Richard Pitino:
Pitino opened that this season has been difficult, and it’s tough as a coach since obviously you want to say, “no excuses”, however there have been a few setbacks (Lynch suspension, Coffey injury, Dupree injury) that have made this season tough. The Gophers then had a long stretch of around two weeks where they were on the road as well. Coach indicated this week being home and not having any games has helped them get back to normal a bit. Dupee (McBrayer) and Amir (Coffey) are still not practicing fully. “You have to play about as close to perfect when you are undermanned like we are.”
Sid questioned the team for next year and what Richard thinks about the team. While Pitino said he hasn’t thought about next year much, he believes that frontcourt depth will be much better next season. Getting Eric Curry back will be a help. “He (Eric) looks great in his recovery." Richard thinks that he could maybe player this year, but they won’t do that since they don’t want to lose the eligibility.
“Bakary (Konate) and Gaston (Diedhou) have their limits offensively, so when you’re down Amir (Coffey) and Reggie (Lynch) it’s tough to figure out where the scoring will come from. Jordan Murphy is playing a bit out of position since we went small against Northwestern, so this week has helped him get acclimated.”
The Gophers still have a scholarship available for the 2018 class, and Richard said that they are still recruiting. Mentioned Dre Mathieu and Jordan Murphy as two players that they got in the spring.
Matz Stockman is a transfer that has sat out this year and will be playing for Minnesota next year. While Coach wants to focus on the players this year that are currently playing, said that Stockman has terrific length and runs the court very well. He was also complimentary of his passing.
PJ Fleck:
“Top 25 class according to ESPN, got everyone signed in December so now we had the whole month of January to recruit the 2019 class.”
Gophers are still recruiting PWO’s (preferred walk-on’s) for this 2018 season.
PJ was extremely complimentary of Mo Linguist, with him moving on to Texas A&M. “He is from Texas, and it’s about 45 minutes from his home. He just had a baby. I want my coaches to continue to move on. I’m going to hire elite coaches that teams are going to want. I like to promote my coaches and want them to continue to grow. I want them to be with us as long as they can, but when very unique opportunities come along, I’m there to support them.”
A few players for the 2018 class have already enrolled for this year. The team is in their winter conditioning program and making their kids better athletes. They are also doing some team-bonding activities that are led by players.
The new Gophers Athletes Village is about 95% finished, and the players are all moved in and utilizing the facility. PJ called it “one of the best facilities in the country.” Gophers held a Junior Day yesterday where recruits were able to tour the new facility.
Antoine Winfield and Demetrius Douglas both had shortened seasons due to 2017 injuries. Fleck said they are both getting medical redshirts and gain another year of eligibility. “I’m very proud of those two; they are going to be difference makers. We have Demetrius, Tyler Johnson, and Chris Bell, so we are starting to add young playmakers on offense.”
Some players have been moved positions in the offseason (he didn’t list names specifically) but said that more players will be moved in the spring pending depth issues.
Tanner Morgan, Chris Bell, Demetrius Douglas, Malcolm Robinson, and Esezi Otomewo were players that Fleck specifically listed by name as players redshirted in 2017 that will be impact players in the future.
The Gophers will use the February signing day to announce their PWO signings. February is a dead period, so the coaches will get away for a bit to refresh themselves, and then get back to recruiting/preparing for spring practice.
Pitino opened that this season has been difficult, and it’s tough as a coach since obviously you want to say, “no excuses”, however there have been a few setbacks (Lynch suspension, Coffey injury, Dupree injury) that have made this season tough. The Gophers then had a long stretch of around two weeks where they were on the road as well. Coach indicated this week being home and not having any games has helped them get back to normal a bit. Dupee (McBrayer) and Amir (Coffey) are still not practicing fully. “You have to play about as close to perfect when you are undermanned like we are.”
Sid questioned the team for next year and what Richard thinks about the team. While Pitino said he hasn’t thought about next year much, he believes that frontcourt depth will be much better next season. Getting Eric Curry back will be a help. “He (Eric) looks great in his recovery." Richard thinks that he could maybe player this year, but they won’t do that since they don’t want to lose the eligibility.
“Bakary (Konate) and Gaston (Diedhou) have their limits offensively, so when you’re down Amir (Coffey) and Reggie (Lynch) it’s tough to figure out where the scoring will come from. Jordan Murphy is playing a bit out of position since we went small against Northwestern, so this week has helped him get acclimated.”
The Gophers still have a scholarship available for the 2018 class, and Richard said that they are still recruiting. Mentioned Dre Mathieu and Jordan Murphy as two players that they got in the spring.
Matz Stockman is a transfer that has sat out this year and will be playing for Minnesota next year. While Coach wants to focus on the players this year that are currently playing, said that Stockman has terrific length and runs the court very well. He was also complimentary of his passing.
PJ Fleck:
“Top 25 class according to ESPN, got everyone signed in December so now we had the whole month of January to recruit the 2019 class.”
Gophers are still recruiting PWO’s (preferred walk-on’s) for this 2018 season.
PJ was extremely complimentary of Mo Linguist, with him moving on to Texas A&M. “He is from Texas, and it’s about 45 minutes from his home. He just had a baby. I want my coaches to continue to move on. I’m going to hire elite coaches that teams are going to want. I like to promote my coaches and want them to continue to grow. I want them to be with us as long as they can, but when very unique opportunities come along, I’m there to support them.”
A few players for the 2018 class have already enrolled for this year. The team is in their winter conditioning program and making their kids better athletes. They are also doing some team-bonding activities that are led by players.
The new Gophers Athletes Village is about 95% finished, and the players are all moved in and utilizing the facility. PJ called it “one of the best facilities in the country.” Gophers held a Junior Day yesterday where recruits were able to tour the new facility.
Antoine Winfield and Demetrius Douglas both had shortened seasons due to 2017 injuries. Fleck said they are both getting medical redshirts and gain another year of eligibility. “I’m very proud of those two; they are going to be difference makers. We have Demetrius, Tyler Johnson, and Chris Bell, so we are starting to add young playmakers on offense.”
Some players have been moved positions in the offseason (he didn’t list names specifically) but said that more players will be moved in the spring pending depth issues.
Tanner Morgan, Chris Bell, Demetrius Douglas, Malcolm Robinson, and Esezi Otomewo were players that Fleck specifically listed by name as players redshirted in 2017 that will be impact players in the future.
The Gophers will use the February signing day to announce their PWO signings. February is a dead period, so the coaches will get away for a bit to refresh themselves, and then get back to recruiting/preparing for spring practice.
