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NEW YORK, NY – FEBRUARY 03: Players of the St. John’s basketball team react. (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images) +

Thanks to a bunch of returning talent to go with some elite transfers coming in, St. John’s basketball projects as a potential breakout team this year.

Is this going to be “the year” for St. John’s basketball? Despite the idea that the program has generally underachieved throughout the tenure of head coach Chris Mullin, there are always plenty of reasons for optimism heading into each year. With regards to 2018-19, though, this time it seems as though all of the pieces might finally be lining up in the right position for a big-time season.

For starters, the Red Storm are bringing back an excellent core trio from last season. Shamorie Ponds, Marvin Clark, and Justin Simon are all high-quality college basketball players that can impact the game in a variety of ways. Considering the likelihood that these players all take positive strides this offseason as well, it is reasonable to project that they will be strong leaders on the team this year. However, questions are bound to surround this core trio because of the team’s performance this past year.

Even though these players were, for the most part, healthy all season (Ponds missed three games due to injury), the team struggled mightily in Big East Conference play. Specifically, the Red Storm finished second-to-last in the league and needed a three-game winning streak in early February in order to even finish that high. Because of this, it is reasonable to wonder just how high the ceiling really is for this core.

It is because of this reason that the newcomers joining the program this season will play the most crucial roles in terms of generating success. Of course, the transfers and incoming freshmen will not be alone in hopefully pushing the Red Storm to new heights this year, though. Here are a few of the major keys for a successful season by St. John’s.