Instead, the program has taken two steps back in just over a month.
First, freshman stretch-forward Vitaliy Shibel suffered a tear of his anterior cruciate ligament on August 19, ending what looked to be a promising freshman campaign for the Ukraine native.
Now, four-star foward Romello White will sit out the 2016-2017 season on an academic redshirt after failing to meet NCAA academic requirements.
White, a top 100 prospect according to ESPN, was expected to immediately contribute to an ASU team that lacked depth in the post.
Following the departures of Eric Jacobsen, Willie Atwood and Savon Goodman, the Sun Devils were already struggling with frontcourt depth.