THE CHEAP SEATS with STEVE CAMERON: Zags gain a guard from the beach

Mark Few must grow point guards in his yard.

It’s almost ridiculous.

Whenever Gonzaga has a team that looks as though it’ll be a bit light in the backcourt, another star guard shows up in Few’s doorway.

Each of these guys comes wandering out into the sunlight, looks around briefly, and says: “So, shall we have some fun in the NCAA tournament?”

Seriously, Few must have scientists creating these point guards in his basement.

I could reel off the names, but you already know them like members of your own family.

The incredible irony of this whole process is that the godfather of point guards, John Stockton, came along before Few’s reign.

The Stockton era, which I suspect drops pixie dust on every Gonzaga point guard, preceded the Zags’ permanent spot as a one-team conference with an automatic bid to the Big Dance.

The Zags have adapted, again and again.

For the last few years, Gonzaga has routinely opened up a box of Nembards (Andrew and Ryan) to play point guard.

Time moves on, though, and with an apparent shortage of guards coming from Few’s basement, the coach is returning to another formula.

FEW AND the Zags apparently will help reload through the oft-tested method of adopting shooters and ball handlers from overseas.

The 2025 Zags are still considered a prime-time outfit by national ranking services, but most judges add a caveat.

Gonzaga has no proven backcourt, and the assumption has been that the point guard spot would be handed over to Colgate transfer Braeden Smith.

Few and his staff cleverly parked Smith in their redshirt lab for a year, letting him watch Ryan Nembhard run the show.

They were hoping to create “Nembhard Light,” an ever-so-slightly less-gifted heir to the clan — particularly since Braeden and Ryan share a trait that can kill you in elite college hoops.

They’re both just 6 feet tall.

In the crowd where Gonzaga hangs out, that’s a problem — and why you find yourself ranked No. 21 (or No. 24) to start the season instead of, oh, somewhere in the top 10.

Few and his lieutenants really like Smith, but they’re well aware of possible shortcomings.

Even in a “best-case” scenario, they needed another high-quality guard.

It was a situation that called for a vacation — an outing to some beautiful spot like the Spanish coastal paradise of Malaga.

Yes, I’m joking about a vacation.

Not about Malaga, though.

Wandering along the beaches and dodging tourists lurked a future Zag.

Mario Saint-Supery.

I SUSPECT you’ve already seen Mario, turning up at some point in Gonzaga’s first little run of games.

He certainly looks the part, at a little over 6-3 and 200 pounds.

This is not a skinny kid in search of American food.

NBA scouts are already drooling over Saint-Supery.

And remember, he’s currently playing in a new system, in a new country.

Mario also fell further behind in the Zags’ preseason work, because he was called up to the Spanish national team for EuroBasket during the summer.

Still.

This kid DOES look like he came from the lab in Few’s basement.

Sports Illustrated’s team of hoops gurus feels that the “Man from Malaga” holds the key to whether the Zags are a decent second-weekend team — or something really, really special.

Here’s their take:

“If Gonzaga ends up in the thick of title contention this season, it’ll likely have a lot to do with Spanish sensation Saint-Supery.

“He’s the type of player we almost never saw in college basketball pre-NIL, having played a key role in the Spanish ACB (pro league) as an 18-year-old with Manresa.

“Saint-Supery is electric with the ball in his hands, and could well make this ranking (No. 24) look foolishly low.”

You’re right, carrying on the Zags’ quarter-century tradition of excellence seems like a lot to hang on one kid from Malaga.

Still, I’m going to bite.

Scouts going ga-ga (and my own eye test) suggest that Saint-Supery can be Gonzaga’s next superstar guard.

Hang on, though.

It might take a month or two, so don’t panic if Mario is a half-step behind for a few games.

The talent is there.

Trust me.

And everywhere else on the court.

This could be a Final Four team.

Gulp.

Email: [email protected]

Steve Cameron’s “Cheap Seats” columns appear in The Press three times each week, normally Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday unless, you know, stuff happens.

Steve suggests you take his opinions in the spirit of a Jimmy Buffett song: “Breathe In, Breathe Out, Move On."