Fantastic interview Troy! Thank you for this.
The most interesting thing I learned is that Tara herself does not have the point guard position figured out yet. That she suggested it "might be by committee" and that "everyone has to work on their handle." She volunteered even before you asked that the point guard position was the only question mark, and when you followed up, she listed Wilson, Hamilton, Van Gytenbeek, and Lacie. I also found it interesting that she noted that Hamilton was learning the system "and it is a lot to take in." She did NOT mention Jones in this context.
Also interesting is that she noted how difficult it will be for freshmen to compete for playing time with a national championship team that is returning nearly all of its starters. It sounded to me as if she was reducing expectations for a lot of freshman contributions.
She seemed quite high on Jones and noted what we all saw--that she has made her three point shot more consistent. And it sounded like a big vote of confidence in Brink.
I hesitate to read much into the fact that there were some players she did not talk about at all, since that might have depended on your questions and the short amount of time. But I do wish she had comment on Emma-Nnopu and Belibi, since they both seemed so much improved to my eye.
The most interesting thing I learned is that Tara herself does not have the point guard position figured out yet. That she suggested it "might be by committee" and that "everyone has to work on their handle." She volunteered even before you asked that the point guard position was the only question mark, and when you followed up, she listed Wilson, Hamilton, Van Gytenbeek, and Lacie. I also found it interesting that she noted that Hamilton was learning the system "and it is a lot to take in." She did NOT mention Jones in this context.
Also interesting is that she noted how difficult it will be for freshmen to compete for playing time with a national championship team that is returning nearly all of its starters. It sounded to me as if she was reducing expectations for a lot of freshman contributions.
She seemed quite high on Jones and noted what we all saw--that she has made her three point shot more consistent. And it sounded like a big vote of confidence in Brink.
I hesitate to read much into the fact that there were some players she did not talk about at all, since that might have depended on your questions and the short amount of time. But I do wish she had comment on Emma-Nnopu and Belibi, since they both seemed so much improved to my eye.