With half of his Northwestern roster newcomers, coach Chris Collins is soliciting the help of his upperclassmen to mentor them — even if it means the newbies might grab some of their playing time.
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The Wildcats finished 14-19 last season and 6-12 in the Big Ten, so Collins is not about to settle for the status quo. The second-year coach is confident his veteran corps will put the welfare of the team ahead of any personal agendas.
“It shows a lot of security in who they are,” Collins said Thursday at Big Ten basketball media day. “What those guys who return did last year, and the way they fought for us and our staff and how they improved and developed and what they did in the offseason … they have a lot of equity with me.
“They have to be secure enough in themselves to know: ‘Hey, we have to develop these young guys because they can help us win.’ That’s what has been great about this group. They have all been very selfless in that regard.”
Junior guard Tre Demps excelled coming off the bench last season and loves having the ball in his hands for a final clutch shot. But he realizes the team can improve with the addition of a talented six-man freshman class, headlined by forward Vic Law from St. Rita.
“It’s a tough process because it is a competitive sport and guys want to play,” Demps said. “You have to compete as hard as you can, but at the end of the day, it’s not about you. It’s about winning games. And you need numbers to win games. You need other guys that are talented and can contribute.
“So when you put on that mindset, it takes away from that selfish role of ‘I don’t want this guy to get better than me so that he can take my spot.’ You have to build others up. And you have to look out for the significance of others.”
Collins plans to constantly take the temperature of his team’s morale throughout the season with regard to relationships between the new players and veterans.
“(The veterans) have taken these young guys in with open arms,” Collins said. “They have shown them our culture, the way we do things. And because of that, I am hoping the transition will be a little bit smoother for the young players because it can be very rough.
“If those older guys are not open to that, if they are trying to hold on to their territory and keep those guys down, it can make for a real miserable year for everybody. I love the camaraderie our team has built, even though we have half of our team as new.”
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