Q&A With Billy Tubbs
11/2/2001 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 2, 2001
What are your thoughts heading into a new conference with an inexperienced team?
It really is a unique experience, first going into a new conference. I am starting my eighth year at TCU and this is my fourth conference. We have only played one team from C-USA, UAB in the NIT, since I have been at TCU. We have been busy watching tape of all the teams, but until you get into actual combat, it's hard to project what's going to work, and what's not. What kind of players you need, etc. It's an exciting situation, and I think our team will accept the challenge. When you talk about our team, other than when I have inherited a program, this is the least experienced team that I have had. I like this team, but we only have three guys with any real experience on this level - Bingo, Nucleus and Marlon - and none of these were full-time starters. It's a rebuilding year, and we may get some hard knocks, but on the other hand, we might be pretty good. I do like our base. Physically, we are going to be a little stronger than in the past years, and I think this bunch has a good future.
What do you see as the strengths of this team?
They are a young team and that is a strength from the standpoint that I think they are going to do what we ask them to do. I think their only agenda is success at TCU basketball and that's a plus for us. We are a stronger team. We have really done well in the weight room. Physically, when it comes to push and shove, we have the potential to be better. Hopefully this will mean we are a better rebounding team.
Will Jamal Brown make an immediate impact?
He comes to us with great credentials - a junior college All-American. His biggest asset is he has been a really good rebounder. It appears he has that warrior mentality, which I like. He has some improvement to do though.
Is Corey Santee the heir apparent at the point?
Santee was brought in here to fill the void the point-guard. We don't have a point-guard returning from last year's team. Nucleus Smith can play some point, but he is more of a "2" man. So, Santee is the apparent point-guard for this year. I think he will do a really good job. When you talk about rebuilding this program, I think he is a real key because he will give this program a solid future for four years at the point-guard position.
Is Santee a good shooter, or more of a penetrator who can dish to other players?
He is a good shooter. But what we need from him, is what we look for in a point-guard, and that is his ability to run the club, see and get the ball to the open men, and penetrate and distribute. He appears to be very capable along those lines.
Nucleus Smith looked to be someone that really came on at the end of last season. Are you expecting more of the same?
Nucleus is a really solid player, and we are counting on him having a big year in all phases of the game. He has been shooting the ball extremely well. We would like him to be a little more aggressive as far as being a scorer.
Who will fill the shoes of Ryan Carroll?
Right now we are looking at Corey Valsin and James Davis. Davis is a 2-man but he can play the "3". Valsin is more of a pure "3". We were also looking at Bingo playing there some, but we will have to wait six weeks now to find out.
Is Bingo's foot injury one that will continue to plague him during the season?
Once it's healed, it should be fine. It's not an uncommon injury for basketball players. It's not an injury that's caused by landing on someone's foot or when you fall wrong, you do it basically when you jump up to shoot. It's called a Jones fracture. We will have to wait and see how that comes along, and then work him back into the lineup.
Can Dumont be more of a threat on the offensive end?
I don't think he can be, I think he will be. He has had a good fall and worked hard in our offseason workout program.
Is Junior Blount someone that can play point or is he more of an off-guard?
He is a combo guard. He's an exceptionally good shooter and a good offensive player. He needs to work on his physical strength.
What are your initial impressions of Marcus Sloan?
Marcus has been impressive in preseason workouts. He runs the court well, and is a pretty good rebounder. Like a lot of young players, he has a lot to learn. His future at TCU is very, very bright.
What type of player is Brian Carter?
Carter is a guy that handles the ball pretty good. Shoots it pretty good. Can block shots. Kinda like Sloan, he has a good game, just needs experience and maturity.
Do you think this is a team that can lead the nation in scoring again?
We won't change our style of play. The conference may slow us down. I think the leading scoring team in the conference last year was Charlotte, and they averaged 76 points a game. We will make adjustments as we go, and as we see if this is a team capable of playing the style of ball that we have been accustomed to. We will play the style of ball that will give us the best opportunity to win.
Talk about the non-conference schedule.
I think we have a very good schedule. It may be deceptive for the people that don't really know basketball. Some highlight games for our fans will be the SMU and Baylor games here. Anyone that knows basketball will realize the Creighton game may be one of the toughest ones on our schedule. Throw in Texas Tech in Lubbock and the potential of playing Providence or Oklahoma State in the Vegas Classic, along with UTEP, who we will play. If you want to phrase them as no-name schools, they are still very good. Louisiana Monroe returns four starters. Northwestern Louisiana returns all of their starters from team that was in the NCAA's last season. UT San Antonio returns all their starters, including the player who scored 39 against us last year. It's a very challenging non-conference schedule for this young team to say the least.
Have you coached against Bob Knight before?
I have never coached against him. It will be an outstanding game because there is a lot of hype at Tech, there will be a great crowd, and it is on national TV. We are looking forward to playing that game. Bobby helps to hype the game, and he's an outstanding coach, but he won't play a minute in that game.
How has moving to Conference USA helped the program?
Going into Conference USA has helped us in recruiting young players. The freshmen classes from the past two seasons are the best we have had at TCU, and this can be attributed to going into C-USA.
Is the rule that limits you to five new scholarships in a year in the process of being changed?
No, and it's a shame. We are really two players short and that hurts our chances this year. We lost seven players and were only able to bring in five. It's really a bad rule, and they didn't give us any time to prepare and make adjustments. I haven't found anybody that thinks it's a good rule. They were trying to rescind it, but when it got to one of the councils, the vote was 9 to 9, so they just tabled it. The vast majority of Athletic Directors and almost all coaches are against it, but its up to Commissioners, Faculty Reps, and the Presidents, and it may take a few years to get it changed. This is the best way to explain it. At UNLV, they were placed on probation for violating rules, and they lost two scholarships. At TCU, we broke no rules, but we get the same penalty. How does that make sense? It certainly hurts our program.
What would you like to see done to improve Daniel Meyer?
It is certainly outdated. We made some progress early on but there are a number of things that need to be redone. Certainly dressing rooms are still an issue. Lighting. Video scoreboard. Hustle board. The floors need to be redone. It's a fairly sound building that with some cosmetic surgery could be made to look better than Jerry Jones.
