Loosening Clemson
New coach brings fresh start to five Tiger seniors
Posted: Monday October 19, 1998 06:20 PM
CLEMSON, South Carolina (AP) -- Clemson forward Harold Jamison sees a clear difference between his old coach Rick Barnes and his new one, former Barnes assistant Larry Shyatt.
Where Barnes would sit you down for a poor shot -- and sit you down and sit you down -- Jamison said Tuesday that Shyatt wants his players to attack ferociously and sometimes take a shot that doesn't look pretty.
Under Barnes, that meant several minutes in the doghouse for the offender.
"Instead of playing and having fun, everyone was worried about making mistakes that would reduce their playing time," said Jamison, one of five Clemson seniors this year.
Jamison was one of the most likely to wind up on the bench after a crazy shot. It always included a lecture from Barnes, who left in April for Texas after four seasons at Clemson.
"It did have an effect on me," said Jamison, who led Clemson in field goal percentage, but averaged fewer than 10 points a game. "I always wanted to be on the court and make something happen. After a while, I guess you just have to play."
Shyatt has told the players to attack on offense, sometimes going for a shot in the first six seconds of a possession. That's a long way from Barnes' first year in 1994-95, when the Tigers would pass constantly and use nearly all the shot clock before shooting.
"A non-perfect shot is better than a turnover," Shyatt said.
Center Tom Wideman appreciates the new offensive freedom, which he said is "not in plays, but to get moving and look for opportunities."
Shyatt was a college assistant for 23 years, including nine with Barnes at Providence and Clemson. He left the Tigers in 1998 for the head job at Wyoming, where he went 19-9 and made the National Invitation Tournament.
When athletics director Bobby Robinson contacted him about the Tigers' job in April, Shyatt barely hesitated in saying, "Yes."
He has recruited and coached most everyone on his roster, but said he spent his first two months listening to players' concerns without making judgments from his three years with them.
"I wanted to give them a chance for a fresh start," Shyatt said.
With leading scorer Greg Buckner gone to the NBA, Shyatt will be without a quarter of last season's offense. He's not concerned.
"We can always find a hero on the offensive end if we have an attack mentality and a fearlessness," he said.
Where he and Barnes share a passion is in defensive details. He wants the Tigers to chase hard after loose balls and front defenders with abandon. A summer workout program increased his players' aerobic ability and Shyatt hopes that will make the difference in the final few minutes of a close Atlantic Coast Conference game.
"I want our players to know that on our worst night offensively, we can still win," Shyatt said.
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