Kickoff time in Miami
Posted: Friday October 23, 1998 04:22 PM
Sports Illustrated's B.J. Schecter checks in with the first in a series of glances around the college basketball scene.
October 9, 1998: Miami,
Fla.
TEAM: Miami
Hurricanes
VENUE:
Miami Arena
(15,388)
`97-98 record:
18-10 (lost in first round of NCAAs to UCLA,
65-62)
PREDICTED `98-99
STARTERS: G Michael Simmons, G Johnny Hemsley, F Tim James, F Elton
Tyler, C Mario
Bland.
OBSERVATIONS: Two pieces of advice for anyone wishing to talk about
college basketball before practice has actually started:
never ask a coach how good his team is going to be,
especially someone as surly as Hurricanes coach Leonard
Hamilton ; and don't bother
talking basketball in the state of Florida before football season
ends.
I figured I could easily squeeze some basketball interviews
in between my work at the Miami-Florida State football
game. What with Miami's football team in a down cycle and
the
Hurricanes hoopsters coming off their first trip to the NCAA
tournament in 38 years, surely there would be some
anticipation for
hoops.
Think again. Although Miami clearly had no chance to beat
the Seminoles, football was all anyone on campus wanted to
talk about. Basketball? The Hurricanes don't even have an
on-campus
arena. Even Hamilton was buying into the hype. When I called up
basketball SID Sam Henderson to set up interviews for the
day before the football game he informed me the players
wouldn't be a problem. But Hamilton? Oh, Leonard will be
out of town on Friday,
Henderson informed me, but he'll be at the game on Saturday
if I wanted to interview him
there.
How strange. If I want to talk basketball with the Miami
basketball coach I have to do it at a football
game.
The lack of interest notwithstanding, Miami figures
to be even better than last year's tournament team. Tim
James , Miami's 6'7" multidimensional senior forward
epitomizes the Hurricanes' buzzwords for success: hard-working,
overachieving and
determined. Growing up in Miami, James was a highly recruited high
school player who heard the choruses of
"Why in the world would you want to go there?"
when he signed with the Hurricanes in 1994. Three years
later, James became Miami's first All-Big
East player, and if he has another year like the last, the
Hurricanes could have their first NBA first-round draft
pick since Rick
Barry in
1965.
While James is Miami's quiet star, its vocal and
inspirational leader is 6'6", 265-pound junior center
Mario Bland. Yes, Bland really is a center, and to say Bland
knows how to use his body is an understatement. "If I
don't put a lot of body on my guy, I
don't get the rebound. Period," he says. Give Mario
points for heart and
fundamentals.
Miami's biggest question heading into the `97-98
season -- other than "When does football season
end?" -- is at point guard where it loses four-year
starter Kevin Norris. Michael Simmons and Paulo Coelho
figure to be ample replacements but they're not likely
to help improve the
Hurricanes' sputtering offense immediately.
Things are starting to
look up for the Miami basketball program. An arena is under
construction in Coral Gables and the influx of talent is improving.
Excitement is bound to pick up for Hamilton's crew -- just
don't try and talk about the team during football
season.
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