When Eric Musselman was hired as USC's basketball coach a year ago, he'd end up starting basically from scratch with only little-used reserve Harrison Hornery hanging around through the coaching transition.

And while the hope would be for Musselman to build momentum from his first year heading into his second, well, the task hasn't gotten significantly easier from a roster rebuild standpoint.

Such is life in the transfer portal era ...

Musselman's Trojans were already losing half the roster due to graduation/exhausted eligibility with starters Chibuzo Agbo (11.8 points per game, 4.5 rebounds per game), Josh Cohen (5.9 PPG) and reserves Matt Knowling, Clark Slajchert, Bryce Pope and Hornery all gone.

Add to that list four other departures to the transfer portal, headlined by burgeoning star Wesley Yates III (14.1 PPG, second on the team) along with promising young players Kevin Patton Jr., Isaiah Elohim and Jalen Shelley.

All the while, USC is awaiting a decision from star guard Desmond Claude (team-high 15.8 points per game), who does have eligibility to return but could also take his shot at the next level (or, of course transfer) and hasn't yet announced his intentions.

Really, the state of USC's roster largely hinges on Claude's decision and what's to come in the portal.

But all that said, Musselman does at least have some foundation on which to build this time.

Wing Terrance Williams II, who came in as a transfer from Michigan and played in just seven games (six starts) due to injury, is expected back with an extra year of eligibility, while two other key cogs in forwards Saint Thomas (9.5 PPG, 5.9 RPG) and Rashaun Agee (9.4 PPG, 4.5 RPG) are also hoping for an extra year -- Thomas because he left Illinois-Chicago halfway through the 2022-23 season due to mental health reasons, and Agee because of time spent at the junior college level in 2021-22.

There's also the arrival of five-star incoming freshman shooting guard Alijah Arenas along with four-star freshman combo guard Jerry Easter.

So there's actually a lot to like about the Trojans' potential -- if Claude returns or if Musselman finds a star point guard in the transfer portal (which doesn't come easily).

So far, Musselman has added some potential role players -- and most notably some size -- from the portal in 7-foot-3 center Gabe Dynes (Youngstown State), 6-foot-10 forward Jacob Cofie (from Virginia), 6-foot-7 guard/forward Amarion Dickerson (Robert Morris), 6-foot-6 forward Keonte Jones (CSUN) and 6-foot-9 forward Jaden Brownell (Samford) -- while 6-foot-11 center Drew Fielder (Georgetown) committed and then reneged on that decision to go to Boise State.

Again, such is life in the transfer portal era.

We'll take a closer look at those transfer additions, but here's an overall breakdown of the roster movement ...

USC men's basketball offseason roster movement

GONE ...

Out of eligibility:

F Matt Knowling

C Josh Cohen

F Harrison Hornery

G Bryce Pope

G Chibuzo Agbo

G Clark Slajchert

Transfers:

G Wesley Yates III

G Kevin Patton Jr.

G Isaiah Elohim

G Jalen Shelley

RETURNING ...

G Terrance Williams II

TO BE DETERMINED ...

G Desmond Claude (NBA decision)

F Rashaun Agee (petitioning for extra year because of JUCO time)

F Saint Thomas (petitioning for extra year because of partial season at Loyola Chicago due to mental health)

INCOMING ...

HS recruits:

Five-star G Alijah Arenas

Four-star G Jerry Easter

Transfer additions:

F Jacob Cofie (Virginia)

G/F Amarion Dickerson (Robert Morris)

F Keonte Jones (CSUN)

F Jaden Brownell (Samford)

C Gabe Dynes (Youngstown State)

Cofie started 16 of 32 games as a true freshman, averaging 7.2 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.1 steals while shooting 49.5 percent from the field, 24.4 percent from 3-point range and 75 percent from the free throw line. He scored a season-high 17 points along with six rebounds vs. Notre Dame.

Cofie gives the Trojans much-needed size and potentially a more athletic upgrade from Cohen.

