Notebook: Chris Mack Talks Recruiting, Season-Opener & Injuries

(Photo of Chris Mack: Amber Searls/USA TODAY Sports)

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - With the start of the 2020-21 college basketball season officially one week away, Louisville head coach Chris Mack met with the media to discuss a variety of topics surrounding the program.

He talked about the top 20 five-man 2021 recruiting class in which the Cardinals recently signed, what to expect during the course of the first few games in the 'Louisville Bubble', who will be good to go for their season-opener, and more.

Louisville is set to open the 2020-21 season against Evansville on Wednesday, Nov. 25 at 4:00 p.m. on the ACC Network as part of the Wade Houston Tipoff Classic. The Cardinals head into the season with a limited roster, as senior forward/center Malik Williams and grad transfer guard Charles Minlend are set to miss significant time due to injury.

Below is the transcript from Mack's press conference as well as the video:

(On each of the five players Class of 2021 signees)

I'll start with Bobby Pettiford, who's from Durham, North Carolina. I think he's a really, really explosive player, phenomenal athlete, and a very, very tough kid. A winner. He's someone we're really excited about. Bobby's electric with the ball. I think he has an ability to get in the lane. I think he's a better shooter than people think - he has good form. His whole life, he had an ability to get to the rim. Generally, when that happens, first you sort of develop your outside shooting later on. He's more than capable of playing both on and off the ball, probably more on the ball as a dynamic point guard with great speed and explosiveness. I think he can be a really good defender too.

El Ellis is a scorer. I think El's a guy that can play multiple positions in the backcourt. He's played point guard, he's obviously been a scoring guard. I think he's extremely athletic. We wanted to make sure that we add some athleticism in our backcourt, and feel like with Bobby and El that was really answered. El's a guy that can really get on a hot streak shooting the ball. Coming from the junior college ranks after two years, he'll be a little bit more experienced than your average freshmen. I know it's still a different level, but we're excited about adding El.

We have a small forward/two guard in Mike James, who's from Orlando, Florida. I think Mike, in time, can be a really good, outstanding defender. Very athletic, has a motor. One of the best compliments that I heard about Mike came from his coach. He said if we had a 5:30 workout in the morning, Mike was there with his shoes tied every day at 10 after five. Just always early, extremely reliable. I think he's becoming a much improved shooter. More of a first step explosive guy and get to the rim, but we feel like he can guard multiple positions at our level.

Eric Van Der Heijden is one of the best shooters, I think, in the Class of 2021. Eric has really good range, he shot high 40% from three last year as a junior. Guy's got really good size and very, very good passing ability. He's going to have to get better defensively, gonna have to get a little tougher and put on a little bit of weight. But most guys do coming out of high school to college. With Eric's skill set and his parents' background of both being professional basketball players, Eric loves the game and feel like he'll add a whole lot to our team.

Then Roosevelt Wheeler, who's our latest commitment and signee. We've been recruiting him hard for a couple years now. Out of Richmond, Virginia, originally from Atlanta. Roosevelt's a low. He's every bit of 6-10, I think he's really good bounce, he plays with a high motor. There's no there's no softness in what Roosevelt does. He's out with an injury right now, unfortunately, this senior year he's going to have to rehab an Achilles that he hurt in a late summer league/fall League. By the time he gets to us, he'll be nine months post injury and post surgery. We got a great athletic trainer in Fred Hina, and we feel like we'll make a decision when that time comes where we feel like Roosevelt is.

(On if the team will be at full strength outside of Malik Williams & Charles Minlend)

I don't know. I'd like to be able to answer that, but some of the injuries that our guys are dealing with had been finicky to say the least. We have guys that want to be out there, nobody's sort of sandbagging and holding back. Josh Nickelberry's recovering and rehabbing from an arthroscopic knee surgery to repair some meniscus. He's getting closer, I don't know when he will be at full strength or at least strength enough to be able to get on the court practice and join us. Sam Williamson is back. He's been dealing with an aggravated patellar tendon that really gave him fits for three or four weeks here in the preseason. It's been a lot of moving pieces and a lot of moving parts to say the least here in practice. We've been down to six scholarships, scholarship guys sone days. We're doing what we can and anticipating getting those guys back. I would think Sam will be ready for our opener next week. Then obviously Jae'Lyn Withers has been a guy that's been rehabbing a sprained ankle that he twisted about a week ago. Likelihood is we'll get him back as well.

