Some key takeaways from Ben Johnson's press conference on Thursday:
- Guys are taking finals, so it's a dead period right now until the first week in June. Expects the new guys to move around June 5th.
- Battle is obviously going to start next season, but after that it will be four new guys. Ihnen and Fox haven't really done contact during 5-on-5. Don't look at this summer as "who is starting" but like "who we have." Get a feel for what they can do and what they can't do and get familiar with the system.
- On Dawson Garcia: Has been talking to him since he was a freshman at Prior Lake. Talked about their system and style once he entered the portal and how he can fit. He's excited to be back and play in front of family and friends. He watched us a little bit and knows some of the players on our team.
- On Garcia's waiver: You never know (on optimism he'll get it). Has some legitimate, hard-hitting stuff that went on. But you never know with waivers. Hopefully it turns out the right way for him.
- More on Garcia: We're excited to get a guy with that talent level. He just wants to come in here and work. He know it will be a collective effort and wants to be a part of that.
- On Garcia's relationship with Battle: They go way back. He also knows Parker and Isaiah. It felt right for him. I feel like the energy will be heightened. With Parker and Isaiah back, we've got depth. When we go up and down we'll have ten high-caliber bodies.
- On Pharrell Payne: All the freshmen will have the benefit of learning from older guys. I want to throw them into the fire a bit as well. They have great examples of how to get better. I like that these freshmen are really mature. They will use those older guys to set them up for a good summer.
- On three scholarships remaining: Probably won't use all of them. It's hard with the portal being the way it is. To even play nine guys right now is hard and we have 10. Every coach wants to have depth, but you don't want to sacrifice players that you really like. We want them to grow and the best way to do that is with playing time. Has to be the right transfers to add to the roster. Doesn't want to hinder any young guys. I don't think we will go up to 13. I think we'll feel it out a little bit.
- On the portal: I look at it every five minutes, it's a sickness. It's winding down, but I'm still going through withdrawals because I'm used to the constant updates. Our whole staff is alert.
- On potential portal additions: I feel pretty good about our players right now. If we could add depth, maybe a combo (guard) piece, I might lean that way. But, I really like our roster. We'll see if there is a combo that can help Ta'lon out a little bit. I also want to get Jaden Henley some looks at the one with his size and versatility.
- On the addition of Ta'lon: Huge. We targeted him right away after watching his film because he fits everything we need. When you talk to him, he's everything you want in a lead guard. He's from Detroit, so he's got Big Ten roots. He played on a Morehead State team this year that was really good. He's got a great assist to turnover but can score. It was a total home run.
- On recruiting during the NIL era: It's an added challenge. We try to work intelligently around that issue. If a kid asks about a large NIL deal right away, we probably move on. We have got to figure out a way to get really good players even though we don't have a lot of interest in offering a kid a crazy amount of money.
