Men's Basketball Preview: Start of a New Era

Gone is Big 12 Player of the Year and All-American Hollis Price, the gritty guard who helped Oklahoma to 111 wins the past four years (27.8 average) and is OU's seventh leading scorer of all-time. Gone is Quannas White, the point guard that Sooners coach Kelvin Sampson declared as the team's most valuable player the last two seasons. Gone is Ebi Ere, the never bashful wing who started on Final Four and Elite Eight teams and was OU's second leading scorer in 2002-03. And gone is big man Jozsef Szendrei, one of the most spirited and beloved players in school history.

So why is Sampson, who has guided his first nine Oklahoma teams to the NCAA Tournament, so excited about the 2003-04 campaign? The answer is pretty simple young talent. The Sooners will couple a top-five recruiting class with a solid base of youthful returning players to give the head coach a unit that will have every opportunity to continue OU's recent successes.

“I'm probably more excited about coaching this year's team than any other,” said Sampson, “because I look at this as the start of another era. We've got so many good young players, talented kids who are anxious to leave their mark on Sooner basketball. Hollis Price represented an era. Eduardo Najera represented an era. Corey Brewer and Nate Erdmann represented an era with John Ontjes, Ryan Minor and Ernie Abercrombie. But a new era is getting ready to start and it'll be good to see how this group reacts. We've got two outstanding seniors in Jason Detrick and Jabahri Brown, but for the first time since we've been here we're going to rely heavily on freshmen. And two of our better players are just sophomores.”

Does all that mean Sampson is void of concern regarding his youthful team? Not quite. He says he is somewhat uneasy about one aspect of his group.

“We've got to find a leader one who embraces our style of play and to whom it's important that we do things the right way. Our camaraderie and our team chemistry have to be important to him, as well as the little things we do like holding hands in the huddle, high-fiving someone after they do something well. We've got some good candidates. This time last year I knew who our leaders were going to be and was comfortable with that. This year, we've got some question marks in that area. I think this will be as talented a team as we've had, but this will also be the youngest team we've had.”

BACKCOURT
Jason Detrick (6-6, 215, Sr., Guard)
Jaison Williams (6-3, 185, Jr., Guard)
De'Angelo Alexander (6-5, 215, So., Guard)
Drew Lavender (5-7, 155, Fr., Guard)
Lawrence McKenzie (6-2, 170, Fr., Guard)
Jimmy Tobias (6-4, 185, Fr., Guard)
Kellen Sampson (6-1, 180, Fr., Guard)

Sampson makes no bones about the fact that his Sooners are inexperienced at guard. But things could be much worse. Last year, the OU staff decided to redshirt wing Jason Detrick, a senior who played an integral role on the 2001-02 Final Four team. In his place, freshman De'Angelo Alexander stepped in and made significant contributions, starting nine of the squad's final 10 games. Now, instead of fielding no returning letterwinners at guard, the Sooners will bring back a pair of quality wings. And with three coveted high school guards and a juco transfer who has Division I experience joining the squad, OU will likely handle the loss of Price, White and Ere.

Detrick, a member of the Big 12 All-Reserve Team in 2001-02 when he averaged 9.2 points and 3.5 rebounds, will be expected to serve as one of the team's leaders. The 6-6 guard used his redshirt year to mature both physically and emotionally. He is just one reason Sampson is excited about the upcoming season.

Said the coach, “The differences in Jason now are his attitude, his body language, his maturity and his strength. He's a significantly better player right now than he was this time last year. There were days last year when we just couldn't cover him in practice. He needed to get better in a lot of areas. Now I think he's a much stronger person, literally and figuratively.”

Alexander was one of OU's most productive players down the stretch last season, averaging a team-high 11.8 points per game in the squad's four NCAA Tournament outings. The 6-5 wing started 11 games on the year and averaged 7.1 points and 3.6 rebounds while shooting .350 from three-point range and .728 from the foul line. His 35 treys are the most by a returning Sooner and helped him earn Big 12 All-Reserve Team honors.

