Analysis: What Arkansas is getting in Wichita State transfer Ricky Council

Eric Musselman added his team’s fifth transfer addition of the offseason Friday, as Wichita State transfer Ricky Council IV committed to Arkansas.

A 6-foot-6 wing from Durham, N.C., Council adds size, scoring, experience and versatility to the Razorbacks' talent-filled roster. Prior to his decision, Arkansas' backcourt was severely lacking in the experience department, as it consisted of six freshmen plus rising junior Davonte Davis.

Experience

The former Shocker has two years of college experience under his belt, playing against good competition in the American Athletic Conference. In two seasons, he appeared in 49 games with eight starts.

Despite the small number of starts, Council played starter minutes as a sophomore and was a solid role player as a true freshman.

In his first year, Council averaged 15.6 minutes in a bona fide sixth-man role. As a sophomore, he still primarily came off the bench, but his playing time increased to 26.6 minutes per game, good enough for fourth on the team. For all intents and purposes, Council played the role of a starter his second season.

Playing in the AAC, Council has had the opportunity to showcase his talent against quality competition, including NCAA Tournament teams. He even has modest experience in the NCAA Tournament, playing nine minutes in a loss in the 2021 First Four.

The first two games of his collegiate career were against high-major competition in Missouri and Oklahoma State. In those two games, Council averaged 2.0 points and 4.5 rebounds in 12.5 minutes.

In that shortened season with schedules primarily made up of conference opponents, there were seven AAC teams - including Wichita State - that finished just under .500 in conference play or better. The Shockers won the regular-season title at 11-2, while the other teams - Houston, Memphis, SMU, Cincinnati, UCF, and Tulsa - clearly made up the competitive group in the 11-team conference.