May 5, 2025 • 28 mins
The former assistant, now GM for UConn MBB, discusses the roster and the Huskies look to build a team going forward in the NIL/Portal Era
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Coach more will take questions about general manager things. Use
your hand, raise you ten for questions as usual. All right,
coach Floorsiers.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
Yeah, I guess the welcome everybody, and thank you for
being on the on the on the zoom today.
Speaker 3 (00:19):
I really appreciate your time. What we wanted to do
is talk about the.
Speaker 2 (00:26):
Recruiting and where we're going right now from this point
as we try to fill out the back end of
our roster. Coach Hurley is is very excited about the
ten guys that we have in the fold right now.
Really loves the makeup of the ten guys, how everything
(00:49):
is fallen to this point, both with the ink, the
freshman incoming, the transfers incoming, and the guys that we
have returning. He likes how the pieces fit and how
the roster has been put together. We're really trying to
be strategic and creative with how we put together the.
Speaker 3 (01:11):
Rest of the roster.
Speaker 2 (01:12):
We are targeting probably fourteen fifteen roster spots, and you know,
we'll be looking basically for depth at every position with
these last four or five spots on the roster. Obviously
a third string center is something will be will be targeting.
(01:37):
We looking for another wing, another combo guard, possibly a
combo forward.
Speaker 3 (01:46):
But we're trying.
Speaker 2 (01:47):
To be as strategic in this new age of potential
revenue sharing with finding people who are maybe overlooked in
the high school ranked foreign players and then maybe under
recruited transfers that is still in the portal.
Speaker 3 (02:08):
So with that said, they don't put it up to questions.
Speaker 1 (02:16):
David and Joe.
Speaker 4 (02:20):
Yeah, Tom, how tricky is it to bring in those
type of players you just mentioned to kind of fill
out the roster when you know, like you said, you
guys are really happy with kind of the ten guys
you got now, I know, the backup kind of center
guy will sort of be number eleven, I would assume.
But to bring in guys who it would seem both
(02:44):
parties would kind of probably understand there wouldn't be a
whole lot of playing kind of at least first right
off the bat, How do you kind of sell that
to some of these guys, or I mean, is that
an accurate statement to say what they probably You're probably
looking for guys who are more or less not going
to play too much this year.
Speaker 2 (03:01):
You hate to really limit somebody like that, Dave, Like
right out of the Chuot. You hope that you see
something in them where that if things break correctly for
the for that person, that they'd be able to find
a role. Sometimes, unfortunately things like that happen with an injury,
and you don't you don't ever want that, obviously.
Speaker 3 (03:22):
But.
Speaker 2 (03:24):
You know, we're looking at these guys as potential people
to help us, initially to your point, in practice to
make sure we have a high level practice on a
day in and day out basis, but then also potentially
helping us down the roads as upside guys, as somebody
who could maybe hit for us in year two or
(03:46):
year three. That was one of the things that hurt
us a little bit this year is we were a
little thin in terms of the depth past our top
nine or so, and especially in the five week period
where Liam was out of games and practices it it
didn't allow us to give a lot of practice reps
(04:08):
off from our heavy minute guys. So has had a
lot of minutes and Taris had a lot of reps
and Alex in particular had a lot.
Speaker 3 (04:17):
Of reps during that time.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
And we're hopeful that if we can get this thing
to fourteen or fifteen with really athletic and and some
you know, bring some athleticism and some length and some
you know energy into that. It can it could help
alleviate some of the high minute guys too as well
and eliminate some of the wear and tear that they
(04:40):
accrue during the course of the season.
Speaker 4 (04:43):
When you say the fourteen fifteen, I know the limit
is most likely going to get up to fifteen this year.
You're talking about scholarship guys, Well, you're not talking about
walk on.
Speaker 2 (04:53):
Yeah, it'll be I think it'll either be thirteen scholarships
or you know, depending on what the settlement settles on
roster size, it.
Speaker 3 (05:03):
Could get up to fifteen.
Speaker 2 (05:04):
But yeah, and even in the walk on spots, Dave,
you're always trying to that's a huge challenge, but you're
always trying to find someone who athletically and competitively can
like not only add to your practices, but also be
well liked and respected in the locker room too as well.
Speaker 5 (05:23):
Mch Hey, Tom is my mic working this time?
Speaker 3 (05:27):
Yep? I can hear you.
Speaker 6 (05:28):
John.
