Big Ten men’s basketball coaches and players met with reporters Thursday in Rosemont to preview their upcoming seasons.
Here are five things we heard from Illinois’ Brad Underwood, Northwestern’s Chris Collins and others.
1. Illinois wing Andrej Stojaković has ‘completely changed’ from where he was last preseason.
Stojaković joined Illinois a year ago after a season each at Stanford and California, and Underwood said he was “a young man last year that was searching.” A preseason injury set him back, and he also dealt with a late-season ankle sprain.
But he came on strong in the postseason on offense and defense as Illinois made a run to the Final Four, and that experience has carried over into his preparation for his follow-up.
“Just a completely different young man this year,” Underwood said. “Swagger, confident, all of the things that I like to think that are really important. Now he’s been through it. He’s had a Final Four. He’s found winning. He knows what that feels like. And he’s the young man that just wants to go eat more. He wants more.”
Stojaković, who averaged 13.5 points and 4.5 rebounds per game, explored the NBA draft but ultimately decided to return with David Mirković, Tomislav and Zvonimir Ivišić and Jake Davis to make Illinois one of the top teams in the country this preseason. He and Mirković are on the preseason All-Big Ten team.
He said that experience and the way he played at the end of last season have boosted his confidence and motivation. He pointed to playing with aggressiveness late in the year as something that helped him get into a rhythm,
“I think the level of play that I had over the summer and the fall so far, just kind of carrying over that aggressiveness, has been everything,” Stojaković said. “Even when the ball’s not going in, how can I be aggressive getting to the paint, drawing multiple defenders and sharing the ball? How can I be more aggressive on the defensive end?
“Playing with that aggression allows me to be more confident every single day.”
2. Northwestern’s newcomers have ‘a hunger’ to prove they belong in the Big Ten.
Collins had to replace all but three players — guards Jake West, Angelo Ciaravino and Phoenix Gill — from last year’s team. Nick Martinelli, who holds the Wildcats’ single-season scoring record, is in the NBA with the Los Angeles Clippers. Multiple other stats leaders, including guard Jayden Reid and forwards Tre Singleton and Arrinten Page, transferred.
As he rebuilt, Northwestern’s 14th-year coach set out to find players with the requisite work ethic and character but also zeroed in on experience, positional size and shooting prowess. That experience for most came in the form of playing for smaller programs.
Players such as Bellarmine forward Jack Karasinski, Mount St. Mary’s forward Luke McEldon, Northeastern guard LA Pratt and Drake forward Okku Federiko all had experience in lower-level conferences, while guard Aleksej Kostic was a BYU reserve.
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Collins said Northwestern often features players with something to prove, noting the rises of recent Wildcats leaders Boo Buie, Brooks Barnhizer and Martinelli.
“We’ve always wanted guys that carry a little bit of a chip on their shoulder that believe they can compete against the best,” Collins said. “I see that in some of these guys we’ve brought in that they’re anxious.
“They’re older guys that have done really well in so-called lesser leagues. And now they get an opportunity as veteran players to see how they can stack up against the best. So there is a hunger. There is a little bit of a chip there.”
West and Ciaravino, who are looking to elevate their games and leadership in the revamped group, have appreciated that drive from their new teammates.
“All these guys are super hungry, super selfless people,” West said. “They want to show they belong in the Big Ten, not only to the media but to themselves.”
3. Oregon players were shocked by coach Dana Altman’s unexpected retirement.
Altman, 68, announced Wednesday that he was retiring after 37 years and 792 wins as a Division I head coach. He said at a news conference that he didn’t feel like he had the energy to lead the team the way he needed to.
A day later, interim Oregon coach Tony Stubblefield, the former DePaul coach, and players Andrew Meadow and Fred Payne still were regrouping from the news.
Meadow said the team had finished its morning scrimmage when Altman pulled them into the film room. He thought maybe they were getting new shoes.
