin Derham-Hall, so he's one to consider.

Another name to consider, and would be another home run if you can pull it off, is Baylor's Jared Nuness. Northern Iowa's Kyle Green coached with Johnson while at UNI and could be one to consider as well. A good staff is extremely important and there are definitely interesting options Johnson will have to mull over as he's making these decisions.

Already in the transfer portal is Jamal Mashburn Jr. who's coming off an intriguing, although inefficient freshman campaign. Him coming back is probably unlikely, given that his connection with Pitino is the reason he came here in the first place.

Marcus Carr entered the transfer portal, but has full intentions to go pro if the opportunity presents itself. If he does return to college, schools like Kentucky and Duke will be in the mix this time and that's going to be tough to beat out. Maybe Johnson can convince Carr to run it back one last time, but it's not something I would count on.

Gabe Kalscheur and Both Gach are guys that should be back and are likely excited about the fresh start, as they could use one. Two great examples of guys that showed great potential early in their careers but have regressed. Can Johnson unlock what made them succeed in the past?

Liam Robbins and Brandon Johnson are two guys that I would assume Ben Johnson would like to keep around. That would be a great frontcourt foundation to start with as a head coach, and are cultural building blocks for a programs future. Plus, you don't win with freshmen and sophomores in college hoops, so keeping them around would be large. I would group Tre' Williams in with them as well, as I think he's a guy that you want to keep around for his buy-in, heart, confidence, and competitive nature.

2021 Gopher commit Treyton Thompson has wanted to be a Gopher forever, so you can mark him down. But we have been unable to reach Sunrise Christian big Kenny Pohto since the Pitino news, and if Kyle Lindsted doesn't remain on staff, I have a hard time seeing Pohto stick as well.

Then what? Sam Freeman and Isaiah Ihnen are guys that have been in Minnesota multiple years now, and haven't established a role for themselves. Could they move on and find a fit elsewhere? Martice Mitchell is a former four-star recruit that Pitino brought in, but didn't show much as a freshman but seems to have a nice jumper. He could look to move on for more playing time as well.

Next years Gopher team could keep a solid core, and build with a heavy dose of the transfer market, but that's an article for another day. (How about tomorrow?)

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