Huskies Coach Mike Hopkins Is Honest About It: 'I've made mistakes'

Like him or not, Mike Hopkins gives an honest answer.

With a last-place team, the Washington basketball coach met with local media members on Tuesday before heading out on the Arizona road trip and acknowledged that part of the problem has been him.

"I think I'm a coach in the works, a coach in progress," Hopkins said. "I've made mistakes. I've made bad decisions and good decisions. I just want to be a life-learner and keep getting better."

That's a rare admission for a high-level college coach, especially one who was named Pac-12 Coach of the Year following each of his first two seasons at Washington.

He takes his third team (13-16 overall, 3-13 Pac-12) mired deep in the conference cellar up against one of the league's best ones, Arizona State (19-10, 10-6), in the running for an NCAA Tournament bid.

"I've learned a lot about myself," the UW coach said. "The biggest thing is experience matters. It' doesn't matter how talented you are if you don't play together."

For the two-game swing through the desert Hopkins said he will revert to his old lineup, which likely will consist of freshmen Isaiah Stewart and Jaden McDaniels up front, and and juniors Naz Carter and Hameir Wright plus sophomore Jamal Bey as wings or guards. He intends to revert back to using an eight-player rotation if he can.

Hopkins seemed loose and playful as he exited the media room, throwing soft body slams to those in the room, as this video shows.

"I was getting frustrated early in the year, even when we were winning," he said, "because you can't rush the process."