(On how D'Andre 'Dre' Davis has developed since arriving on campus)

I've really been happy with Dre's progress so far. As a freshman, I feel like he's got a really good understanding of the game. So often, it just takes a while for guys that are making that transition from high school to college. Dre's not a finished product by any means, but I think he's advanced a little bit more than most his age. He's a tough kid. He really tends to make the right play on offense. Not the spectacular play, but the right play. Whether that's an extra pass, whether that's you know, he's open and takes a shot, he's shooting above a lot of confidence in the preseason. I think he's a more than willing defender, very, very capable. I think he has the ability to be a defensive stopper over time. But his attitude, every day has been the same. He is a workhorse, a guy that we count on every day to be a practice and one that continues to get better.

(On the challenges Louisville has had to face out on the recruiting trail)

The first challenge that we had, it's no different from the challenge that everybody's had - dealing with COVID. Not having the ability to go out in the spring, not having the ability to have their kids and their families on our campus. We can't visit them, they can't visit us. That caused a lot of trepidation on a recruit's side. It's one thing to experience the school virtually, and maybe look up things on the internet, but to not have the ability to walk around and see campus or walk through the Yum! Center, there's a lot of trust that they put in our coaching staff to finally say that they were coming to Louisville.

The NCAA stuff, I say this all the time, it is what it is. At some point, we're going to have closure on it. But there are some resounding positives around Louisville basketball that we will always continue to sell. Number one: we have one of the best fan bases in the entire country when it comes to college basketball. The number one TV market in college basketball is right here, and that's because people love the game and they love the Cardinals. I know our future recruits understand that they're going to play in front of some passionate fans and some high expectations here. Number two: they're gonna play in what I think is one of the best arenas in all college basketball. The (KFC) Yum! Center's fabulous. Although it'll look different this year, there's not too many programs in the country that have anything remotely close.

We're also gonna play in the best basketball conference in the country. The ACC, it's had six of the last 10 national champions. Historically, most guys that go to the NBA come from our conference, and it's really not even close. So if you want to play in the best basketball conference in the country, you play in the ACC. Obviously some of the guys that we recruited were from the heart of the ACC, whether it's North Carolina or Virginia. I think that plays a part in their decision wanting to come to a school that has a huge tradition and plays in the best basketball in the country. That was what we talked about, and we will continue to talk about.

(On what he expects over the first couple of games)

Well, I just cross our fingers and hope that we don't have positive tests on any of the teams in the bubble. I think football around the country has shown us that's not going to be a reality. There are going to be cancellations, there are going to be postponements, there's going to be shuffling of schedules. We can only control you know what we can control, and that is trying to do the best job that we can both as individuals and as a team to keep from getting the virus. All the different things that we've all been asked to do around the country. The second thing that we have to be is very flexible, and knowing that maybe we're supposed to play on a Monday night, but that may change to a Thursday night against a different opponent. And that's okay. It beats the alternative of sitting in our basement and not having any sports.

(On having former players come in and scrimmage)

Yeah, we've held a scrimmage with former players. It was good for our team.

(On having the NCAA Tournament hosted completely in Indianapolis)

Probably anxious to see where exactly those things are, and how it's going to look. If the powers that be think that's the best way to hold the NCAA Tournament and not have it collapse, then I'm all for it. Obviously, it's a close proximity here to Louisville. But that seems so much further down the line that don't really pay much attention right now. I'm more worried about Evansville and playing on the 25th than I am the NCAA Tournament, wherever the heck they play.

(On if he's been able to talk to to Jordan Nwora ahead of draft night)

I have. I've kept in touch with Jordan all throughout this time. He was a guy that I really enjoyed coaching. I think he got better during his career here at Louisville, put himself in a great spot. The NBA has so many moving pieces and moving parts, from teams trading draft picks to all of a sudden signing somebody and now they have no roster space. Like Jordan, I'm anxious to see where he goes. But I think he did himself well. It's been a really, really weird time to show the NBA who you are as a player. The combine wasn't to be, they didn't have workout groups of four and five players, everything was in the gym sort of by yourself with a trainer and it was videotaped. But the things they asked Jordan to do, whether that's an interview, which he did thousands of them, or whether that was some drills, 1-on-0 shooting drills that were designed to get you tired and see how you could shoot the ball, he performed extremely well. And I knew he would. Jordan is a phenomenal shooter. I think that's something that's really been valued in the NBA a lot here over the last five to 10 years, maybe more than it was 30 and 40 years ago. I think Jordans in a great spot. I wish him well and our programs excited to see how it unfolds tonight.

