Wes Miller 10-24 Presser
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00:00 No, let's get right to it.
00:07 Walk.
00:08 Sorry?
00:09 Walk.
00:10 Walk?
00:11 Oh yeah, walking down before we all got started.
00:15 Yo, walking through on the court.
00:17 I was like, walking?
00:18 What house do you want me to get here?
00:19 [Laughter]
00:22 I was walking.
00:23 We were walking through some stuff as a staff on the court.
00:26 What's that?
00:27 Segway, yeah.
00:28 Hoverboard.
00:29 Yeah, they got all kinds of stuff now.
00:30 I just walk places generally.
00:33 Walk or drive, the two things.
00:35 Two weeks away, are you in panic mode that it's this close?
00:43 Or are you feeling pretty good about where things are?
00:47 Certainly not in panic mode.
00:49 Coaches are always in panic mode.
00:51 [Laughter]
00:53 I think the better term to describe what we're doing is just a sense of urgency.
00:57 I think we have a sense of urgency.
01:00 We probably always have a sense of urgency.
01:02 I at least like to think that.
01:04 But it does get a little heightened as you get a little closer.
01:10 On the court, there's the things that -- the foundational stuff, your values.
01:17 Obviously, those are things outside of X and Os.
01:19 But when you get to the X and Os,
01:21 there's the foundational values of how we're trying to play offense,
01:24 the things that we really value there,
01:26 how we're trying to play defense, the things we value there.
01:29 And you're trying to refine those things every single day throughout the
01:33 preseason and never lose sight of those things.
01:36 But as you get closer to games, some of those situational things
01:41 or some of those bells and whistles that you just have to have to play a game,
01:45 they become -- honestly, every year you go, man, we don't have this in
01:49 and we don't have that in.
01:50 And we haven't addressed enough out-of-bounds plays.
01:53 And maybe we haven't guarded certain actions we know we'll face early in the
01:58 year.
01:59 So the little things start creeping up on you,
02:01 and you do feel that the season's getting closer.
02:03 But we do a really good job of preparing here as a staff.
02:07 And so even though we're having a little bit of that,
02:09 I think we planned well this preseason.
02:11 And from a structural standpoint, we're pretty far along --
02:14 or as far along as we should be to this stage.
02:18 [Inaudible]
02:33 You know, I think, as I said in Kansas City last week,
02:39 I think we're at a very interesting inflection point with this second-time
02:44 transfer process.
02:47 And I think the NCAA has a real opportunity to get this right.
02:51 You know, and I'm going to hope and have faith that they do.
02:57 And, you know, in the meantime,
03:00 we're going to try to do everything we can within laws and rules to help our
03:05 guys get on the basketball court because they should be.
03:11 They were led to believe they would be if they met guidelines and standards
03:15 which they've met, right?
03:17 And so the process is not over.
03:20 We're going to trust that this process --
03:23 I'm going to have faith that the NCAA is going to use this as an opportunity
03:26 to do the right thing.
03:27 And if it's important to the membership --
03:32 you know, we all are the NCAA as a membership.
03:35 To find a way to restrict two-time transfers,
03:38 then we should find a way to do that collectively,
03:41 regardless of what some coach does or doesn't think.
03:44 But we have to make sure that that process is clear, that it's concise,
03:50 that it's not arbitrary.
03:52 And I hope that the NCAA doesn't penalize young people for a process that
04:01 seems very difficult and confusing.
04:04 Again, at 40 years old, if -- been through quite a bit as a leader,
04:10 at least in this field, if I have a very,
04:14 very difficult time understanding this process
04:16 and I learn something new every day,
04:18 well, life decisions were made back in the spring based on a very specific set
04:23 of guidelines.
04:24 Imagine what it's like for a young person.
04:26 And my biggest concern right now is Aziz and Jameel's mental well-being.
04:34 And that's not a line to try to help them get a waiver, okay?
04:38 Like, this is very, very, very, very difficult.
04:43 They don't understand.
04:45 They don't understand why they can't play.
04:47 Like, imagine you made a life decision under the belief that you would be able
04:52 to play basketball because of what you read and what people that were supposed
04:57 to -- experts that you consulted with told you that if you went through this
05:02 process based on the things in your life, you're going to be able to play.
05:05 When you transfer, you made life decisions to do that.
05:09 And then imagine now they can't participate in our scrimmages.
05:13 Like, we hadn't gotten to games yet.
05:15 And they are confused.
05:16 And that's very, very difficult on so many different levels.
05:21 It's very confusing and difficult for them.
05:23 And that's my number one concern.
05:25 And then obviously for our team to get them on the court because it has an
05:29 effect on so many levels.
05:31 So, again, at this point, we're going through the process.
