Here’s the notes from their interviews:
Craig Smith—
Smith is excited but he feels like everyone in the conference is excited. He feels like it’ll be a very strong year for the league.
The Runnin’ Utes are a lot bigger, deeper and more athletic. He likes their camaraderie. He also likes the three-point shooting. He feels like they have the experience this year that’s the type that truly matters.
Smith says Carlson really owns the gym. He used to be a quieter guy and now he’s really stepped up with his leadership.
Smith was asked about the lady Utes and their success and how it’s reminded everybody that Utah is a basketball town. Smith said that the rich tradition of the men’s program is not lost on him and he talked about attending Utah’s 1998 final four. He said they’ve made progress the first two years but they need to make more now to continue to get back to where it needs to be.
Smith claims that all of the new guys are a little bit better than the staff had even thought.
Specifically asked about him, Smith says he’s excited about Lawson Lovering’s trajectory.
Last year Utah’s 1s could play with anybody’s 1s, but their 2s really struggled with everybody else’s lineups. Losing Gabe Madsen to his injury last season is what really hurt the team.
Ben Carlson may have had the best summer of anybody in the Utah program. (My take: That’s the Burgess Effect)
Smith made mention that Worster’s team in practices is usually the one that finds a way to win.
Branden Carlson and Rollie Worster—
They’re joking with Carlsen that he set the record for most media days in a player's career.
Worster says the biggest thing this year is to put everything all together — aside from the injuries that they experienced last year.
They asked Carlsen about his tweet about his car not working… (My take: I’m sure it was meant to be funny, but at the same time, too — the last I heard unless it changed — Carlsen is doing pretty well for himself NIL wise after they made it sweet for him to come back for this year. The reason I even mention this is, he could have just said something behind the scenes)
Both players acknowledge that the lineup with Branden Carlson, and Lawson Lovering is a big advantage for Utah.
Carlson is looking forward to all the competition with the talented bugs in the conference. He said that’s another reason he came back is to improve his game against talent like that.
Craig Smith—
Smith is excited but he feels like everyone in the conference is excited. He feels like it’ll be a very strong year for the league.
The Runnin’ Utes are a lot bigger, deeper and more athletic. He likes their camaraderie. He also likes the three-point shooting. He feels like they have the experience this year that’s the type that truly matters.
Smith says Carlson really owns the gym. He used to be a quieter guy and now he’s really stepped up with his leadership.
Smith was asked about the lady Utes and their success and how it’s reminded everybody that Utah is a basketball town. Smith said that the rich tradition of the men’s program is not lost on him and he talked about attending Utah’s 1998 final four. He said they’ve made progress the first two years but they need to make more now to continue to get back to where it needs to be.
Smith claims that all of the new guys are a little bit better than the staff had even thought.
Specifically asked about him, Smith says he’s excited about Lawson Lovering’s trajectory.
Last year Utah’s 1s could play with anybody’s 1s, but their 2s really struggled with everybody else’s lineups. Losing Gabe Madsen to his injury last season is what really hurt the team.
Ben Carlson may have had the best summer of anybody in the Utah program. (My take: That’s the Burgess Effect)
Smith made mention that Worster’s team in practices is usually the one that finds a way to win.
Branden Carlson and Rollie Worster—
They’re joking with Carlsen that he set the record for most media days in a player's career.
Worster says the biggest thing this year is to put everything all together — aside from the injuries that they experienced last year.
They asked Carlsen about his tweet about his car not working… (My take: I’m sure it was meant to be funny, but at the same time, too — the last I heard unless it changed — Carlsen is doing pretty well for himself NIL wise after they made it sweet for him to come back for this year. The reason I even mention this is, he could have just said something behind the scenes)
Both players acknowledge that the lineup with Branden Carlson, and Lawson Lovering is a big advantage for Utah.
Carlson is looking forward to all the competition with the talented bugs in the conference. He said that’s another reason he came back is to improve his game against talent like that.
