An update from Travis DeCuire

citay said:

Always look forward to these chats with Travis. Beyond being a basketball coach, and talking in "coach-speak," he's a thoughtful articulate man. If experience is the greatest teacher, Travis has had a lifetime of it, both from basketball and from the simple act of being a black man in this society. That wisdom comes through every time he speaks. In another incarnation, he could be a motivational speaker.

At the same time, when it comes to Griz basketball, if you're hoping for nuggets of SPECIFIC information about the team, listening to him speak for an hour can be like rooting through your penny jar looking for the occasional quarter or dime. I come away with something, but yearn for more.

As for "something": "Bus'trip" schools like Gonzaga, Wyoming and Colorado State are afraid to play us...It takes a minimum number of games to quality for the Big Dance, and though we have a schedule, some of those games may not be played due to Covid so additional games may be scheduled in-season...The team is behind schedule as to fitness, and there have been some injuries--though he hopes everybody will be ready for the SC game next Saturday...Without a charter jet, like some teams have, air travel can be difficult, and you can't stop to eat while waiting for connecting flights. And if a player contracts Covid while on a trip, the protocol for dealing with that is not clear (something I never thought about.)

As for "yearned for more:" What's up with the eight-man rotation this year? Travis hinted he might have to lengthen the rotation due to Covid, but in another breath indicated it would be fight to get into that eight-man rotation. Which is it? And why is he set on an eight-man rotation in the first place? (This has always been one of my differences with him on coaching philosophy.) I wish one of the reporters had drilled down more on this.

He hints that there are some players on this team playing at a "high-level." And that while our great freshman class from last year has improved, there have been practises where the newcomers have outshone them. Okay. And yet in one hour, there was not to my memory one mention of one player on the entire team, by name. Could we get even ONE little tease of a player who has shown the most improvement, or a newcomer who has played so far better than expected? Anything? Nope, that's not Travis's style.

On this board there has been a lot of speculation about one thing: Shooting ability. When you lose your top three scorers, who accounted for 43 points per game of the 70.8 per that you scored during the year, you have to ask, "Where are the points going to come from? Who are the shooters? Who takes the last shot? That question was never answered--for one simple reason: It was never asked.

And of the reputed great shooters on this year's team, one is missing: Hunter Clarke. Okay, he's reported to be joining the team soon. But will it be too late for him to have a role on this team?

And finally, if every player automatically has a redshirt year, does this mean you will not be redshirting anybody? Or does a redshirt year still fit into the equation?

I know Travis is a thoughtful, deliberative, cautious guy, especially in front of the press. But it seems to me there were a lot of issues missed here, questions not asked. Hopefully, if the game is still on in this now "purple" Covid state, we'll find out soon enough, on Pac-12 TV, at 2.p. next Saturday.

I can hardly wait.

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citay said:

It is my understanding this is a “free” year for everyone and not a redshirt year. So regardless of how much Clarke plays or doesn’t play this year, he will be a freshman athletically in 21-22 and still have an available redshirt to use.

Because of this, I would expect that everyone that is healthy enough will at least get mop-up when available.

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citay said:

Always look forward to these chats with Travis. Beyond being a basketball coach, and talking in "coach-speak," he's a thoughtful articulate man. If experience is the greatest teacher, Travis has had a lifetime of it, both from basketball and from the simple act of being a black man in this society. That wisdom comes through every time he speaks. In another incarnation, he could be a motivational speaker.

At the same time, when it comes to Griz basketball, if you're hoping for nuggets of SPECIFIC information about the team, listening to him speak for an hour can be like rooting through your penny jar looking for the occasional quarter or dime. I come away with something, but yearn for more.

As for "something": "Bus'trip" schools like Gonzaga, Wyoming and Colorado State are afraid to play us...It takes a minimum number of games to quality for the Big Dance, and though we have a schedule, some of those games may not be played due to Covid so additional games may be scheduled in-season...The team is behind schedule as to fitness, and there have been some injuries--though he hopes everybody will be ready for the SC game next Saturday...Without a charter jet, like some teams have, air travel can be difficult, and you can't stop to eat while waiting for connecting flights. And if a player contracts Covid while on a trip, the protocol for dealing with that is not clear (something I never thought about.)

As for "yearned for more:" What's up with the eight-man rotation this year? Travis hinted he might have to lengthen the rotation due to Covid, but in another breath indicated it would be fight to get into that eight-man rotation. Which is it? And why is he set on an eight-man rotation in the first place? (This has always been one of my differences with him on coaching philosophy.) I wish one of the reporters had drilled down more on this.

He hints that there are some players on this team playing at a "high-level." And that while our great freshman class from last year has improved, there have been practises where the newcomers have outshone them. Okay. And yet in one hour, there was not to my memory one mention of one player on the entire team, by name. Could we get even ONE little tease of a player who has shown the most improvement, or a newcomer who has played so far better than expected? Anything? Nope, that's not Travis's style.

On this board there has been a lot of speculation about one thing: Shooting ability. When you lose your top three scorers, who accounted for 43 points per game of the 70.8 per that you scored during the year, you have to ask, "Where are the points going to come from? Who are the shooters? Who takes the last shot? That question was never answered--for one simple reason: It was never asked.

And of the reputed great shooters on this year's team, one is missing: Hunter Clarke. Okay, he's reported to be joining the team soon. But will it be too late for him to have a role on this team?

And finally, if every player automatically has a redshirt year, does this mean you will not be redshirting anybody? Or does a redshirt year still fit into the equation?

I know Travis is a thoughtful, deliberative, cautious guy, especially in front of the press. But it seems to me there were a lot of issues missed here, questions not asked. Hopefully, if the game is still on in this now "purple" Covid state, we'll find out soon enough, on Pac-12 TV, at 2.p. next Saturday.

I can hardly wait.

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GrizSteve said:

Gonzaga is afraid to play us? Have we come within 30 points of them in the last 20 years?

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maroonandsilver said:

GrizSteve said:

Gonzaga is afraid to play us? Have we come within 30 points of them in the last 20 years?

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Griz lost by 3 in Spokane in2015.

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AZGrizFan said:

maroonandsilver said:

Griz lost by 3 in Spokane in2015.

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And were up by 1 with 59 seconds to play against the #20 team in the land. They haven’t played us since.

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Mousegriz said:

AZGrizFan said:

And were up by 1 with 59 seconds to play against the #20 team in the land. They haven’t played us since.

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Another in a long line of ifs and butts games for Griz basketball over the years. The upset wins can be counted on one hand......the coulda mighta shoulda almostas on both hands and feet. Even the most famous game in program history back in 1975. Hope they can get one of the 4 this year and glad Gonzaga isn't on the schedule.

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