Ken Corbittken.corbitt@cjonline.com
K-State basketball newcomers learning system
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The indoctrination to Kansas State’s basketball program began this past week for five newcomers – three freshmen and two junior college transfers – with an emphasis more on conditioning rather than the game itself in the short time allotted for workouts.
“You only get two hours a week,” Wildcats coach Bruce Weber said Thursday in Topeka for the Catbackers Tour. “We did 35 and 40 (minutes) a day to spread it out a little bit over the week. Every day we incorporate a couple of new concepts, take five or seven minutes with concepts and we work on skills and the last eight to 10 minutes we do some scrimmaging, starting with some two-on-two and build up to four-on-four and into July you get to some five-on-five in that little time you have.”
Weber said the weight room has been the main focus for incoming freshmen Mike McGuirl, Nigel Shadd and Levi Stockard along with juco transfers Amaad Wainright and Makol Mawien.
“Some of them may not have lifted at that intensity,” Weber said. “There’s a couple of whipped puppies, no doubt about that, but that’s part of it. I called them and texted them and told them, ‘You’ll be fine, you just have to get through it.’
“The first three weeks are hard because school is new, you have classes and study hall, you have early weights, the workouts and then we throw in some camps. The day could be 6:30 a.m. to 10:30 at night so it’s a long day and they’re not used to that.”
Xavier Sneed discovered the upgrade between high school and college during his freshman season.
“My first meeting with him after the season I asked, ‘What are you thinking?’ and he said, ‘It was a lot harder than I thought,’ “ Weber said. “Especially getting into the league the second time around, they scout you and know you. He learned he has to continue to advance his game: The ball-handling, putting it on the floor and getting to the hoop, using his athleticism. The 3 is going to be great but do some of the other things.
“Xavier, Brian Patrick and Isaiah Maurice can take a nice step for us and give us good depth.”
Coming off a 21-14 season with a return to the NCAA Tournament after a two-year absence, Weber said junior guard Barry Brown has taken on a strong leadership role along with juniors Kamau Stokes and Dean Wade.
“As soon as the season ended, Barry is the guy who has been the most verbal,” Weber said. “We need Dean and Kamau to say the right things and help him and give great support. If we can get all those guys to do it, that’s when you have a special team with all that leadership.”
STOKES TESTS NBA — Stokes submitted his name to the NBA early draft list to experience the process, always intending to return to K-State by not hiring an agent.
“I’m just happy he has that dream and that motivation,” Weber said. “He wanted to get some workouts but I don’t think they realize or the parents realize the NBA is just not going to work everybody out. They only have one or two picks and some of them have no picks so they’re only going to work out a select group of guys. He got some feedback and I think that helped him. I think sometimes the things we say to them, now it’s a different voice.
“We always talk to him about Frank Mason,” Weber said of the national player of the year from Kansas. “That’s a kid he grew up playing with and watching and you want to be like him. Frank is bigger and stronger. Frank wasn’t great as a freshman, got a little better as a sophomore, really good and then special as a senior. Kamau, hopefully, has to make that kind of progression.”
DIARRA BACK IN PLAY — Guard Cartier Diarra sat last season after suffering a knee injury in the summer and is just now starting to get up to speed in the K-State system.
“I would say he’s somewhere between 80 and 90 percent,” Weber said. “Around the Big 12 and NCAA Tournament, he could finally be on scout squad and start doing some things, so that helped. He hadn’t done team stuff so he’s a little frustrated, but he has to learn the game.
“Physically, he’s off the charts. He’s the best one on our team physically, but you have to learn the game and know the game to add to the physical and athletic abilities that you have.”