“It was a shock to everybody, and it was definitely a lot of emotions going on in the room when he told us, and I felt for coach,” Meadow said. “He didn’t want to walk away, but it took guts to be able to do that. And I’m happy for his next chapter. He is a legendary coach, but I’m also excited for Coach Stubbs to take over and for the place that we can go with this team.”
Stubblefield said he tried to convince Altman to reconsider, saying he wanted his longtime boss and friend to reach the 800-win milestone and go out on a high note, but he understood Altman should put his health first.
He said his message to the team was “to stay together collectively.”
“We know we have the pieces to be a very successful team, but we need everybody in that locker room to make that happen,” Stubblefield said. “We know these are some challenging times. We will get through these times and look back on it.”
Multiple coaches expressed appreciation for what Altman brought to the game during his long career at Marshall, Kansas State, Creighton and Oregon.
“I think of the impact that he’s had on every program he’s touched,” Underwood said. “You’re talking about a Creighton program that was at the bottom of the barrel. He built that thing from the bottom. Creighton is Creighton because of Dana Altman. …
“A better person than he is a coach. It’s a loss for the game of basketball, to see another legend go down, but I’m happy for him and (wife) Reva. And he did it on his terms, and it’s always a blessing when you can do that.”
4. Ben McCollum needs to figure out who he can rely on in the clutch.
Iowa’s surprise run to the Elite Eight under McCollum in his first season was one of the best stories of the NCAA Tournament last year.
But McCollum’s second Hawkeyes team is going to look very different without Bennett Stirtz. The star guard, who averaged 19.8 points, 4.4 assists, 2.6 rebounds and 1.4 steals, could take over games with his scoring ability, and that’s a hole McCollum is searching to fill.
“We have just more shooting overall, which is helpful,” McCollum said. “But yeah, having somebody you can just give the ball to late and make the right decision and not pass to the other team is something we’re still trying to figure out. I think it will work itself out through scrimmages, through the first however many games.
“What you are early in the season isn’t necessarily what you will be later in the season. … It will just take us a little bit of time to figure it out.”
One new addition for McCollum to a group that includes forward Cooper Koch and guard Kael Combs, both media day participants, is former Waubonsie Valley and Illinois State guard Ty’Reek Coleman. McCollum said it has been a learning process as Coleman makes the jump.
“He’s just so twitchy, so kind of harnessing that and controlling that and understanding now you’re in the Big Ten where you’ve got 7-foot shot blockers at the rim,” he said. “So you have to make sure when you go in there, you’re understanding exactly where everything is at. He’s done a much better job of that. He’s gotten so much better since he’s been here because he can create a lot of problems and a lot of gravity because he can get by people and he can shoot at a high level as well.”
5. Michigan players are happy to have to prove they’re still Big Ten elite.
Defending national champion Michigan lost three first-round draft picks from last season — big men Morez Johnson Jr., Yaxel Lendeborg and Aday Mara. And the Wolverines also saw coach Dusty May depart to the NBA, with former assistant Mike Boynton Jr. taking his place.
So naturally the expectations are a bit lower for the Wolverines. In preseason rankings, they are likely to sit behind at least conference rivals Illinois and Michigan State, which returns Big Ten preseason player of the year Jeremy Fears Jr.
Returning guards Elliot Cadeau and Trey McKenney, both on the preseason All-Big Ten team, aren’t bothered.
“Last year, we weren’t even picked to win our conference, and we went 19-1,” Cadeau said. “So those kind of things don’t matter to us as a team.”
Cadeau and McKenney, who were fourth and fifth in scoring last season behind the first-rounders, said they’re eager to take over bigger roles for the Wolverines.
“I feel like me and Elliot are definitely prepared for that,” McKenney said. “Last year, our team was super talented, and we had a lot of guys who can do a lot of different things, and we weren’t asked to do maybe as much as we could. I think this season we’ll be able to show more of our game.”