Speaker 5 (05:29):
When we talked to Dan right after the season ended,
he seemed, you know, he seemed really unsure about how
many players he was going to be able to bring
back and retain. Do you feel like you guys did
as you were expecting with retaining players and how that went,
and then also just going into the portal now how
I guess I'll just go with that one first.
Speaker 2 (05:48):
Yeah, I'd say Joe ovally happy with who came back.
I don't think we could have scripted it any better
in terms of the return and guys that we would
have wanted back. I mean, if you just said, you
know which, right, which?
Speaker 3 (06:03):
What do we have five coming back?
Speaker 2 (06:06):
Solo Stewie, Alex, Jay Ross and Taris like that, that
would have been exactly how we would have wanted it
to unfold. So we're thrilled with those guys coming back.
Not only are they terrific players, but they're terrific kids,
and they've they've tasted winning all but uh, the Tariffs
has a national championship here, so that that culture stays
(06:31):
tight and that that winning attitude stays tight. And so yeah,
we're thrilled with thrilled that they saw enough in us,
and they saw enough and and what was going on
here too, uh and and how special place Yukon is
that they wanted to come back.
Speaker 5 (06:50):
And when you when you went into the portal. It
seemed like you got kind of the main priorities out
of the way pretty early. I guess I wonder about
the NIL aspect of it with those guys. Was that
really not much of a factor with them, And how
difficult is it to navigate that with all the rules
that could be changing or could not be changing, or
whatever whatever's going on.
Speaker 2 (07:11):
The n i L aspect to what guys Joe, which
which guys are returning guys to?
Speaker 5 (07:16):
Yeah, the returning guys, and then just getting those two
guards off the portal, Yeah.
Speaker 2 (07:19):
Yeah, yeah, Well n i L is a huge part
of it of every decision right now, the incoming freshmen,
the transfers, and the returning players. This was really the
first off season where it because of revenue sharing, everybody
will be contracted next year if the rev sharing settlement
goes through like everyone expects it too, it'll be contracted
(07:42):
by the athletic department. So this was a fascinating recruiting spring,
I'd say because because of that and the discussion just
you know, having the n i L be not at
the forefront of every discussion, but but a part of
every discussion. With with kids, it adds another layer obviously
(08:05):
to our decision, you know, on on on how we
want the roster to look, but also every every recruits
decision too, Every recruit and his family have to make
a make a value judgment on on how much is
is n I L opportunity going to impact how I
you know, which way I want to go.
Speaker 3 (08:25):
So it's it's.
Speaker 2 (08:28):
Certainly tricky, and it's like I said, it's just another
element that you have to navigate. And you know, Joe,
you have to navigate it well too, right, You have
to do your research, you have to have a lot
of communication you have as a staff, and then you
have to also have a lot of communication with your
athletic department.
Speaker 3 (08:48):
Now and I can't.
Speaker 2 (08:51):
Say enough of how supportive Dave Benedict and Jason Beattiekofer
have been when it comes to that. We're we're we're
discussing cruits with them on a daily, if not hourly
basis at times, and they've been tremendously supportive as well.
We're gonna go Mike then Mark, Hey, Tom, Mike, how
(09:17):
are you good?
Speaker 3 (09:18):
How you doing good? What's that hat you get on?
We used? Oh?
Speaker 7 (09:22):
Okay, Pinehurst, I went and spread the ball all over
that place last last year.
Speaker 3 (09:28):
I was going to say, I didn't expect you to
take that down that track down, So no, no.
Speaker 7 (09:32):
I'm not ready for that. I'm not ready to do that.
Speaker 3 (09:34):
That's fine.
Speaker 7 (09:36):
I just wanted to pick your brain on like the
wild nature of working in college athletics and you know
you have this unique position within a with an elite program.
Could you go into a little bit more about just
the scope of your job year round? Obviously a lot
of today's discussion is very specific to roster building, but
(09:56):
you know the rev share angle. You you're kind of
at the intersection of basketball and business, it seems in
a lot of ways. Just wondering how in this role
you you hope to distinguish yourself and if you could
just explain all that's packed into it.
Speaker 4 (10:11):
Some of it.
Speaker 3 (10:12):
Yeah, good question, multi layered question.
Speaker 2 (10:16):
I've been I've been spending probably half of my time
in an assistant coaching role, in probably half my time
in a quasi GM position over the last three years.
Dan and I really saw we like to say, I
think we saw the need to it.
