Our preview of the Vanderbilt basketball roster continues, with a look at Matthew Moyer.

The Commodores, then coached by Kevin Stallings, did offer Matt Moyer out of high school. However, VU didn't seem to be a factor in his recruiting, and wasn't in Moyer's list of finalists--that included Florida, Xavier and Ohio State--before Moyer picked Syracuse in August 2014.

A foot injury cost Moyer his true freshman season at Syracuse. He played through that injury at Syracuse--not always effectively--but started 20 games for the 23-14 Orange, which made the NCAA Tournament that year. Moyer transferred to Vanderbilt, and Kansas State was also involved in his recruitment following his departure.

Moyer received a waiver to be eligible before VU's third game of last season. He immediately became a part of the rotation, playing double-digit minutes in Vanderbilt's first seven games.

Moyer scored a season-high 14 points, hitting 4-of-6 from the field, in a Dec. 5 win over MTSU. That included a season-best 2-of-3 showing behind the arc, and 4-of-4 at the line.

Moyer scored in double figures just twice more--both, exactly 10 points--in losses to North Carolina State and Florida. He pulled a season-high nine boards in that loss to the Gators, which came on Feb. 27.

Let's unpack Moyer's career for a moment.

He was a top-75 recruit according to every major service. Despite being hurt, and despite being on a better team, he played more minutes at Syracuse as a freshman. He shot better from 2-point range (58 percent vs. 43 percent) for the Orange than he did last year at VU.

There appear to be some tools to build around, too: Moyer is long and athletic, can jump out of the gym and has a high motor. Coming into last season, the Bryce Drew staff considered him the team's most able offensive rebounder.

On the other hand, Moyer hasn't shown an effective offensive game. He shot 24.5 percent on 49 3-point tries. His best offensive attributes seem to be finishing at the rim and in transition. There seem to be some defensive skills, but they haven't translated into the stat sheet in the form of blocks or steals, or an outstanding rebounding rate (though Moyer did finish second on the team in rebounds per minute last season). Moyer also seems to struggle with confidence.

Moyer is a senior by class, and it's easy to write off that No. 40 ranking as a bad evaluation. And maybe it was. But Moyer also has two, and maybe three, built-in excuses that could be valid explanations for that's happened.

First was his start at Syracuse. Moyer was hurt, and playing for an abrasive coach like Jim Boeheim may not have been the best fit, especially if confidence is an issue.

Second, outside of Jeff Roberson, the Bryce Drew staff had a poor record of player development. More players probably regressed than improved. Moyer seemed to do the same last year.

Third, he's lacked a role. Moyer doesn't have a good 3-point game, and yet that's where almost half of his shots were taken last season. Moyer had the best offensive rebounding rate on the team (10.9 percent); given how he was used, maybe that's a positive that was lost in the stench of last year.

Moyer also plays hard and is the kind of kid who coach Jerry Stackhouse said, this summer, tries to do what the coaching staff wants him to do. Sometimes, all it takes is a flash of confidence for a marginal junior or senior to become a good player. That's something to keep in mind as Moyer enters 2019-20.