05:35 I have faith that the NCAA is supposed to be about student athletes
05:41 and student athlete well-being.
05:43 That's what the organization is in place for.
05:46 I have faith they're going to look at what's been going on here and look at
05:50 this process and realize that it needs to get cleaned up and be a little bit
05:53 more streamlined or maybe communicate the process a little better.
05:59 And let's hope they don't penalize or use young people as examples.
06:03 And I have faith that won't happen.
06:05 I have faith that they'll do the right thing.
06:07 Have appeals been submitted?
06:09 And do you have any better understanding of the timeline now than last time?
06:14 Yeah, we've submitted appeals.
06:16 I don't have a timeline because they don't give you a very specific timeline
06:21 other than they'll move quickly.
06:24 And, you know, we hope to hear back.
06:27 We hope to hear some good news soon so that, you know, number one,
06:30 Aziz and Jameel can just settle in and focus on the things that are important
06:35 for a day-to-day college student and not all this other junk.
06:39 And then, obviously, it helps us prepare with our team.
06:42 Aziz and Jameel are obviously competent, but if they were not,
06:46 how much of a pay renewal would that be?
06:51 Well, again, I'm not going to think about them not being eligible because I
06:55 don't think that's fair to them.
06:58 It would be an injustice for them not to be eligible, in my opinion.
07:01 So we're not even going to talk about that.
07:03 But having Vic and Odie back is extremely valuable to this club.
07:09 I mean, you know, two guys that had a ton of success the last two years
07:14 in our program, but even more importantly,
07:16 they've had success playing on the court together.
07:18 They've been through things together.
07:19 So they both improved.
07:21 They both had the kind of off seasons that we expect,
07:24 to the standard that we expect here.
07:26 And I think they're both poised to have really good years.
07:30 And the continuity in the program, it does mean so much, you know,
07:35 that they've done it together, they've been through things together,
07:37 they know how we do things.
07:38 I mean, I could go on and on and on about how important continuity is.
07:41 And you have continuity with the right kind of people.
07:44 It's really good for the program and really good for this year's team,
07:48 to have that with Odie and Vic.
07:51 [Inaudible]
08:06 Yeah, we're starting to try to become a basketball team, right?
08:10 And I think what's been important from a coaching perspective is to try
08:17 to create some real challenge or, you know,
08:21 some real adversity in the preseason.
08:23 So the first time that we go through something
08:25 or have to fight through something as a group isn't in a real game.
08:28 Like you want your preseason to have some moments
08:31 that really challenge the group and force the group to have to figure out
08:35 how to overcome those challenges together.
08:38 So we've, you know, put our foot on the gas a little bit as a coaching staff.
08:42 Certainly in my seat, I've been much more divisive
08:46 and challenging in our last week and a half of practice.
08:49 And I think it's the right time to do that.
08:51 You know, we have a group that's mature.
08:55 We have a group that's unselfish and wants to be good.
08:57 But wanting to do those things is one thing.
09:00 Figuring out and learning how to do them together is something else.
09:03 And we've been really pushing the gas a little bit here the last week
09:07 and a half.
09:08 Our tone's been strong with this team.
09:10 [Inaudible]
09:12 You know, it's active in the program, practice-wise, all that stuff.
09:16 Obviously, you haven't been able to participate in scrimmages,
09:18 but do they feel like they'll be ready to roll, able to get out there
09:22 and play the normal amount of minutes that they would normally play
09:25 once they get here?
09:26 Yes, the only thing they haven't participated in
09:29 is any competition against another opponent.
09:34 And you only get two of those in the preseason.
09:37 We've had one; we'll have another one this weekend.
09:39 But the secret thing that they -- whatever.
09:43 But there's actually some good to that, right?
09:46 Like there's a reason why I don't talk about it,
09:48 because you agree with another coach that you're not going to talk about it.
09:52 Coaches approach them very, very differently.
09:55 And I can tell you I approach one differently than the other
09:59 and it has nothing to do with the opponent.
10:01 So, to try to analyze based on scores and box scores and stuff,
10:06 we don't approach it like a game.
10:08 It would be silly to have media and other people analyze it like a game,
10:13 because we're using it as a glorified practice.
10:16 But anyway, those two events,
10:20 if they're not eligible to compete in games,
10:23 they're not eligible to compete in those closed-door scrimmages.
10:25 So, outside of those two dates in our preseason,
10:28 they're cleared to participate in everything else that we do.
10:32 So, yes, they should be as good a condition as anybody on our team.
10:36 You're replacing four of your top five scorers from last year.
10:41 How do you feel like this team offensively is stacking up to deal with that,
10:46 especially the guards and wings that are, you know,
10:49 asked to fill Dave and Landers and Sadie's kind of production from last year?
