Basketball head coach Darian DeVries talked with the media this afternoon ahead of the team’s trip to Italy.
DeVries was first asked on what he’s seen over the summer from his roster. “When you have a whole new group of guys, it takes some time… Over the 6-7 weeks I feel like we’ve made some strides. The biggest thing is, you gotta learn how as a group, how to win. Win together.”
The head coach was then asked about his history with foreign trips and how beneficial they can be for a team. “I’ve been on several tours,” replied DeVries. “They’re a great opportunity… just a chance to spend some time outside of basketball in a different type of perspective with one another, and that’s what I love about the timng of this trip for us.” DeVries expressed his enthusiasm for the trip with an entirely new roster and staff in tow, saying it will help them know each other on a personal level.
DeVries was asked what obstacles he’s been facing trying to get the roster to mesh together. “it’s just making, or helping us create our identity. What do we want that to be every single day, and what does that look like.” He then expressed his belief that fans should be able to watch them and leave knowing what their identity is. “If they can’t, then we’re not there yet, so we’re still working on that… We want people to leave our gym and think about how hard we play.”
The head coach was then asked how he would make up the size difference between the West Virginia roster and many of the other Big 12 rosters. “Love to have size, and sometimes you don’t have it… there’s still a physicality that can make that a more even benchmark for us.” DeVries emphasized that they’re making sure the team will do the right things while being undersized to help with rebounding and defense.
When asked how the team creates an identity, DeVries says it’s about what they talk about, watch on film, and practice every day. “You can’t say your identity is one thing and then it’s not what you reinforce every day.”
When asked about guard Joesph Yesufu’s recovery, DeVries says he’s “right on schedule”. He’ll be worked into practice following the Italy trip.
DeVries also plans to mix and match his lineups in Italy. “Some guys will play more, less. We’ll try to play the younger guys a little more just to get them some post-high school experience, I guess.” DeVries doesn’t expect the games to be great, especially playing without much preparation on their opponents. “We’ll figure out who can shoot it by halftime,” DeVries joked. He also said he prefers seeing progression instead of wins in Italy.
When talking about the freshmen Jonathan Powell and KJ Tenner, DeVries praised their abilities. “They’ve both been pleasantly surprising… it takes a little bit of time. They’ve got great upside.” He also mentioned that center Eduardo Andre has made “tremendous strides” in practice over the last month.
Darian DeVries also said that forward Tucker DeVries was cleared for full contact last Tuesday after four months of recovery. When asked if he cringed when Tucker took a shot to the shoulder earlier in practice, the coach smirked. “I pretend not to,” he said with a laugh.
DeVries concluded the press conference saying that he and his staff are actively recruiting “multiple” players to try to get them in by the start of the school year.
