Ahead of the 2015 SuperDraft, MLSsoccer.com is breaking down each team's needs and potential draft targets. Sporting KC have already made some changes in what's been a busy offseason.
Sporting KC have three first-round picks, and are virtually guaranteed to trade at least one of them. Team president Robb Heineman has hinted at that several times on Twitter, and so... yeah. Whatever holes I talk about in their roster, whatever picks I say they might make, bear in mind that they could just bundle the lot of them up to go after a veteran they really want. Or to move way up the ladder for a draftee they really want.
Wheels are turning, folks. And for the first time in a long time at Sporting Park, they're turning with a bit of desperation. Sporting were pretty dire from July onward, looking nothing like the team that had onced terrorized MLS with their high pressure and impentrable backline.
The fall-out from those several months of flaccid play has already been felt, with Aurelien Collin, Eric Kronberg and about 10 others shown the door. In have come seven new faces – including old face Roger Espinoza – but there is still work to do with this roster, which showed real signs of wear and tear in 2014.
Sporting SuperDraft selections: #10, 12 & 20 (1st round), #30 (2nd round), #53 (3rd round), #73 (4th round)
Sporting Depth Chart: 23 players
Goalkeeper (3): Luis Marin, Jon Kempin, Tim Melia
Left Back (1): Seth Sinovic
Center Back (4): Matt Besler, Ike Opara, Jalil Anibaba, Erik Palmer-Brown
Right Back (2): Chance Myers, Kevin Ellis
Defensive Midfield (2): Jorge Claros, James Marcelin
Center Midfield (3): Roger Espinoza, Paulo Nagamura, Mikey Lopez
Attacking Midfield (2): Benny Feilhaber, Jimmy Medranda
Left Wing (1): Bernardo Anor
Right Wing (2): Graham Zusi, Jacob Peterson
Forward (3): Dom Dwyer, Krisztian Nemeth, Claudio Bieler
Primary Need: Winger
I have a sneaking suspicion that Nemeth, who was acquired this offseason, will actually play a bunch at right wing while Zusi plays inverted on the left. There's no real reason to think the new arrival would replace Dwyer in the starting lineup even if he's primarily been played as a forward throughout his career.
So Sporting aren't as thin on the wings as they look at first glance, though it's also pretty clear that they're not exactly flush. Anor's a nice player, but he doesn't stretch defenses – something Peter Vermes really needs to have in his arsenal. Teams figured out last year that if you just pack it in, this team as constructed can't consistently beat you.
There are two wingers – Khiry Shelton and maaaaaaybe Romario Williams – who are top-5 talents in the draft, so Sporting would likely have to trade up to land one.
Targets: Khiry Shelton (Oregon State), Romario Williams (Central Florida / GA), Connor Hallisey (California), Miguel Aguilar (San Francisco)
Secondary Need: Left back
The other obvious, glaring need is a backup left back – something that has been missing in KC for time immemorial. Sinovic has been a workhorse, playing 11 billion minutes since 2010, and at some point he's going to blow a tire.
Luckily for Sporting, this draft is stocked with left backs.
Targets: Otis Earle (UC-Riverside), Andy Thoma (Washington), Connor Brandt (San Diego)
SUPERDRAFT TEAM PREVIEWS
- Columbus Crew:Step by step, second time around for CCSC
- Colorado Rapids:Can Mile High Club find a contributor late?
- DC United: One more piece for one more step
- Houston Dynamo:One decade later, a new era begins
- LA Galaxy:Recalibrating a championship machine
- Montreal Impact:Building out after a promising stretch run
- New England Revolution:Suddenly great, but plenty of need
- New York City FC:Feeling kind of blue east of the Hudson
- New York Red Bulls:Another new era in Jersey
- Real Salt Lake: Not quite a rebuild in the high desert
- San Jose Earthquakes: Recapturing that Goonie magic
- Toronto FC: Trying to solve the eternal problem in Ontario
- Vancouver Whitecaps:A full roster for Cascadia kings
- New England Revolution:Suddenly great but plenty of need
- Phildelphia Union: Building around the core
- Seattle Sounders:Nothing glaring for Shield, USOC winners
- Sporting KC:Filling it all out after a mini-rebuild
- Chicago Fire:Endless questions in the Windy City
- Portland Timbers:Draft & stash with T2 up and running
- Orlando City:Is there a trade for No. 1 in the works?