Speaker 3 (10:33):
It sort of smacked us all.
Speaker 2 (10:34):
In the face at the spring in the spring of
twenty twenty two when Tyreese Martin and RJ. Cole had
another year left of eligibility, but the r NIL wasn't
really a thing in the twenty one to twenty two season,
so they really didn't make any money off NIL, any
(10:54):
any sizeable amount of money, and they both turned down
and opportunity to come back because they had to just
start earning money as as as basketball players, because they
only have a finite amount of years all of these
kids in order to you know, earn money. So it
was then when I think Dan and me and Kamani
(11:16):
and Luke at the time were just like, we have
to start doing something with this. So my job in
the last couple of years has really been about donor
outreach and donor education to try to get our collective
to help in any way that I could get the
collective up and running and operational and flourishing. And it's
(11:39):
been mostly a fundraising job for me. In the GM
aspects of it, there are a lot of different ways
people are using the position, and some of you guys
on the call have have probably seen some colleges are
going with an NBA general manager or assistant general manager.
(12:00):
I know Cincinnati has done that. LSU has done that. Recently,
North Carolina hired an agent as you know, Saint Bonaventure
hired Woje. There's other places. NC State recently hired a
recruiting uh guy from the NBA who was a scout
in the NBA but used to be a sort of
(12:21):
a high school grassroots recruiting expert. You can, you can
use the position in a lot of different ways. And
I think uh Dan is so smart and and so
calculated and so ahead of the curve that he's got
a lot of things on his mind with how he
thinks this thing can look as we go forward. He
and I have talked quite a bit about how it
(12:45):
will be best served here.
Speaker 3 (12:47):
At Yukon and and what the role will look like.
Speaker 2 (12:51):
And we're trying to make sure we figure out that
am I is this something that that fits me the best?
Speaker 3 (12:56):
Too? And am I am I the best person for it?
You know, to be honest with you, So right.
Speaker 2 (13:01):
Now, the thing here entails a lot of fundraising, donor outreach,
a lot of scheduling, game scheduling, both high major games
in the by games, some roster you know, roster sort
of construction, a lot of talk between the athletic you know,
(13:26):
a sort of a goal between between our staff and
the athletic department. It's sort of a catch all, and
I think Dan and I are thinking about the position
as we sort of go through it and what we
think is essential and what we think isn't.
Speaker 3 (13:43):
One of the fascinating parts of it is.
Speaker 2 (13:47):
Trying to figure out, you know, is the generalman like
in some places, what they're doing with this thing is
the general managers are starting to run it or trying
to run it like a pro sports organization where their
office is also responsible for bringing in the talent and
basically the coaching staff is tasked with coaching the talent
(14:09):
that's brought in. Now that that is not the way
it's gonna look here. You know, obviously with Dan Hurley,
who's I think one of the best evaluators of talent
and one of the best constructor you know, roster construction
head coaches I've ever seen, and then with two recruiting
assistants like Kamani Young and Luke Murray, I mean that
(14:32):
that thing is is on lock, so we don't have
to really worry about that. So you know, we're looking
at it from a different angle and a different lens
right now where we sort of see the position as
a it's more of a like I said, a donor education,
a donor outreach, game scheduling, uh, dealings with the Big
(14:54):
East Conference on day to day issues there, and then
some oversight in our own basketball support staff, working with
our strength coach and trainer and medical team and academics
and sports information. And although Bobby's tough, I mean I
I can't really I can't really control Bobby. He's he's
(15:15):
tough for me to handle. He's tough because of the Mets.
He brings up the Mets all the time now that
they are on a roll. So uh, it's it's hard
to hard to get.
Speaker 3 (15:25):
Him get them back.
Speaker 4 (15:26):
Sorry did you say my name?
Speaker 3 (15:30):
But anyway, So yeah, that's that's the thing, Mike.
Speaker 2 (15:33):
It's it's sort of evolving and it's it's it's something
that again Dan and I are sort of discussing, feels like,
on a weekly basis on how we want the thing
to look.
Speaker 6 (15:43):
Yeah, excellent, thanks for sharing all.
Speaker 8 (15:45):
That, No problem, Hey, Tom Marcseno Biggie s Energy. Considering
Yukon's multifaceted recruiting strategy, are you guys exploring the possibility
of targeting players currently in the NBA draft process who
may withdraw and return to college, and how does that
potential avenue fit into what you discussed today for finalizing
the roster.
