Colorado men's basketball notes: Veterans look to fill Buffs' leadership void
Sep. 27—For the past five seasons, leadership on the floor and in the locker room was the least of coach Tad Boyle's concerns with the Colorado men's basketball team.
From the moment former point guard McKinley Wright IV arrived on campus in 2017, the Buffaloes had a floor general who wasn't shy about voicing his opinion in a tense in-game huddle. The same could be said of Evan Battey, whose sturdy shoulders absorbed the full burden of the leadership duties last year without Wright.
With Battey gone as well, a Buffs team that appears to have an intriguing assemblage of pieces on the floor will be trying to find a voice to lead the way as preseason practice opened on Monday morning.
"Now it being my second year, I know a lot more," sophomore point guard KJ Simpson said. "Having to play with Ev and learning so much from McKinley — I talk to him a lot — I feel like I've learned a lot and I've absorbed their knowledge. I feel like I'm ready to lead, as well as with other guys. One person doesn't lead, the whole team can lead. But I feel my role as a leader has to step up."
Juniors Tristan da Silva and Nique Clifford have played more basketball for the Buffs than anyone else on the roster, but both players have quieter, more reserved personalities than the fiery Wright or the emotional Battey. Simpson, the presumptive point guard, plays the leadership position on the court and owns a more outgoing demeanor, but he also started just one game last year while coming off the bench for 31.
CU boasts two older players in graduate transfers Jalen Gabbidon and Ethan Wright, but they still are finding their way around campus and might not have a greater locker room influence until deeper into the season.
"You've just got to be a little more vocal," said another of CU's veterans, junior wing Luke O'Brien. "Freshman and sophomore year I was looking up to guys like Ev, D'Shawn (Schwartz), Kin and those guys. Now it's my turn to be a vocal guy, make sure everyone is doing their thing and being on top of stuff. From a leadership standpoint, I've just got to make sure everybody else is OK, not just myself."
Big commit
As the Buffs got to work on their 2022-23 season, the Buffs also received a welcome commitment for the 2023-24 squad.
First reported by 247Sports.com, CU received a verbal commitment from Courtney Anderson Jr., a 6-foot-5 combo guard out of Dublin High School in Northern California. A three-star guard who is ranked as the No. 166 prospect in the nation by 247Sports, Anderson is the first commitment for CU's class of 2023. Although additional scholarships tend to open up every spring, on paper the Buffs have just two spots to fill for 2023 to replace Gabbidon and Wright, the only seniors on the 2022-23 roster.
Walk-on add-on
The Buffs made a late addition to their walk-on contingent with former Holyoke High School guard Ethan Johnson.
A second-team CHSAA Class 2A all-state selection last year at Holyoke, Johnson is a 6-foot guard who averaged 18.6 points as a senior. Johnson's addition gives the Buffs five walk-ons going into the season, joining holdovers Amondo Miller and Cody Mains, along with newcomers Harrison Carrington and Monarch graduate Greg Gerhardt.
Open practice
CU plans to open the CU Events Center doors to the public (and for free) for its workout on Oct. 15 ahead of the home football game against Cal. The exact time will be determined after the kickoff time is released next week, but in years past it generally has started two to three hours ahead of kickoff.