10:56 Yeah, you know, the makeup of the team is so much different
11:00 that the direct comparisons probably are a waste of my time and energy,
11:06 and unfair, right?
11:09 I think our style of play with this group is really evolving.
11:13 I wouldn't say totally changing,
11:15 because the foundational things have mattered.
11:17 But it's really evolving.
11:19 We're playing significantly faster, right?
11:22 I mean, significantly faster.
11:24 We have real depth, and you hope that continues,
11:27 but real depth, we're playing significantly faster.
11:30 We're in the open court and advantage situations more consistently.
11:35 We're really emphasizing ball movement with this group.
11:38 And, you know, if you thought about our team this time last year, you know,
11:42 you had two guys, like Dave being number one.
11:45 I mean, some of your best offense in the half court was, like,
11:50 get Dave the ball where he's comfortable and get the heck out of his way.
11:53 I mean, he was an elite ball screen player,
11:57 but he was an elite isolation player.
12:00 I mean, as good as we had in college basketball under 6'2" last year.
12:04 I mean, you know, we don't have that kind of a guy.
12:09 And that's not a knock on anybody,
12:12 but we don't have somebody that has those strengths.
12:16 So we're trying to generate offense by creating more advantages
12:20 and more ball and player movement,
12:22 more advantages in the open court.
12:24 We focused a lot more this year on executing offensive sets.
12:29 And, again, Landers Nolle had some elite skills that he could kind of make
12:34 some things happen with his skill and size when there wasn't a lot there.
12:39 And then, obviously, Jeremiah was such a threat beyond the three-point line,
12:43 and every team was so worried about that.
12:45 You know, our makeup of our best offensive players a year ago
12:50 was different than the makeup of this group of offensive players.
12:53 So we're approaching it differently.
12:55 So to compare would be a little unfair.
12:58 And the other thing, it's going to be a little offensive process, Chad,
13:02 with this team, because, quite frankly, we've had Dave for a year and some change.
13:07 So we kind of knew, like, where do you make sure Dave has the ball?
13:12 And where is his role?
13:13 You knew that going into the year, so we could work on that from day one.
13:17 We had Jeremiah for a year, so we kind of knew exactly the right places
13:21 that we thought he should be used.
13:22 We're still kind of figuring that out with this group.
13:24 And certainly you learn a lot more when you play against somebody else
13:28 than when you play against yourselves in practice.
13:31 So we're learning a lot against ourselves, but we jumped up and scrimmaged
13:34 somebody else, and you go, oh, well, that's a little different
13:36 against a different style of defense, or a different style of defense
13:40 that isn't the scout team.
13:43 So it's going to be a little bit of a process,
13:46 but I think there's some trends with this team that will be much different
13:49 than the last, and that doesn't say anything good, bad, or indifferent.
13:51 I mean, we were really explosive at times last year.
13:54 So I was proud of who we became as an offensive team.
13:58 You mentioned the fans were really going to like this exchange,
14:01 but you compared him to Dave occasionally.
14:04 I know it's not Dave yet, but his work ethic and things like that.
14:09 I was like, how did I compare him to Dave?
14:11 I was trying to remember that.
14:12 Yeah, just coming in early.
14:16 Listen, you guys say that I'm comparing a freshman to Dave.
14:21 Dave's going to FaceTime me before I leave this press conference asking me
14:24 I can't compare any freshman to him.
14:29 No, Dave to me is the standard for how you approach the work you do
14:35 outside of practice in this program.
14:38 He set the standard for what that looks like,
14:40 but what you do when you're not practicing.
14:43 And I can't give Gisle the credit that he's at that level,
14:48 but for somebody his age, he's impressed me with his approach on the things
14:54 he's doing, not just when practice is going on.
14:58 And that bodes well for him to have a good year.
15:01 He's a freshman, I mean, he's a freshman that's playing point guard,
15:05 so he's had some bad days, guys.
15:08 There's just no way around that.
15:10 And I've actually been pleased that we've gone through some difficult days on
15:14 the court with him because you know it's going to happen,
15:16 so let's deal with it now.
15:18 But I think that it's been challenging for him at times to try to learn a new
15:24 system that's at a new level.
15:27 And we're also playing extremely fast, and we're pressuring the basketball.
15:31 There's a lot for him right now.
15:34 But because of his mindset, if he continues to have the same mindset,
15:38 he's going to be fine, and he's going to have a good freshman year.
15:42 Davion Thomas, you know, you talk about Gisle a lot because, you know,
15:47 deservingly so, but Davion Thomas has been really solid thus far at point guard.
15:51 I think any of our players would say that,
15:54 and I think our coaching staff would say that,
15:57 that he might not have had the biggest name in recruiting coming from junior
15:59 college, but he's been pretty dang good so far.