Speaker 2 (16:06):
H good question, Mark, No, I don't I don't see
that anymore.
Speaker 3 (16:11):
We we've.
Speaker 2 (16:14):
Uh, those young men that are in still in the
draft process and make them back to college will probably
command an extremely high nil value and we're not We're
not in that in that market anymore for the rest
of this you know, twenty five, twenty six rosters.
Speaker 3 (16:34):
So these these.
Speaker 2 (16:36):
Guys, I think our fans need to understand, uh, these
next four or five people that we bring in uh.
And I've been thinking a lot about this this weekend
in advance to this call. They're going to look drastically
different than maybe any other recruits that have come through
Yukon in the terms of who they're being recruited by
(16:59):
and what their profile is it. You know, you can
make a case that pretty much every kid who's come
in on scholarship in the last thirty forty years has
been probably recruited by a lot of high major schools,
and it's been an intense recruiting battle for us to
try to win. Even for the guys who ended up
falling into eleven, twelve or thirteenth man role and only
(17:22):
lasting a year or two and then transfer on the
way in, it was a fight.
Speaker 3 (17:27):
Now, what we're seeing is a lot of the.
Speaker 2 (17:30):
High major schools who pretty much have their roster set
in terms of the finances after eight, nine or ten,
guys have to really get creative with how they want.
Speaker 3 (17:42):
The bottom of the roster to look.
Speaker 2 (17:43):
So the profile coming in of these next three or
four guys may be really different than the profile of.
Speaker 3 (17:52):
Guys we've had over the years.
Speaker 2 (17:54):
So I don't expect, you know, for us to bring
in somebody who's put his name in the draft process
right now. That would be a huge splash. And that's
not where where we're looking right now.
Speaker 8 (18:08):
Thanks, thank you, Tom.
Speaker 4 (18:10):
No problem, Mark, We'll go uh a few more quick ones.
Speaker 1 (18:14):
See Anthony Jaden.
Speaker 6 (18:16):
Eric wrap it up, Hey, coach, tell you Tom. Question
for you talking a lot about roster construction, but in
terms of roster management, what happened with Darius Adams. Are
we going to see more players? Are we gonna see
fewer freshmen that actually get a lot of playing time
(18:37):
unless they're want and done.
Speaker 3 (18:41):
That's a that's a great question to Anthony it boy.
Speaker 2 (18:46):
I mean when I speak on this, I'm speaking for Ukon,
so I don't really want to speak for high.
Speaker 3 (18:50):
Made all speak for coaches in general.
Speaker 2 (18:56):
But the way we see it, it does feel like, well,
we we may get away from bringing in huge freshman classes.
I think the uh Dan and Luther mclinny fee like
they're gonna targeting probably a few more elite high school
prospects that have the potential to be one and done
(19:18):
and maybe less guys that will, you know, fill out
a class so we can sort of reevaluate at the
end of a year and maybe take one extra transfer.
So to your point, yeah, I mean I think you
may see us go all in on a one and
done or a few one and dons guys that we
(19:40):
see immediate impact guys, because let's face it, anyone who's
an immediate impact guy at at at a Yukon as
a freshman is probably going to be considered a one
and done type of player, like Steph and like Liam
and what Donovan could have done.
Speaker 3 (19:55):
You know, a couple of years ago.
Speaker 2 (19:57):
So yeah, I see us taking swing is that a
few more of those guys and trying to land one
and maybe not extending the classes deep year in and
year out as we have in the last couple classes.
So just because it seems like the portal and having
roster flexibility in the spring is more important than being
(20:21):
overloaded with numbers in an incoming freshman class.
Speaker 6 (20:27):
And just to just a quick follow up, how do
you manage expectations of these players? Because all of them
are very talented players, how do you manage those expectations?
I know that goes over to Coach Hurley's job, but
how do you manage them because you're helping bring them
in the front door, so to speak.
Speaker 3 (20:40):
Yeah, coach does a great job of being honest.
Speaker 2 (20:43):
I've never been around to you know, anyone who's gets
the heart of a matter with a recruit as well
as he does, and as tactfully as he does, and
as honestly as he does. He has very specific ideas
in mind as to how he wants the rush to
look and how he wants to use each of these
roster spots. So when he's sitting in front of a
(21:05):
kid and his parents, he's telling them exactly how he
sees the young man fitting. What can be tricky is
is you know, you're trying to secure a commitment from
a high school kid in June, July, August, September of
their senior year, and you have to project what the
roster is going to look like in the spring after
(21:26):
a season, and that can be tricky because when we're
sitting there talking to them in August to September and
we're trying to secure the commitment, we have an idea
in mind as to how all of our returning players
are going to play, and it's always generally positive that
it's going to be an upward trajectory for all of them.
