Sooners Field Questions at Men's Basketball Media Day

HEAD COACH KELVIN SAMPSON

On the state of his team:
"It's hard to assess this team. I don't know if we have had a team with an injury situation as bizarre as ours has been. Starting with our (August) trip to Costa Rica - and I think yesterday was our 18th or 19th practice - not one day, not 10 minutes have we had all of our guys healthy. Kevin (Bookout) is out with a sprained shoulder, Jabahri (Brown) is out with a bad ankle sprain. Jason Detrick hurt his, well, we call it the 'Gilbert injury' now - the Johnnie Gilbert abdominal injury that he had (last year). De'Angelo hurt his shoulder the first day. So, everybody has kind of been in and out and it's tough to gauge your team. The only thing I can speak about is the new guys are all getting better and, if there's a silver lining, I 'm probably spending more time with our freshmen and our new guys than I normally would. Our last three practices have probably been the best practices we have had all year, regardless of who's been there. That's because Jaison Williams, Drew Lavender, Lawrence McKenzie, Brandon Foust - those four especially have really played well. Johnnie Gilbert has really been our best post player to date because he hasn't missed any practice time."

On his returning players:
"The greatest ability a veteran player can have is dependability and Johnnie (Gilbert) is our best veteran right now because he's at practice every day and he does all the little things right. Of all of our veteran guys, I think he has a better understanding of what Sooner Basketball is and he surrenders to it. He's done a great job helping our young guys. This team will go as far as our veterans take them. We have some really good young players, but I don't know if you're going to win championships with freshmen in the Big 12. The guys that have to play for this team are Jason (Detrick) and Jabahri (Brown). Then Kevin Bookout and De'Angelo are veterans and just sophomores. That tells you a little bit about the state of our program. I think we're going to be good. I don't know that we are at the level we have been at the last two years, but you have to think about the level we have been at the last two years. Very few teams have done what we have the last two years. We'd like to get back to that level, and it will be a work in progress for this team. But I like the direction that we're headed."

On who will be the team's top scorers:
"I think that our leading scorers this year, in some order, will be Jason Detrick, De'Angelo Alexander and Kevin Bookout. We have X factors on this team. Jabahri is an X factor because when he plays at a high level we're a lot better. And even though (Drew) Lavender is the point guard, the thing that he has proved in practice and scrimmages is that he can score. We have a lot of guys who can make baskets. Jaison Williams is probably our most consistent 3-point shooter."

On whether he still intends to redshirt freshman forward Brandon Foust:
"Brandon Foust is a kid who I talked about redshirting. We're always honest with the kids and we talked to him about it. But the way he's played the last week I'm not sure we can redshirt him."

On the team's traits:
"We're talented. We're quick, we're athletic, we're the deepest we've been. But it's a young talent that'll get better as the season progresses."

On the Big 12 race:
"Last year you had three teams in the Big 12 who I thought were head and shoulders above everyone else at the start of the year - Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas. We were better than everyone else and it would have been hard for someone, over 16 games, to finish ahead of those three. I think you have three teams this year that are heads - maybe not head and shoulders, but heads - above the others. Kansas has four starters back. Missouri lost one guy but they may be better because of it. And Texas has seven of its top eight players back. On paper, those are the three best teams in the league. But I don't think those three teams may be as good as the top three teams last year. That gives everybody else some hope."

On the team's non-conference schedule:
"Nobody accused the ball coach at OU of being real smart. We've got the youngest and most inexperienced team we've ever had and we've probably got our toughest non-conference schedule. But I think it'll be good for this team. We may take some lumps early, but this isn't football where some early losses will take you out of something. Tulsa, Princeton, Connecticut, Michigan State and Purdue are all games you could lose if you don't play well. It's a tough schedule, but I look at it as a challenge."

On senior leadership:
"I've always been a big believer in your seniors. If this team is going to have a great year it's going to be because of our two seniors, Jason Detrick and Jabahri Brown. Period."