Dickerson spent two years in JUCO at Mineral Area College in Missouri before playing last season at Robert Morris, where he averaged 13.3 points and 5.9 rebounds in 35 games (31 starts) while being named the Horizon League Defensive Player of the Year and a second-team all-league selection.

He had a career-high 27 points and 15 rebounds vs. Northern Kentucky and set the Robert Morris single-game record with 8 blocks vs. Detroit Mercy, but perhaps most notably he scored 25 points with 9 rebounds on 11-of-22 shooting in a NCAA tournament loss to Alabama.

The one flaw in his game was his perimeter shooting as he made just 21 of 76 3-pointers (27.6 percent), but the Trojans ideally won't need him taking those shots.

His eligibility clock will depend on a more formal ruling from the NCAA on how it regards JUCO years.

Jones spent three seasons in JUCO -- two at the aforementioned Mineral Area College and one at Midland College in Texas -- before moving onto CSUN, where he averaged 13.1 points and 9 rebounds while shooting 50.6 percent from the field last season.

Jones appeared in 34 games for CSUN while starting 31 times, leading the team in rebounding, blocks (50) and steals (55) while he was third on the team in points per game. He registered a team-high five doubles-doubles, scored in double figures 19 times and reached double figures in rebounds eight times. He finished first in the Big West in blocks per game (1.5), fourth in rebounds per game and field goal percentage and sixth in steals per game (1.6).

Again, his remaining eligibility will hinge on the NCAA's ruling on JUCO years moving forward.

Brownell was second on the team in scoring for Samford this season, averaging 14 points per game along with 4 rebounds per game. The 6-foot-9, 230-pound forward shot 51.3 percent from the field overall and was a weapon from the perimeter, making 39.7 percent of his 3-pointers (58 of 146).

He scored a season-high 27 points vs. George Mason, hitting 6 of 10 3-pointers, while adding 7 rebounds. It was one of eight 20-point games for Brownell, who had 25 points vs. Furman and 24 vs. North Alabama among other standout performances.

Brownell spent three years at Illinois-Chicago, including a redshirt season, and has one year of eligibility remaining with the Trojans.

Dynes played in 34 games last season as a sophomore, starting 7, while averaging 6.8 points and 5.8 rebounds per game with 104 blocks overall. He shot a robust 69.9 percent from the field but struggled at the foul line, making just 47.8 percent of his free throws. He made the Horizon League All-Defensive team each of his first two seasons.

His best game against Division I competition last season was 19 points and 12 rebounds on 7-of-9 shooting vs. Green Bay. He scored in double figures in 10 games overall.

Dynes has two years of eligibility remaining.

This is obviously still a work in progress with spots to fill and more clarity yet to come.

Assuming Agee and Thomas get the extra year of eligibility they're seeking, USC has three solid starters in those two along with Williams to build around.

All three are best as role players, however, so it's hard to project anything until the rest of the pieces fall into place.

If Arenas is as good as advertised as a true freshman, one would expect him to become an immediate focal point of the offense, but he's not a point guard, nor truly is Easter though he can handle the ball.

Getting Claude back -- as a primary ball-handler who proved to be able to create his own shots when he needed to carry the offense -- seems paramount for Musselman's Trojans. Unless, there is another addition of that caliber to come from the portal.

The transfer additions so far are all intriguing in their own ways, and the tandem of Cofie and Dynes would seem to give USC at least a little more upside on the interior than it had last season. Brownell's 3-point shooting could be an asset, but as the Trojans saw last season it can be hit and miss with players making the leap up to a higher level of college basketball, so he'll have to prove he can carryover his production to the Big Ten.

Losing Yates was tough, but if Arenas can step right into that role as co-lead offensive option able to take over games for stretches, then the Trojans will be all right.

With either Claude's return or another high-profile proven guard, there's a lot to like here, but we'll withhold final evaluation until the puzzle is complete.