(21:46):
This year, what happened in a couple of spots is
guys didn't progress like we thought and maybe weren't what
we thought, and they ended up transferring. And now we
have two open spots that we have to three open
spots that we have to now go get in the
portal that we didn't anticipate having to get when we
were talking to these kids last July and August.
Speaker 3 (22:09):
So it does become tricky.
Speaker 2 (22:11):
You need people who are who are in it for
like I said, not L I L, not nil centric,
not just bottom line dollar highest dollar amount centric and
people who are understanding that the roster may look one
way in July and August, and then it's going to
look different depending on how kids do during the year
(22:32):
in March and April.
Speaker 3 (22:35):
Thank you, no problem, Tony, Tom.
Speaker 9 (22:38):
How are you my friends good?
Speaker 3 (22:40):
What's up? Jaden?
Speaker 9 (22:41):
Nothing much? Not the much question for you now going
into this role full time after coming off the road
and being an assistant and doing double duty for the
last couple of years. How's the transition process been for
you the past couple of weeks month or so since
the season ended and Mike Narty came up on board,
And also to follow up, how much of a role
(23:02):
of you played with integrating Mic into the.
Speaker 2 (23:07):
It's been It's it's been interesting, still trying to figure
it out, and I'm still trying to get comfortable with it.
It's I'm trying to find that the challenges and and
and then get excited about the challenges and uh, it's
(23:27):
much more right now. Uh, Jayden, I'm heavily invested in
working out the buy games on the non conference schedule
and finalizing some of the other games in the in
the non conference schedule. We're finishing up all the nil
commitments to the guys on the twenty four to twenty
five roster and working through with agents and compact guys
(23:52):
in the twenty five twenty six roster. Trying again to
get better at everything, trying to grow, trying to expand,
and it's been uh it's not as much uh time
with with Dan Camani.
Speaker 3 (24:09):
Luke and and Mike around.
Speaker 2 (24:11):
The conference table as it is, you know, being in
my office and and doing other work, you know, more
as an individual. So I'm I'm getting used to that.
I see them in the morning, I see them throughout
the day, I see them at night. We talk constantly.
I'm through there all the time. But it's it's a
different perspective for sure. I haven't had a chance yet
(24:34):
with Mike. He's been here like a week. I haven't
had a chance yet with Mike to like really sit
down and go over a lot of stuff. But I
plan to and will very soon. But I'm excited about
his addition to the staff. I think he's been someone
who everyone in our organization has always held in really
really high esteem since he was running around for Kevin
(24:57):
Boyle at Saint Patrick's as a player and throughout his
college playing career, and then every interaction we've had with
him as on the road and when we've played Villanova
as an assistant coach has been nothing but first class
and professionals. So we think he's going to bring a
lot to the table.
Speaker 6 (25:15):
Sounds good.
Speaker 9 (25:16):
Thanks, So I'm always pleasure.
Speaker 3 (25:17):
Same, Jaden, Tom, Eric Dobrats.
Speaker 10 (25:20):
How are you, Bud?
Speaker 3 (25:21):
What's up?
Speaker 2 (25:22):
Eric?
Speaker 5 (25:22):
Hey?
Speaker 10 (25:23):
Quick question for you? How hard was it to give
up the whistle? We all know you for being on
the sidelines, you know, on the bench. You've been a
coach your whole life. I mean, I'm sure your family
was involved. Like, just take me through the process if
you could have of walking away from being a coach
something you've known your whole life.
Speaker 2 (25:39):
Yeah, it's interesting, Eric, It's it's sort of.
Speaker 3 (25:46):
You know, the last couple of years.
Speaker 2 (25:47):
As I've been doing both, Dan and I have talked
a lot about like should I just commit totally to one?
And the one I was leaning to that seemed to
sort of demand or demand more of my attention was
the GM duties. So it hasn't been a drastic cut off,
(26:08):
you know, emotionally for me, where it's just like all
of a sudden it's over. It's been something that I've
been gradually weaned off in the last couple of years.