On freshman point guard Drew Lavender:
"I think his greatest allies will be the veterans. They do a good job of keeping him in line. The thing about this team I like is that it has a good chemistry about it. They care for each other. They all know that Drew is important to this team but they also know that he will be as good as they are. It's hard to get an assist if somebody doesn't score the basket. Drew's a good passer. But he's light years away from where he needs to be defensively. His intensity level comes and goes but that's why the veterans are so important. One day he'll be a veteran, but he's not now. He's a key, key part of this team even though he's never played a game for us."

On Lavender's basketball I.Q.:
"It's off the charts."

On how good of a free throw shooting team he'll have:
"Well, it depends on who's shooting the free throws. I've got a couple guys, who, if we can keep off the line, will make us a really good free throw shooting team. (laughing)"

On possibly running more this season:
"That's been an emphasis in practice - running ahead of the ball. We're trying to exhaust our opportunities in transition. But I don't want to make too big a deal about style of play. I want to win. If we score 60 and win or score 80 and win, that's fine as long as we win."

On how the team will be defensively:
"I'm excited about where this team can be defensively. I made a deal with this bunch and said, 'I'll let you go on offense if you do what I tell you on defense.' And they're trying. I'm really pleased with this team's effort, especially the last two or three days."

SENIOR GUARD JASON DETRICK

On playing again after a redshirt season:
"I'm real eager to get out there, play with my team again and be a part of this journey we're about to go on. It's going to be exciting and I'm very eager right now."

On the team's transition game:
"I think we'll get a lot more transition baskets this year. I think we've got better wing rebounders this year than we had last year, so we'll be able to push the ball up and try to get easier baskets."

On if the redshirt year made him a better player:
"It made me a lot better of a player. I spent a whole year lifting weights, shooting and working out every day. It helped a whole lot. I just try to stay humble. We're so deep that the minute I slip up and don't play hard, we've got three or four other guys who can step in and play just as well as me. I still try to work hard every day so I can be out there playing."

SENIOR CENTER JABAHRI BROWN

On the impression the new players have made:
"My impression has been one of excitement. It's going to be an exciting year. With a lot of young faces and a lot of fresh talent, it's going to be very interesting year."

On where he improved during the offseason:
"The areas in which I needed to improve most. First of all, I stayed in the weight room and I got a lot stronger and gained seven to eight pounds. Also, I stayed around this summer and worked on the offensive part of my game. I focused on the areas that will help this team and the journey it's about to take."

SOPHOMORE GUARD DE'ANGELO ALEXANDER

On whether he feels like a team leader despite being just a sophomore:
"I feel like a team leader. We don't have too many old guys. I'm trying to do for the young guys what Hollis (Price), Quannas (White) and Ebi (Ere) did for me last year and that's show the way, show what Sooner Basketball is all about and let them know what Coach wants."

SOPHOMORE FORWARD KEVIN BOOKOUT

On playing with so many new players:
"I'm excited. I feel more comfortable (than last year) because I know what's to come. De'Angelo and I can help out the young guys because we were just in that situation last year. I'm looking forward to having a great year."

On the differences for him between last year and this year:
"It's just a totally different feeling. Last year I didn't really know what to expect. I didn't know how tough preseason conditioning would be and I didn't know how crazy Coach Sampson's practices would be. This year I have a better idea and I just feel a lot more comfortable."

On the non-conference schedule:
"We play at Michigan State and UConn. We're going to get an opportunity early and it's going to help set a standard for us."

JUNIOR GUARD JAISON WILLIAMS

On playing with so many new players:
"Coach Sampson's teams are really close-knit. And playing against OU my freshman year (with Xavier), I saw that. I saw the family environment and that's something I wanted to be a part of."

On the type of player he is:
"I think I bring a lot of experience to the table, along with leadership and defense. I'm really trying to concentrate on that right now. I kind of do a lot of things within the team. I like to help the team. I want the team to win at all costs so I'll do whatever needs to be done."

On his role:
"I want to come off the bench and bring a lot of energy and spirit. Anything we need or anything that needs to be done, I'll do it."

On whether the team's youth will affect expectations:
"We want to win and we expect to win. We don't expect to lose. Being young is obvious, but that's not something we're going to fall back on."

University of Oklahoma Athletics

Sooners Field Questions at Men's Basketball Media Day

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