MSU's Howland eager to get to work with his young team
In a perfect world, Mississippi State head coach Ben Howland would've started working with his team over a month ago. June 1 is the typical date required activities start for men's basketball.
This isn't a perfect world though. These aren't typical times. As such, it'll be July 20 before Howland can finally start working with his Bulldogs and the veteran leader is chomping at the bit.
"It’s hard because I just want to do basic fundamentals," Howland said. "I want to help guys working on their shot. So it’s unfortunate, but it is what it is."
Of course Howland's team isn't the only one in the country facing the challenges the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has presented. MSU isn't any different than any other squad. All teams can currently have voluntary activities and virtual nonphysical activities, but the required stuff has to wait until later this month.
Here's where the later start date might hurt the Bulldogs a little more than some others. State is going to be heavily reliant upon youngsters in 2020-21. That youth could use all the guidance they could get, plus Howland could certainly use more time to evaluate exactly what he has. MSU will have nine scholarship players that are sophomores or younger on its team this coming season. That total includes five true freshmen. No required workouts so far means Howland still doesn't have a true grasp as to what he has on his roster.
"I think we’re impacted maybe a little more (with the later start date) than some teams because we’re so young," Howland said. "We’ve got a lot of youth so it’d have obviously been better for us if we could’ve started like normal on June 1 and been able to do fundamentals."
Instead, all Howland and the Bulldogs can do is keep on waiting a little longer. Might as well. There are some pretty important things to wait on.
Forward Quinten Post, who Howland believes will be a contributor this year, remains back home in The Netherlands. He hasn't been able to get back to the United States due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Then there's the biggest thing everyone is waiting on – the decision of guard Robert Woodard II. Woodard remains with his name in the NBA Draft, but he hasn't hired an agent and can return to the Bulldogs as long as he pulls out of the draft by August 3. Howland isn't expecting to know until possibly that very day exactly what Woodard will do.
Woodard's return for a junior season would be quite a shot in the arm for the Bulldogs as the young group would immediately have an alpha dog to lean on. Combined with senior center Abdul Ado, rising sophomores D.J. Stewart, Iverson Molinar and Tolu Smith, transfer Jalen Johnson, and the kids – led by four-star true freshman Deivon Smith – a Bulldog team with Woodard certainly looks a lot more formidable than a group without him.
Without Woodard, all of State's top four scorers from a year ago (Reggie Perry, Tyson Carter, Nick Weatherspoon and Woodard) would be gone. With him, the pressure on everyone else would lessen.
The days keep getting closer to Woodard's ultimate decision. And likewise, it's getting closer to when Howland can finally start to work with his team as well. July 20 can't get here fast enough for Howland.
But then what? Yes, there's Woodard's decision, but let's not forget the backdrop of all this. There's still a worldwide pandemic going on. There's already uncertainty about football season, so will basketball season even get off the ground?
Howland isn't a prophet, but he is an optimist. He's counting on everyone finding a way to play, even if it might look a little different.
"I fully expect we’re going to have basketball season," Howland said. "Now, how they do the fans or how many people they allow in the Hump, I can’t speak to that. I think some of that will be affected by what happens with football. But it’s different. We’re indoors, which is a little more problematic because the air isn’t circulating as much. So we just have to wait and see on that. But I fully expect we’re going to have basketball season, just as I fully expect we’re going to have a football season."
First things first though. Howland is seemingly counting the minutes to July 20.
"I can't wait to start working with them," Howland said.