So I think with Dan being such a strong head
coach in all aspects of the head coach seat and
what a great job he does on a day in
and day out basis, and then having Kamani and Luke
(26:29):
also there, I mean, you have is the best three
person combination you could have in those three spots in
the country. So it allowed me to feel pretty good
about committing more of my time and energies towards the
GM thing. So I was as you as you said.
I was at every practice, I was on the bench
every game. You know, I was still you know, I
(26:52):
felt okay with putting my focus and my energies on
the GM duties. So it's been okay. Yeah, it's been
all right. It's been something that I think is uh
is bad in a way, but it's also the same
time and it's I'm blessed to be a part to
(27:13):
be back here at Yukon, you know, and have it
come full circle because the place means so much to me, so.
Speaker 3 (27:20):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (27:22):
I think Mike had one last one and then We'll
let Tom go back to time. The Rangers play already
an action coach.
Speaker 2 (27:28):
We scored more than one run today, Bobby, so the
gram was on the hill too, so.
Speaker 4 (27:34):
That's more run support than he's used to. Yes, were
Rangers over the marriage right now?
Speaker 3 (27:40):
Okay, yeah, it was.
Speaker 2 (27:41):
It was six to one when I when I jumped
on here. So we haven't scored six runs in about
three weeks total, so we'll take it.
Speaker 7 (27:50):
Actually, Tom, the question I had remaining was just pretty
much asked by Eric, So I don't I don't need
to bug you too much.
Speaker 3 (27:57):
I am curious.
Speaker 7 (27:58):
Where will you be during games now?
Speaker 3 (28:01):
I'm not sure yet.
Speaker 2 (28:02):
I'm not sure, and I have there's a couple more
things we probably will discuss over the course of the
summer because we're both sort of exchanging ideas and and
and to see where what he wants it to look like,
you know exactly what he wants it to look like.
There's there's a lot of ways that you know, there's
there's a lot.
Speaker 3 (28:21):
Of ways we can go with the thing.
Speaker 2 (28:23):
So well, there's still some questions out there that that
remain to be like sort of work through, but we'll
get there.
Coach more will take questions about general manager things. Use
your hand, raise you ten for questions as usual. All right,
coach Floorsiers.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
Yeah, I guess the welcome everybody, and thank you for
being on the on the on the zoom today.
Speaker 3 (00:19):
I really appreciate your time. What we wanted to do
is talk about the.
Speaker 2 (00:26):
Recruiting and where we're going right now from this point
as we try to fill out the back end of
our roster. Coach Hurley is is very excited about the
ten guys that we have in the fold right now.
Really loves the makeup of the ten guys, how everything
(00:49):
is fallen to this point, both with the ink, the
freshman incoming, the transfers incoming, and the guys that we
have returning. He likes how the pieces fit and how
the roster has been put together. We're really trying to
be strategic and creative with how we put together the.
Speaker 3 (01:11):
Rest of the roster.
Speaker 2 (01:12):
We are targeting probably fourteen fifteen roster spots, and you know,
we'll be looking basically for depth at every position with
these last four or five spots on the roster. Obviously
a third string center is something will be will be targeting.
(01:37):
We looking for another wing, another combo guard, possibly a
combo forward.
Speaker 3 (01:46):
But we're trying.
Speaker 2 (01:47):
To be as strategic in this new age of potential
revenue sharing with finding people who are maybe overlooked in
the high school ranked foreign players and then maybe under
recruited transfers that is still in the portal.
Speaker 3 (02:08):
So with that said, they don't put it up to questions.
Speaker 1 (02:16):
David and Joe.
Speaker 4 (02:20):
Yeah, Tom, how tricky is it to bring in those
type of players you just mentioned to kind of fill
out the roster when you know, like you said, you
guys are really happy with kind of the ten guys
you got now, I know, the backup kind of center
guy will sort of be number eleven, I would assume.
But to bring in guys who it would seem both
(02:44):
parties would kind of probably understand there wouldn't be a
whole lot of playing kind of at least first right
off the bat, How do you kind of sell that
to some of these guys, or I mean, is that
an accurate statement to say what they probably You're probably
looking for guys who are more or less not going
to play too much this year.
Speaker 2 (03:01):
You hate to really limit somebody like that, Dave, Like
right out of the Chuot. You hope that you see
something in them where that if things break correctly for
the for that person, that they'd be able to find
a role. Sometimes, unfortunately things like that happen with an injury,
and you don't you don't ever want that, obviously.
