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Posted: Wednesday November 06, 2002 7:05 PM Arkansas Razorbacks
The following preview is provided by Blue Ribbon. For the most thorough preview available of the upcoming season, order the 2002-03 Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook, on sale now at 1-800-775-2518. Team Preview | Blue Ribbon Analysis
After 17 mostly successful seasons as Arkansas coach, Nolan Richardson deserved a better exit than the one he received last March. But once he went public with the frustrations of a losing season, publicly railing on the media and twice inviting his athletic director and chancellor to buy out his contract, Richardson’s bosses took him up on the offer. When Arkansas forked over millions to compel Richardson to go away, the end of an era that saw Arkansas take up residence with the game’s elite programs and helped transform Southeastern Conference basketball ended shockingly and suddenly. But many in Razorback country thought the program might have needed a little new blood. And after Richardson made it oh-so-convenient for his superiors to cut him loose, new blood is exactly what Arkansas got. There are those who believe that Stan Heath, considering he had all of one season as a head coach behind him when he was hired, isn’t ready to take over a program the likes of Arkansas. This despite his record-setting 2001-02 debut season at Kent State, when he led the Golden Flashes to a 30-6 record. People who know Heath don’t share that opinion. "Arkansas has made a great selection in making Stan Heath its next head coach," said Michigan State coach Tom Izzo, Heath’s boss for five years. "He was a part of four straight Big Ten championships, three straight Final Fours and a national championship, so he has a blueprint and an understanding of what it takes to be successful. This past year, he took over a Kent State program that had high expectations, yet he found a way to exceed the expectations by winning championships and advancing to the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight.
"Stan has a great basketball mind and relates very well with kids. He’s a people person, while also being well organized with an understanding of what he needs to do to accomplish his goals. I’ve watched him grow this year and I know he is ready to take over a tradition-rich Arkansas basketball program." As for Heath, who couldn’t believe his good fortune after the remarkable sequence of events that landed him one of the top jobs in the country, he declares himself ready. "I wouldn't be here if I didn't think I could do it," Heath said. To be sure, Heath learned his lessons well under Izzo. He turned Kent State into an Elite Eight team by paying careful attention, as his old boss does, to the blue-collar and mental sides of the game. Heath swears by rebounding, hard-nosed defense and taking care of the basketball. And just in case his players aren’t thrilled about those mundane tasks, Heath throws in a fast-paced offense to keep them and the fans entertained. No one, not even Heath, is expecting a drastic reversal of fortune at Arkansas in his first year on the job. After Richardson’s departure, the Hogs lost a key player in gifted freshman wing J.J. Sullinger, who transferred to Ohio State, reserve forward Berry Jordan and two key recruits. Opting out of their signed scholarship papers were consensus top 30 forward Andre Iguodala, who later signed with Arizona, and 6-foot-7 forward Brandon Tobias, who followed former Arkansas assistant Mike Anderson to UAB. The loss of Jordan won’t hurt, but Heath would have loved to have Iguodala and Sullinger as his wings and the aggressive rebounding Tobias in his frontcourt. Heath threw himself into recruiting as soon as he was hired. But his efforts to land a big man came up short. Heath was able to replenish his depleted backcourt, though the experience of departed seniors Brandon Dean, Teddy Gipson, Jannero Pargo and T.J. Cleveland will be missed. Thus, Heath begins the season with two returning starters and six other holdovers from a team that compiled Arkansas’ first losing record since the 1985-86 season. To that mix, he’ll add five freshmen, three recruited by Richardson’s staff. Heath knows full well what he’s up against. "Throughout the season, we know there are several questions that need to be answered," Heath said. "The Southeastern Conference has outstanding players as well as very good coaching. We're hoping our six returning seniors will help our young guys come around and help them understand the competitiveness and hard work necessary to contend in this league." In returning starters Dionisio Gomez and Larry Satchell and reserves Carl Baker, Blake Eddins, Michael Jones and Alonzo Lane, Heath has an experienced, if not overly talented, nucleus. Heath figures to get more out of big men Gomez (5.1 ppg, 5.0) rpg), a 6-foot-8 senior; Satchell (2.8 ppg, 2.8 rpg), a 6-foot-9 senior; Lane (3.7 ppg, 2.2 rpg), a 6-foot-7 senior; and Baker (3.8 ppg, 2.8 rpg), a 6-foot-8 senior, than the previous staff did, if only because their low-post scoring skills and rebounding will be more developed. Last spring, for the first time in their Arkansas careers, that foursome worked with coaches in NCAA-approved individual drills. Richardson didn’t emphasize that extra practice, but Heath does. The back-to-basics quality time spent with the big men should pay off. None of the quartet, save Gomez, a fifth-year senior, has shown marked improvement in their careers, but all have skills. "We have several players -- Dionisio Gomez, Carl Baker and Mike Jones -- who can play inside or out," Heath said. "We also have an inside