16:02 But he's going to have some adjustment as well,
16:04 and we're trying to make sure they go through some of that now,
16:07 not just when games start.
16:09 You mentioned you were testing him.
16:11 I would say how did you practice others' programs, others' offerings?
16:19 You know, I just believe in what you just said.
16:24 I mean, I believe when, you know, the talk about player development,
16:29 we care a lot about that here.
16:31 We care a lot about team development.
16:33 When you're around a bunch of other people that have the same goals and
16:37 mindset that you do, and they have talent, you know, they want to be great.
16:42 You put all that into the same environment every day, you know,
16:46 rising tides float all boats type of thing.
16:48 I think that's the idea of it.
16:51 Trying to build a great culture.
16:54 I think we've taken a lot of steps there.
16:56 Trying to get the right people to fit into that,
16:58 and all of us help elevate each other.
17:01 That's the idea.
17:02 That's where real growth happens.
17:04 [inaudible]
17:06 Iron sharpens iron, referencing my buddy.
17:09 [inaudible]
17:22 I just wanted your thoughts on that.
17:24 Like that change or --
17:28 Yeah, so we had our commissioner of officials,
17:31 I think he's been going around everywhere in the league,
17:35 came by here and showed us some film of that rule change specifically.
17:40 Talked about all the rule changes, but showed us some film of that.
17:43 You know, we've been hearing about it.
17:45 I've read about it.
17:46 You know, listening to Curtis talk about it was impactful.
17:53 And it was really impactful for him to talk to our team.
17:55 So, that's it.
17:57 It's going to be a different game this year.
18:01 You're going to have a really hard time drawing charges.
18:04 That's just what it is.
18:07 I think you're going to have to be set --
18:08 it's almost like you're going to have to be a statue before somebody even
18:11 thinks about going into their shooting motion.
18:14 And that's not the actual rule,
18:16 but I think that's the best way to understand it.
18:18 I mean, it's going to be really hard to draw a charge.
18:20 So, you've got to adjust some of your teaching and some of your habits.
18:24 And we've been doing that.
18:26 And then I think we've tried to do a nice job of emphasizing that in practice
18:30 and live play.
18:32 Does anyone have more questions?
18:35 [inaudible]
18:40 Scott, if you can ask a question to make me laugh out loud at a press
18:43 conference, you did good today.
18:48 It wasn't just Vic.
18:50 I think Vic and Odie -- who else did we take with us?
18:54 And John Newman, gosh, senior moment.
18:57 But Vic and Odie and John Newman, they had a blast last week.
19:01 And I think, you know, first off, it reminds you as a coach,
19:06 we're still around young people every day.
19:08 And that was fun for me to watch them have fun.
19:11 It makes me feel young.
19:13 But the other thing is it's a credit to the job the Big 12 does.
19:17 I mean, it was first class.
19:19 It was first class, and they did a great job with our guys
19:23 and letting the players have a really neat experience.
19:25 So, that was really cool.
19:28 But as fun as you guys saw them have in media day,
19:31 we got on the plane to fly back to practice.
19:33 We had to get back to practice that night.
19:36 And Victor was sitting right across from me,
19:39 and he told me he was going to try to distract me the whole flight
19:42 so that I couldn't write practice.
19:45 And he was so dang tired from all the fun you saw him have.
19:48 And that distraction lasted about three and a half minutes,
19:51 and I got a great practice written.
19:52 So, as fun as he was having,
19:54 he was tired as could be when he got on that airplane.
19:57 Madeline, you mentioned pressure a minute ago.
20:01 Haven't really been able to press the way that you wanted to
20:05 your first two years here.
20:07 Do you think this team is more suited to that,
20:10 and will we see maybe a little bit more of that?
20:13 Yeah, we've certainly played with it a little bit.
20:17 I thought last year, you know,
20:20 when I was evaluating the year at the end of the season,
20:23 I thought we spent a little too much time on it early,
20:26 and we had John's injury occur,
20:29 that we probably weren't ready to press like that.
20:33 We'd spent quite a bit of time in our preseason.
20:35 Now the hindsight's 20/20, and if John would have been healthy,
20:38 I think that team could have pressed a lot more.
20:41 So, I do think we'll evolve to that.
20:44 We have some stuff in, and we've worked at it a little bit,
20:47 but we haven't spent as much time on it yet,
20:49 just because I don't want to make the same error that we might have made a year ago.
20:54 But the things that we do defensively,
20:57 the things like our defensive principles and our full and half-court man-to-man,
21:02 if you really invest in those, it's actually pretty easy to start pressing,
21:08 because a lot of the same principles and habits apply,
21:11 even though some of the structure changes.
21:14 [BLANK_AUDIO]