TicketsThe UC men's basketball team met with local media Tuesday as part of the team's annual preseason media day on campus to discuss the upcoming 2019-20 campaign, the first season under new head coach John Brannen. Some of his comments are below:
On the biggest challenge as the preseason practice gets underway:
"Just getting our entire system in. It's very different for our returnees and very new for our new guys. It's the reason we recruited the way we did. We signed three grad transfers and those guys have been very good in practice. A big part of the reason (we did that) was because we knew we were putting in a whole new system for everybody. So we might as well bring some older guys in who have game experience and kind of been through the battles before. The challenge is just getting the entire system in and the pace which want to play."
On if having Jarron Cumberland out of practice earlier this preseason has helped him evaluate other players:
"I'd like to have my whole team out there just so I can start to evaluate where to put people. I made mention of this before, our system is our system, defensively, but offensively, things evolve based on your personnel and where you put guys. I'd like to get more of an evaluation on where to put guys."
On the process of the NCAA granting a transfer waiver for Chris Vogt:
"I was hopeful (that Vogt would be granted the waiver). Our people here did an unbelievable job of putting things in motion. I go back to Northern Kentucky and (athletics director) Ken Bothof. They treated this situation in a first-class manor. They were extremely helpful as well. It was two universities working hand-in-hand for a young man that needed this."
On what Chris McNeal has brought to the team:
"What Chris has brought is a toughness level. Toughness is physical and mental. He's brought a mental toughness level. He works out three times a day. He never missed a standard in conditioning. He never misses a practice. He never misses a rep. He wins every sprint. His commitment level to his body and to his overall aura of toughness - I don't know if you get that by bouncing around or not – but if you do, I'll take it because it's pretty impressive."
On if he has gotten used to being the head coach at Cincinnati:
"I think it takes time. It took time for me at my last stop and it will certainly take time here. There's still a lot of firsts that have to happen. We still haven't laced them up in game. Still haven't had a scrimmage, a road game. There's a lot of those firsts still haven't happened yet. I think there's time for that and I'll probably have a better feel as time goes on."
On if the buzz for the season gets him excited:
"What gets me excited is when we get better in practice every day. That's what really get me excited. Selling out season tickets, the mini packages are selling, the buzz around Midnight Madness – I expected that because it's UC basketball. So that gets me excited. That gets the guys excited. I get more anxious because the guys want the games to come and I want practices to get better. That's along the lines of where I'm at and we're working hard every day to do that."
On if building the relationships with players has been one of the things he's enjoyed doing since arriving at Cincinnati:
"It is because it is what's most sustainable. The seat I sit in you have to look at things from 30,000 feet constantly. A CEO of a company told me one time he goes, 'when you make decisions running a company or an organization you got to be long-term greedy,' for lack of a better word. When I'm looking long-term, relationship building is… guys aren't going to play for you unless you have a relationship and we're trying to build that at a high level and build that trust. We define trust as believing and investing without knowing the outcome. My teams at Northern Kentucky knew the outcome. This team doesn't know the outcome. So we've got believe and invest without knowing the outcome. That's the truest form of trust. I can't just do that when I walk through the door and blow a whistle at 3 o'clock every afternoon."
On an update of Jarron Cumberland's playing status:
"He's practicing now. He's just limited now in terms of time. We have him on a time limit but he's out there competing."
On what he wants Jarron Cumberland to expand in his game this season:
"When you look at his numbers he was extremely efficient last year in a lot of different areas. His usage rate was really high and his offensive efficient was really high. Normally, when you have a high usage rate, your offensive efficiency isn't. The lower your usage rate, the higher your offensive efficiency goes. It's advanced metric numbers. I want him to continue to get in great shape. I think if he's in elite shape then there's nothing on the court he won't be able to do from defending, to getting out in transition, to making shots. He shoots the three ball so well. I'd like for him to shoot even more of those. Get to the (free throw) line more. Those are all things that will be built as he continues to get in the shape he needs to be in."
On talking in more detail about his preferred pace of play:
"Offensively, we want to push the ball in transition as quickly as possible. Not necessarily take a quick shot within the first seven seconds but take the first available good shot. Defensively, if you want to play up tempo, that's great. If not, we want to try to force a late shot clock by utilizing our press and utilizing some different forms of pressure in the half court along with the gap defense. Elite teams push the pace offensively and control the tempo defensively. If you go back and look at the teams that have really advanced in the NCAA tournament that's where there are at from a pace perspective."
On how Keith Williams, Trevon Scott and Jarron Cumberland will help instill the culture of the program:
"It's really important that those three are in the deep end. What we call the deep end is total commitment. If those guys show each and every day that they are in the deep end and they're totally committed to what we are doing, then we'll have an opportunity for success. If those three guys don't or any one of them doesn't, then we won't have an opportunity for success. It's pretty much that simple."