presence with Larry Satchell as a rebounder and Alonzo Lane as a scorer." Eddins (0.9 ppg, 1.1 rpg), a 6-foot-7 senior, has played sporadically in his career. Eddins started several games and played key minutes as a freshman. Last year he earned two starts and appeared in 26 games but for an average of only 6.2 minutes. Eddins, a gritty competitor and a decent shooter, could be a worthwhile reclamation project for Heath. Heath might also get some use out of Matt Jones (4.2 ppg, 2.3 rpg) when the 6-foot-6 sophomore finishes his duty with the Arkansas football team. That might not be until January, however. Jones, who won the Hogs’ starting quarterback job last season and also started twice for Richardson, is a great athlete who can rebound and get to the rim in a hurry for impressive dunks. Arkansas’ newcomers will have to get ready to play in a hurry. "A big key would be the emergence of our younger players and how they adapt to the challenge of the SEC," Heath said. "They have the talent and competitive nature to compete. The class as a whole is solid and capable of competing at this level. The maturity they display will determine our success." With such glaring needs at guard, it was imperative that Heath sign some backcourt players in the spring. Despite a late start, he brought in two combo guards who will be asked to play right away. Eric Ferguson, 6-foot-2, averaged 16.0 points, six rebounds and seven assists last season for Milford (Conn.) Academy. The season before that, he averaged 22.5 points, nine rebounds, 5.5 assists and 5.5 steals for Hempstead (N.Y.) High School. "Eric is a point guard who has a lot of leadership qualities and brings a lot of toughness with his game," Heath told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. "With his background in New York, playing against some of the best players around, it has helped prepare him to compete at this level." Heath also signed 6-foot-3 Kendrick Davis from Clements High School in Sugar Land, Texas. Davis, a first-team all-state pick, averaged 30 points and five assists in 2001-02. He set a school record for 3-point goals (128) and shot 45 percent from behind the arc last season. "Kendrick is a combo guard with strong play-making ability and good court savvy," Heath said. "He’s 6-foot-3, which is good size for a guard. He is a good 3-point shooter and he has the ability to get in the lane and create. He changes speeds well, which keeps defenders off-balance. His size and quickness allow him to be a good defender." In the November signing period, Richardson’s staff signed 6-foot-4 guard Jonathan Modica and forwards Wenbos Mukubu (6-foot-5) and Rashard Sullivan (6-foot-9). Modica, who averaged 32.9 points and 10.6 rebounds for Smackover (Ark.) High School, was chosen as the No. 25 player in the country by recruiting analyst Bob Gibbons. He was generally considered the best player in Arkansas. Mukubu averaged 19.0 points and 13 rebounds for Miami Beach (Fla.) High School. He’s a great athlete who has a 41-inch vertical leap. He set the Florida high school record in the long jump (7-1) and was also a defensive end talented enough to be recruited by traditional football powers Miami, Florida State and Florida. Mukubu plans to compete for Arkansas’ national-power track team. Sullivan could find a lot of work in the frontcourt. He has a huge wingspan and is a quick jumper, making him an excellent shot-blocker. He blocked five per game last season for St. Thomas Aquinas in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to go along with his averages of 15 points and 12 boards. It will seem strange when Heath takes the sideline for his first game at Arkansas. Richardson had become so closely identified with the program over the past 17 seasons that it doesn’t seem possible he’s no longer around. But some ill-timed remarks and the lack of patience of Arkansas fans and his bosses led to Richardson’s ouster. In his place comes Heath, fresh off one of the more impressive debut seasons by a head coach in the game’s history. Can Heath work the same kind of magic at Arkansas as he did at Kent State? In a word, no. Not in his first season at least. Arkansas wasn’t overloaded with talent anyway, and the defection of a gifted freshman and two outstanding recruits after Richardson’s ouster didn’t help matters. What Heath has to work with is a bunch of mid-level SEC players and a quintet of recruits, many of whom will have to make key contributions this season. Clearly, Arkansas won’t be able to win games by simply showing up. There are no stars on this roster, at least not among the returning veterans. But Heath does have plenty of bodies to juggle around. "Our strengths lie in our balance and depth," Heath said. "We're hoping a few players emerge as go-to guys, but if not, we have the ability to do it in a collective way.'' Not that Heath doesn’t want someone to step forward. He’d love for a star or a leader to emerge. Toward that end, Heath will ask a lot from his seniors. "We expect Carl, Dionisio, Alonzo Lane and Blake Eddins to be leaders and tone-setters for the season," Heath said. "With the loss of Pargo and Dean, it's important that a few guys step up on and off the court and pave the way for our other players to follow." Don’t look for any miracles in Heath’s first season. But already he’s interjected new life into the program. Heath will work hard at recruiting and continue to learn on the job as he enters his second year as a head coach. Not that Heath is unprepared. But for all he learned from former boss Izzo, it’s going to take Heath a couple of years to get Arkansas turned around. |
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