Bruce Weber has been here before.
Well, not here, with a Zoom background of fans rushing the court at Bramlage Coliseum and talking about a K-State team that's still waiting on a full schedule in the middle of October.
But inside the Ice Family Basketball Center, where Weber held the first practice of the season on Wednesday with eight new scholarship players, there is still a comfort zone.
Day Ones #KStateMBB x EMAW pic.twitter.com/FI7S7u83WQ
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"One other time (during my time) at Illinois, we had a large group of freshmen or new players. We actually had more freshmen that year and we had to deal with that," Weber said. "You saw with football last week, Coach [Klieman] talking about a freshman quarterback throwing to a freshman running back being blocked by a freshman. They've been able to step up."
Across sports and across the decades, the challenge facing K-State Basketball in 2020 is not a new one: Take a group of players who just arrived on campus and mold them into a team.
It certainly isn't a new challenge for Weber.
His 2007 Illinois team brought the nation's No. 28 recruiting class to Champaign, with five freshmen on the roster. The next four seasons at Illinois included a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances and top-five finishes in the Big Ten. Weber is just as optimistic about this group, which includes a consensus Top 25 recruiting class.
"Our young new players are talented. They just are going to have a lot to learn, as we move forward in practice," he said. "We're going to need at least two of them, maybe three, to really step up and give us major production if we're going to be successful."
With their first practice out of the way, the Wildcats are still in the one-day-at-a-time business, but there are a few things Weber knows for sure about his team as the calendar hits mid-October.
The Wildcats will open the season in Manhattan on November 25 and 27 as they face Drake and Colorado in the Little Apple Classic in a tournament that replaces the Cayman Islands Classic on the team's original schedule.
Colorado was a projected 8-seed by several media outlets in last season's canceled NCAA Tournament, and this year's matchup between the former conference rivals will be the first since the Buffs left the conference in 2011. Drake won 20 games a season ago and returns the Missouri Valley Conference leader in assists (Roman Penn).
The Little Apple Classic provides the Wildcats with a finish line to an offseason that began all the way back in March.
"The scheduling has been really, really difficult. You know, these last two weeks, there are so many unknown questions for everybody," Weber said. "Other leagues are going to have other testing protocols. So, hopefully, it all works out. We want to get as many games as possible."
Injuries have also provided clarity – thought not the kind K-State would have hoped for – to the next few weeks, as freshman Luke Kasubke recovers from foot surgery over the summer.
Weber put his recovery timeline at "more months than weeks" and stressed that the other four members of the freshman class will need to step up.
"They all have things to learn," Weber said. "But I think all four of those guys, and then hopefully we get Luke back, they're all going to be able to contribute as we move forward."
Just getting his team to Manhattan was a priority for Weber, with several Canadian players (Kaosi Ezeagu and Rudi Williams) dealing with restrictions on international travel.
Weber said that most players on the team who had to deal with COVID-19 precautions finished their quarantine period over the summer.
The real test has been the impact on campus life for a group of eight players who are new to Manhattan and have to avoid some of the traditional aspects of college life.
"I don't know what to do with them on weekends, to be honest," Weber said. "Normally we would take them to the movies, we would do paintball, bowling and we do team building activities. And, right now, it's hard to do that, because you could put your team in jeopardy."
It will be six weeks before his starters take the floor against Drake, but Weber named both Mike McGuirl and DaJuan Gordon as two players who will be key to improvement on offense.
Listen.
— K-State Men's Basketball (@KStateMBB) October 15, 2020
Learn.
Improve. #KStateMBB x EMAW pic.twitter.com/44Fm4oZ6UO
"I think more than anything we will probably be balanced (in scoring)," Weber said. "If we can get one or two guys to step up, be really consistent and get us 15 or 18 points every other game, that would help."
An emphasis on improving K-State's size in recruiting should lend itself to a bounce-back season on defense, where Weber has flourished as a head coach throughout his career.
Last season, the Wildcats saw their defensive efficiency drop from ninth in the country to 69th. K-State still led the Big 12 in steals, with Gordon finishing third on the team.
Add in a seven-footer in Davion Bradford and the 6-foot-10 Ezeagu and it's reasonable to expect the Wildcats to improve their block totals and presence in the paint.
"I hope it starts with our older guys," Weber said. "I think they can give us points. I hope we have a little more inside presence with Kaosi, Davion, Carlton (Linguard) and throwing the ball more in the post."
The Link Lonk
October 15, 2020 at 06:01PM
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