On the biggest challenge as the preseason practice gets underway:
"Just getting our entire system in. It's very different for our returnees and very new for our new guys. It's the reason we recruited the way we did. We signed three grad transfers and those guys have been very good in practice. A big part of the reason (we did that) was because we knew we were putting in a whole new system for everybody. So we might as well bring some older guys in who have game experience and kind of been through the battles before. The challenge is just getting the entire system in and the pace which want to play."
On if having Jarron Cumberland out of practice earlier this preseason has helped him evaluate other players:
"I'd like to have my whole team out there just so I can start to evaluate where to put people. I made mention of this before, our system is our system, defensively, but offensively, things evolve based on your personnel and where you put guys. I'd like to get more of an evaluation on where to put guys."
On the process of the NCAA granting a transfer waiver for Chris Vogt:
"I was hopeful (that Vogt would be granted the waiver). Our people here did an unbelievable job of putting things in motion. I go back to Northern Kentucky and (athletics director) Ken Bothof. They treated this situation in a first-class manor. They were extremely helpful as well. It was two universities working hand-in-hand for a young man that needed this."
On what Chris McNeal has brought to the team:
"What Chris has brought is a toughness level. Toughness is physical and mental. He's brought a mental toughness level. He works out three times a day. He never missed a standard in conditioning. He never misses a practice. He never misses a rep. He wins every sprint. His commitment level to his body and to his overall aura of toughness - I don't know if you get that by bouncing around or not – but if you do, I'll take it because it's pretty impressive."
On if he has gotten used to being the head coach at Cincinnati:
"I think it takes time. It took time for me at my last stop and it will certainly take time here. There's still a lot of firsts that have to happen. We still haven't laced them up in game. Still haven't had a scrimmage, a road game. There's a lot of those firsts still haven't happened yet. I think there's time for that and I'll probably have a better feel as time goes on."
On if the buzz for the season gets him excited:
"What gets me excited is when we get better in practice every day. That's what really get me excited. Selling out season tickets, the mini packages are selling, the buzz around Midnight Madness – I expected that because it's UC basketball. So that gets me excited. That gets the guys excited. I get more anxious because the guys want the games to come and I want practices to get better. That's along the lines of where I'm at and we're working hard every day to do that."
On if building the relationships with players has been one of the things he's enjoyed doing since arriving at Cincinnati:
"It is because it is what's most sustainable. The seat I sit in you have to look at things from 30,000 feet constantly. A CEO of a company told me one time he goes, 'when you make decisions running a company or an organization you got to be long-term greedy,' for lack of a better word. When I'm looking long-term, relationship building is… guys aren't going to play for you unless you have a relationship and we're trying to build that at a high level and build that trust. We define trust as believing and investing without knowing the outcome. My teams at Northern Kentucky knew the outcome. This team doesn't know the outcome. So we've got believe and invest without knowing the outcome. That's the truest form of trust. I can't just do that when I walk through the door and blow a whistle at 3 o'clock every afternoon."
On an update of Jarron Cumberland's playing status:
"He's practicing now. He's just limited now in terms of time. We have him on a time limit but he's out there competing."
On what he wants Jarron Cumberland to expand in his game this season:
"When you look at his numbers he was extremely efficient last year in a lot of different areas. His usage rate was really high and his offensive efficient was really high. Normally, when you have a high usage rate, your offensive efficiency isn't. The lower your usage rate, the higher your offensive efficiency goes. It's advanced metric numbers. I want him to continue to get in great shape. I think if he's in elite shape then there's nothing on the court he won't be able to do from defending, to getting out in transition, to making shots. He shoots the three ball so well. I'd like for him to shoot even more of those. Get to the (free throw) line more. Those are all things that will be built as he continues to get in the shape he needs to be in."
On talking in more detail about his preferred pace of play:
"Offensively, we want to push the ball in transition as quickly as possible. Not necessarily take a quick shot within the first seven seconds but take the first available good shot. Defensively, if you want to play up tempo, that's great. If not, we want to try to force a late shot clock by utilizing our press and utilizing some different forms of pressure in the half court along with the gap defense. Elite teams push the pace offensively and control the tempo defensively. If you go back and look at the teams that have really advanced in the NCAA tournament that's where there are at from a pace perspective."
On how Keith Williams, Trevon Scott and Jarron Cumberland will help instill the culture of the program:
"It's really important that those three are in the deep end. What we call the deep end is total commitment. If those guys show each and every day that they are in the deep end and they're totally committed to what we are doing, then we'll have an opportunity for success. If those three guys don't or any one of them doesn't, then we won't have an opportunity for success. It's pretty much that simple."