Sioux Falls Skyforce open season with NBA talent, experience and versatility
Continuity isn’t always an easy thing to foster in the minor leagues, but the Skyforce might have enough to give them a head start on a productive 2022-23 NBA G-League campaign they hope can lead to wins on the court and the advancement of their players’ careers.
It starts with coach Kasib Powell, who returns for his second year at the helm after guiding Sioux Falls to a 14-21 record last year.
The former New York Knick and Skyforce player and assistant made his debut as the man in charge last year, and brings back guards DJ Stewart, Chandler Hutchison and Mychal Mulder, while also welcoming back a familiar face in big man Kadeem Jack. Hutchison has played 103 career games in the NBA; Mulder has played in 83.
That foursome forms the foundation of a team Powell thinks has the personnel and attitude to come together sooner than later, which they hope will make the parent club in Miami happy while putting a quality product on the floor for Sioux Falls basketball fans.
The Force got off to a rough start last year, which Powell admits he didn’t handle especially well as a rookie coach. And this year’s team heads straight into the regular season without any preseason games. They open with a pair of road games in Iowa over the weekend, where Powell will get started on finding out just what kind of team he has and what they can do. The home opener is Nov. 10.
“We’ll be learning a lot about ourselves in the first couple games, figuring out what we have, what we like and trying to get a grasp of what works,” Powell said. “We wanted to have enough put in (before the opener) to be ready for any circumstance, and we just want to be able to compete at a high level. It’ll be a learning experience – the good thing is we’re super competitive. I know we’re gonna play hard.”
Among the newcomers are guard Jamaree Bouyea and 7-foot Fresno State alum Orlando Robinson, who were both in Miami’s training camp this preseason, while guard Dru Smith and 6-7 forward Jamal Cain are two-way players who open the season with the Heat but could see time in Sioux Falls. Former Kansas Jayhawk Marcus Garrett will provide added depth to the backcourt, while Maverick Rowan, a 26-year-old 6-7 forward from North Carolina State, made the roster from a tryout.
Powell said he’s still learning what combinations and lineups will work, but the versatility of the roster will give them up to eight players who can carry the load offensively at times.
They’ll still lean on their returners, though, led by Stewart, who averaged 19.7 points last year, spent time on the roster with San Antonio and was in camp this fall with Dallas. The Mississippi State alum feels like he’s closing in on getting to the NBA permanently, and hopes he can show his teammates the way while in Sioux Falls.
“Every team in the NBA has a superstar, you’re not gonna go in there and score 20 a game,” Stewart said. “You have to find your niche, find out what a team needs and show them you can do that, and then they’ll keep you. So for me that means being a more vocal leader and being a better all-around teammate. My game kind of takes care of itself. I want to do the things that helps this team win and helps these guys get better.”
That’s what Powell likes to hear. He and his staff preach not only playing team basketball and finding a role, but celebrating the success of teammates. Buy-in is important, Powell says, and those who don’t won’t last. He vows to take a more even-keeled approach than he did as a rookie coach, when he admits the losses, especially early, gnawed at him too much.
This year Powell seems to be carrying himself with a palpable patience, and a confidence that if the Skyforce don’t find their identity right away, they will soon enough.
“We try to mirror (the Heat) and everything they do, but we also have to kind of figure out who you are as the season goes on,” Powell said. “Right now that niche is being a fast-paced, get-up-the-floor and play defense kind of team. But that could change as we move forward. As long as we do everything we do together and the guys buy-in and mesh together we’ll be happy with the results.”
This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Sioux Falls Skyforce open season with NBA talent and experience