(On where David Johnson's game is and what he expects from him this year)

I think David is much better than he was a year ago. He's still figuring out how to take his time and be patient. At times he gets jittery and wants to go too fast. It's a great attribute that he has, his speed and his athletic ability, but the game at times is best served by guys who play a slower pace and change that speed. David's learning that. He's so much further along than he was last year. I think he's a much better defensive player than he was a year ago and last season. We're going to need him to be. We're going to count on David in so many different ways. The bright spots that you saw, or the shining moments that you saw, they have to be stretched out. They have to resolve in consistency for us to be a good team. We're gonna be really hard on David, because we need him to be consistent, and his teammates got to know that he's gonna be the same guy with the basketball, taking care of it and not turning it over, not having one great play and one lousy play. He's gonna have some tough moments where he's got to figure it out, but he's getting better by the day.

(On if Gabe Wiznitzer will see playing time this weekend with the injury to Malik Williams)

So with COVID, the way that this this rule got enacted, everybody gets a free year. I think we all know that by now. So there really isn't a developmental redshirt. You can play a kid as a freshman, and next year he's going to be considered a freshman as well. Gabe will be one of the guys that we have on the active roster. If we need to put them in there, or if we feel like he's playing well enough to put them in there for however long that is, if that's a couple minutes or if that's 20 minutes, then we'll do it.

(On what he's seen from Gabe Wiznitzer since arriving on campus)

He's still playing in high school speed. He needs to get a hell of a lot faster, he needs to get in a heck of a lot better stance, and continue to get into better shape. He's done a really good job in the weight room, he's really done a really good job with his body. But now the basketball conditioning, be able to get multiple efforts, defend a ball screen, block his man out, rebound outlet, run the floor. It's a much different challenge at the collegiate level than at the high school level where he was planning on being. Obviously, when Malik goes down, we're trying to speed that up as fast as we can.

(On what to expect lineup-wise over the first few games)

Well, the first thing I'd say, I'd figure out who's gonna be on the roster and who's gonna be healthy for that game. We're going to certainly look very, very different from a year ago. We don't have all that experience returning. I'd like to think that David and Carlik can really do a bulk of the play making. I think getting Sam back into the lineup and sort of getting his legs under him, we're going to need him to be a guy that can score the ball. Hopefully, Jae'Lyn (Withers) gets healthy, he can be a guy that is a tough mismatch for a lot of big guys to cover because he's so daggone quick. We have a full complement of players will be out there and competing and trying to win every single game that we can play, but I don't know that just yet. There may be some experimenting on the sidelines when we play Evansville.

(On if there's a big question mark surrounding the team due to a lack of a preseason)

Well, we've been through a lot of preseasons in the past, I think a lot of times, coaches generally have a feel for if our players are competing hard enough on the defensive end of the floor, if they have an awareness that's going to be needed on things that are happening. The scrimmage, although it was against former players, and maybe not guys in the prime of their playing career, really gives us an observation and understanding of scenarios that we have to get better. So that's that's exactly what that scrimmage did. We don't have the luxury of having a Division II exhibition game or secret scrimmage against a Division I team, so it's a little bit different than we're used. But we're not unlike every other team in the country when they're dealing with the exact same thing. There's gonna be a feeing out process. We play those first couple games, and they're gonna come fast and furious. We're going to have to make some adjustments and we're gonna have to learn from both good play and bad, figure out how to continue to get better especially with with the younger roster in certain areas.

(On if Malik is still the vocal leader on the sideline, and if Aidan Igiehon will have to step up his game)

Well, Malik is always going to be a guy that's vocal and is going to try to be a leader for our team. But it's different when you're out, especially when you're talking about an extended period of time of three months. It's just different. We're gonna have to rely on guys like David Johnson and Carlik Jones, guys that are on the floor that have to make those adjustments in real time. Certainly our front court took a hit with what I think is one of the best defensive bigs in the country being out. Aiden's got to step up in more than one way. He has all the opportunity in the world in front of them, but whether he takes advantage of that or not remains to be seen. We're gonna play the best guys that give us the best chance of winning, and we're gonna learn a lot about our team here when the bubble comes to town next week.

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