Question #6: Is this the least talented Gopher Basketball roster in the modern era?
Well, the roster isn't completed yet. Not counting Fox, there are nine scholarship players committed. I don't believe Ben will enter the season with only 9 scholarship players so I think two more (very likely front court players) will be added. Those additions may not be great but I suspect that they could be at least serviceable for stretches.
If the above happens, my answer to your question is "NO."
We have the historically bad team of Pitino's third season for comparison. For the front court, I think Battle, Thompson, Ihnen, Daniels, and two players to be named later can be as good collectively as the freshman Murphy, Bakary, Gaston, Buggs, and Joey King (although King might be a better shooter than any of them). Although Murphy was already a good player as a freshman and King was a good shooting big (albeit soft), the rest of them were mediocre to terrible.
It's in the back court where I believe this team will be better than Pitino's third year team. The guards that year were soph Mason, Morris, and freshmen McBrayer, Dorsey, and Gilbert. Not a single one of them had a True Shooting Percentage of 50% or better. Based on their histories, I believe the very experienced guard crew we have now will shoot significantly better than that one next season.