Alexander also prospered on the USA Basketball Junior World Championship Team over the summer, averaging 11.9 points and 6.4 rebounds per contest to rank third and second on the squad, respectively.

“I can't think of one thing that De'Angelo is great at,” said Sampson, “but I think he's pretty good at everything. He has good size, good strength. He's a good rebounder, good shooter, good scorer, good passer. He's one of those kids you don't realize what he's done until you pick up the final stat sheet. This year he'll do more. We won't have Hollis, Ebi or Quannas, but we'll still shoot the same number of shots. It'll just be different people who take them. De'Angelo will benefit from that.”

Jaison Williams transferred to OU this summer following a one-year stint at juco powerhouse College of Southern Idaho. The 6-3 combo guard played primarily at the two for CSI and averaged 14.6 points and 4.2 assists while shooting .411 from beyond the arc and .859 from the free throw line. Williams spent the 2001-02 season playing as a freshman for Xavier and averaged 2.2 points in 8.0 minutes per game over 31 contests. Sampson says the junior will play as a wing at OU, but will serve as a security blanket at the point guard position.

“Jaison is sort of a jack of all trades, master of none. He does a lot of things really well. He's smart, he's clever and he's a winner. He can knock down the three and can play the point and the wing. Jaison is going to be a valuable member of our program.”

A pair of true freshmen will vie for time at the point. Drew Lavender is a 5-7 McDonald's All-American who drew the praise of recruiting analysts and college coaches around the country despite his diminutive frame. He averaged 18.4 points and 10.7 assists per game last year for Brookhaven High School in Columbus, Ohio, a team that finished 25th in USA Today's national high school rankings. Lavender will have an opportunity to start, according to Sampson.

“He has a big, big heart. I like to call him big little man.' I kind of compare him to our running back the last few years, Quentin Griffin. He's not the biggest guy in the world but he's just a heck of a player. Don't sleep on Drew's size. His heart is as big as the gym.”

Competing with Lavender will be 6-2 Lawrence McKenzie, a Minneapolis, Minn., native who led Patrick Henry High School to four state championships. A consensus top-75 national recruit, McKenzie averaged 22.5 points and 7.4 assists per games last year. He and Sooner forward Johnnie Gilbert played on the same team during the 1999-2000 school year. Sampson likes McKenzie's playmaking ability and says the point guard could contribute in his first year at OU.

“He was the starting point guard for a program that won four state titles in Minnesota. He can do a lot of things he's a really good offensive player who can score, dribble and pass. But the biggest compliment I can pay him is that he's a winner. Lawrence has a chance to come in and contribute a lot right away.”

Freshman wing Jimmy Tobias was a first-team All-State performer in Florida last season who directed his team to its third straight 6A state crown and a No. 18 final national ranking. The 6-4 Fort Lauderdale product averaged 19.0 points, 8.0 boards and 3.0 assists for his 32-1 Dillard High School team. A superior athlete, Tobias can hit the jumper but likes to take the ball to the hole.

“Tobias is a very explosive wing,” noted Sampson. “The thing I like best about him is his ability to get by his man with the dribble and get to the rim. No matter what you say, basketball is a game that's played at the rim and we felt that was an area in which we needed to improve. He is a dynamic athlete with an unbelievable upside. We're excited about his potential.”

Kellen Sampson, a 6-1 freshman guard who is also the coach's son, will don the crimson and cream as a walk-on in 2003-04. The elder Sampson minces no words when discussing walk-on expectations.

“To me, leadership means being responsible for having good practices, for other peoples' attitudes, for knowing your teammates, for knowing who needs a lift and for knowing that you have to be a spark every day. Kellen is a perfect walk-on for us. He's not a great player, but he is a good player who will help make us a better team with his character, his integrity and the kind of person he is.”

