Hey guys, I had the opportunity to go up to observe some of the Runnin' Utes practice today before they set out on their European trip. The team will spend 6 days in Barcelona and 4 days in Paris before returning to Salt Lake City. The whole team and the coaches were visibly excited for the trip, as many of them had never been outside the country. I want to post some of my thought and observations about the team, and then I'll throw a few quotes from Coach K and the players up for you.
First off, the team appears to be in great shape and many of the players are noticeably larger than last year. Tyler Rawson, David Collette, Parker Van Dyke, and Jayce Johnson in particular appear to have put in some serious work in the weight room over the offseason.
Rawson appears to have put a lot of work in on his shooting as well. I watched him hit a high percentage of his three pointers during shoot around. He also had some impressive alley oop dunks.
Chris Seeley and Christian Popoola both have some serious hops. Seeley is explosive and throw down a few jaw-dropping dunks in practice. Popoola had a really nifty reverse dunk as well that drew cheers from his teammates.
Justin Bibbins showed off his handles a little bit. He's really smooth and quick in his movement and we got to see a little bit of the passing that caught the coaches' eyes.
David Collette talked a little bit about his new teammates, Bibbins, Popoola and Tillman: "It's been a good experience so far, they're all good guys, they've been working hard. For the most part, none of them really seem like freshmen. They all seem like they have experience, you know, really mature, get their work done. It's been really fun getting to play with them."
Sedrick Barefield spoke about new teammate Justin Bibbins and how he's been performing so far: "Bibbins is a really good, vocal point guard. He likes to make his teammates better. He competes on the defensive end, he can make open shots and make nice pull-up shots. He adds a great dimension to our team, and the more point guards you have, the better. He's really helped a lot."
Justin Bibbins talked a little bit about what led him to choose Utah as a transfer destination: "When I asked for my release, I just wanted to go to a program where the coaches were involved with the players and just a different culture, and I found it here. The players are really nice, it's like a family here and that's what we pride ourselves on. That's what I really liked about Utah."
Bibbins also spoke a little bit about what he, as a player, brings to the program: "Definitely leadership since I've been in the system for a while and this is my last year. I'm more experienced, I can talk to the younger guys. I've got a feel for the game being slower, being more experienced."
Finally, Coach K talked a little bit about whether or not he anticipates that true freshmen Christian Popoola and Donnie Tillman will contribute this season: "I hope so! It's a steeper learning curve with the young kids, there's no doubt about it. They're working their butt off, they're as nice of kids, they want to get better, they're putting a lot of time in... I would assume both of them are going to play a big role in our success this year. I would hope so."
First off, the team appears to be in great shape and many of the players are noticeably larger than last year. Tyler Rawson, David Collette, Parker Van Dyke, and Jayce Johnson in particular appear to have put in some serious work in the weight room over the offseason.
Rawson appears to have put a lot of work in on his shooting as well. I watched him hit a high percentage of his three pointers during shoot around. He also had some impressive alley oop dunks.
Chris Seeley and Christian Popoola both have some serious hops. Seeley is explosive and throw down a few jaw-dropping dunks in practice. Popoola had a really nifty reverse dunk as well that drew cheers from his teammates.
Justin Bibbins showed off his handles a little bit. He's really smooth and quick in his movement and we got to see a little bit of the passing that caught the coaches' eyes.
David Collette talked a little bit about his new teammates, Bibbins, Popoola and Tillman: "It's been a good experience so far, they're all good guys, they've been working hard. For the most part, none of them really seem like freshmen. They all seem like they have experience, you know, really mature, get their work done. It's been really fun getting to play with them."
Sedrick Barefield spoke about new teammate Justin Bibbins and how he's been performing so far: "Bibbins is a really good, vocal point guard. He likes to make his teammates better. He competes on the defensive end, he can make open shots and make nice pull-up shots. He adds a great dimension to our team, and the more point guards you have, the better. He's really helped a lot."
Justin Bibbins talked a little bit about what led him to choose Utah as a transfer destination: "When I asked for my release, I just wanted to go to a program where the coaches were involved with the players and just a different culture, and I found it here. The players are really nice, it's like a family here and that's what we pride ourselves on. That's what I really liked about Utah."
Bibbins also spoke a little bit about what he, as a player, brings to the program: "Definitely leadership since I've been in the system for a while and this is my last year. I'm more experienced, I can talk to the younger guys. I've got a feel for the game being slower, being more experienced."
Finally, Coach K talked a little bit about whether or not he anticipates that true freshmen Christian Popoola and Donnie Tillman will contribute this season: "I hope so! It's a steeper learning curve with the young kids, there's no doubt about it. They're working their butt off, they're as nice of kids, they want to get better, they're putting a lot of time in... I would assume both of them are going to play a big role in our success this year. I would hope so."
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