Penn has a new-look roster. Here’s why head coach Steve Donahue is excited for the season ahead.

Blame Rick Pitino. Blame Princeton. Blame whomever.

Penn men’s basketball will be sporting a significantly different roster once the 2023-24 season tips off next month, with just three of the eight players who earned minutes in the Ivy tournament last season returning.

But although the losses certainly hurt, Quakers coach Steve Donahue isn’t complaining.

“We thought we would have four starters back,” he said. “That being said, we knew pretty early on that that was going to happen.

“So for the last six months, we’ve really turned the page. … I love our new guys. I love the energy. I think we have the makings of a really good basketball team.”

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Last season, with an experienced, battle-tested roster, the Quakers fell short in the first round of the Ivy tournament for the second consecutive year. They narrowly lost to Princeton, which went on to win the championship and march to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament.

“I think that’s one of the things that fuels us,” junior guard Clark Slajchert said. “That’s a pain that sits with you for a while, and it’s still sitting with us. That pain is still here, kind of in practice, and it’s just motivating. It’s the good kind of pain that excites you, makes you want to compete every day.”

Gone from last season’s run are guard Jordan Dingle, who transferred to Rick Pitino-led St. John’s, forward Max Martz, who retired because of an undisclosed medical issue, and defensive-minded forward Lucas Monroe, who traveled all the way to the Market Street Wawa to play for Drexel.

Dingle, in particular, is a massive loss for Penn. Last season, he scored 23.4 points per game, good for second in the country (yes, all of Division I).

For the first two years of his Penn career, Slajchert played in the shadows of Dingle. But with Dingle’s departure, Slajchert, who averaged 13.6 points last season, is prepared to step into a much bigger role.

“I expect to draw teams’ best defenders, at least best guard, but I think we’re gonna replace guys that we lost by committee,” Slajchert said. “It’s not going to be just me. It’s not going to be just Nick [Spinoso]. It’s going to be the team.”

Spinoso comes off a breakout season in which he doubled his minutes, averaged the second-most rebounds on the team (5.6), and the most assists (3.1 per game). Spinoso earned the Big 5 Most Improved Player award.

“Clark, I don’t think there’s a better guard in the league, quite honestly, and I don’t know if there’s a better big than Nick Spinoso,” Donahue said.

Other returnees due for prominent roles include guards George Smith and Andrew Laczkowski – whom Donahue deemed “bigger, stronger, tougher” and knowing “what it takes to win” – and junior guard/forward Eddie Holland III, who saw few minutes last season but will become a bigger piece of the rotation.

Of the 15 players on the roster, six are new additions, and the group has impressed Donahue thus far.

“They’ve all been really eye-opening for us,” he said. “I expected them to be good. I think what surprises me is that they’ve been really good competitors.”

Donahue and Slajchert flagged freshman guard Tyler Perkins as the standout of the class. As a senior at the Landon School in Maryland, Perkins was awarded Interstate Athletic Conference Player of the Year and averaged 24.8 points, 6.9 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 2.5 steals.

“Just his physicality, his playing all aspects of the game, his competitiveness is very unique for a freshman,” Donahue said. “So all those [new] guys are going to be good. Tyler is probably one that we’ve seen the most from early on here.”

Added Slajchert: “I think the way that he rebounds the ball, the way that he pushes the ball offensively, the way that he scores, the way that he sets screens is really important.”

Another new name to keep an eye on: freshman guard Sam Brown, son of former 76ers coach Brett Brown. The younger Brown set the Lower Merion High School record for three-pointers with 245 and finished as the program’s fifth-leading scorer of all-time.

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Though the lineup bears an entirely different look and feel — one Donahue optimistically notes contains more two-way players — the goal for the team remains exactly the same.

“The expectation always here at Penn is to win a championship,” Donahue said. “That’s what our mindset is always, and I’m excited as I’ve ever been for this year and these guys. … The goal is to get them to the NCAA Tournament. It’s what I want these guys to experience.”