FRONTCOURT
Jabahri Brown (6-10, 220, Sr., Center)
Johnnie Gilbert (6-8, 230, Jr., Forward)
Kevin Bookout (6-8, 265, So., Forward)
Larry Turner (6-11, 235, Fr.-RS, Center)
Brandon Foust (6-6, 205, Fr., Forward)

If the Sooners can boast any sort of experience, it comes from the frontcourt. OU returns three players who started at least 13 games last year, as well as a 6-11 redshirt freshman who practiced with the squad each day. Sampson also looks forward to the services of a highly regarded, athletic high school player.

Senior center Jabahri Brown, one of the more athletic big men in school history, started in 21 games last season and averaged 6.3 points, 5.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1.3 blocks and 1.0 steal per contest. The 6-10 U.S. Virgin Islands native improved steadily from his sophomore season and will be asked to display even more progress this year. Brown added muscle in the offseason and worked extensively on his offensive game.

Said Sampson, “He'll have an increased role and provide a heightened amount of leadership. We need him to be more aggressive and average double figures in points and near double figures in rebounding. He's capable of doing more because he's a good player. He hasn't reached his ceiling and that'll be our challenge to him.”

Johnnie Gilbert, a 6-8 junior forward who started in 13 games last year (including all seven postseason outings), is noted more for his defense and rebounding abilities than his offensive prowess, although he has made steady improvements with the ball. The lefty shot .500 from the field and averaged 3.7 points, 4.7 boards and 1.0 blocked shot per game. Gilbert is looking forward to a healthy campaign after being slowed last year by a preseason abdominal injury.

“Johnnie had a great spring and summer,” remarked Sampson. “He has really improved. But he's the type of kid who has to be reminded not to forget who he is and where he came from. We don't ever expect Johnnie to lead us in scoring, but he can lead us in rebounding and be our best defender. We want him to continue to do those things and be more aggressive and tougher.”

Sampson has similar wishes for sophomore forward Kevin Bookout when it comes to displaying a more callous demeanor on the court. A 6-8 member of the Big 12 All-Freshman Team who averaged 9.4 points and a team-high 5.9 rebounds while leading the league with a .587 field goal percentage, Bookout is poised for a stellar sophomore season. According to Sampson, the sky is the limit for the two-sport star who earned All-America honors in the shot put during the outdoor track season last spring.

“I think Kevin can develop into one of the top low post scorers in the country. He can be one of the best rebounders in the country. But instead of being a seven-foot-and-in guy, he needs to extend out to 10, 12, 15 feet and develop a mid-range jumper. And he needs to be able to put the ball on the floor at least once or twice to get himself in position to shoot or get fouled. Those are the areas in which we'll work with him.”

Redshirt freshman Larry Turner, a 6-11 center who had his share of highlights in practice late last year, is ready to showcase his abilities to the OU faithful. Turner played in six games last season before missing the rest of the campaign due to injury. He averaged 1.3 points and 1.5 rebounds in 9.2 minutes per game and made four of his five field goal attempts. An imposing physical specimen, Turner will likely have a bigger impact on the defensive end of the floor.

“Until Larry gets on that court and produces, he'll be sort of an enigma,” said Sampson. “He's a little bit of an x-factor. We're going to play four posts this year like we did last year. Larry's got to bring his deal to the table, which is talent. He's got to get more rebounds, block more shots, do things to affect the game in his own way. And then develop as he goes.”

Brandon Foust, a 6-6 freshman forward who teamed with Lavender at Brookhaven High School, is a consensus top-75 national recruit who averaged 17.4 points and 10.5 rebounds per game as a senior. He is likely headed for a redshirt season. Not sure yet of where on the court he'll play Foust, Sampson appreciates the freshman's versatility.

“He's a tough kid and one of the best offensive rebounders I've seen in a long time. I'm not sure he really has a position, and I like that. I like ballplayers. He is definitely one of those. And he's another winner.”

University of Oklahoma Athletics

Men's Basketball Preview: Start of a New Era

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