Speaker 3 (03:22):
But.
Speaker 2 (03:24):
You know, we're looking at these guys as potential people
to help us, initially to your point, in practice to
make sure we have a high level practice on a
day in and day out basis, but then also potentially
helping us down the roads as upside guys, as somebody
who could maybe hit for us in year two or
(03:46):
year three. That was one of the things that hurt
us a little bit this year is we were a
little thin in terms of the depth past our top
nine or so, and especially in the five week period
where Liam was out of games and practices it it
didn't allow us to give a lot of practice reps
(04:08):
off from our heavy minute guys. So has had a
lot of minutes and Taris had a lot of reps
and Alex in particular had a lot.
Speaker 3 (04:17):
Of reps during that time.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
And we're hopeful that if we can get this thing
to fourteen or fifteen with really athletic and and some
you know, bring some athleticism and some length and some
you know energy into that. It can it could help
alleviate some of the high minute guys too as well
and eliminate some of the wear and tear that they
(04:40):
accrue during the course of the season.
Speaker 4 (04:43):
When you say the fourteen fifteen, I know the limit
is most likely going to get up to fifteen this year.
You're talking about scholarship guys, Well, you're not talking about
walk on.
Speaker 2 (04:53):
Yeah, it'll be I think it'll either be thirteen scholarships
or you know, depending on what the settlement settles on
roster size, it.
Speaker 3 (05:03):
Could get up to fifteen.
Speaker 2 (05:04):
But yeah, and even in the walk on spots, Dave,
you're always trying to that's a huge challenge, but you're
always trying to find someone who athletically and competitively can
like not only add to your practices, but also be
well liked and respected in the locker room too as well.
Speaker 5 (05:23):
Mch Hey, Tom is my mic working this time?
Speaker 3 (05:27):
Yep? I can hear you.
Speaker 6 (05:28):
John.
Speaker 5 (05:29):
When we talked to Dan right after the season ended,
he seemed, you know, he seemed really unsure about how
many players he was going to be able to bring
back and retain. Do you feel like you guys did
as you were expecting with retaining players and how that went,
and then also just going into the portal now how
I guess I'll just go with that one first.
Speaker 2 (05:48):
Yeah, I'd say Joe ovally happy with who came back.
I don't think we could have scripted it any better
in terms of the return and guys that we would
have wanted back. I mean, if you just said, you
know which, right, which?
Speaker 3 (06:03):
What do we have five coming back?
Speaker 2 (06:06):
Solo Stewie, Alex, Jay Ross and Taris like that, that
would have been exactly how we would have wanted it
to unfold. So we're thrilled with those guys coming back.
Not only are they terrific players, but they're terrific kids,
and they've they've tasted winning all but uh, the Tariffs
has a national championship here, so that that culture stays
(06:31):
tight and that that winning attitude stays tight. And so yeah,
we're thrilled with thrilled that they saw enough in us,
and they saw enough and and what was going on
here too, uh and and how special place Yukon is
that they wanted to come back.
Speaker 5 (06:50):
And when you when you went into the portal. It
seemed like you got kind of the main priorities out
of the way pretty early. I guess I wonder about
the NIL aspect of it with those guys. Was that
really not much of a factor with them, And how
difficult is it to navigate that with all the rules
that could be changing or could not be changing, or
whatever whatever's going on.
Speaker 2 (07:11):
The n i L aspect to what guys Joe, which
which guys are returning guys to?
Speaker 5 (07:16):
Yeah, the returning guys, and then just getting those two
guards off the portal, Yeah.
Speaker 2 (07:19):
Yeah, yeah, Well n i L is a huge part
of it of every decision right now, the incoming freshmen,
the transfers, and the returning players. This was really the
first off season where it because of revenue sharing, everybody
will be contracted next year if the rev sharing settlement
goes through like everyone expects it too, it'll be contracted
(07:42):
by the athletic department. So this was a fascinating recruiting spring,
I'd say because because of that and the discussion just
you know, having the n i L be not at
the forefront of every discussion, but but a part of
every discussion. With with kids, it adds another layer obviously
(08:05):
to our decision, you know, on on on how we
want the roster to look, but also every every recruits
decision too, Every recruit and his family have to make
a make a value judgment on on how much is
is n I L opportunity going to impact how I
you know, which way I want to go.
Speaker 3 (08:25):
So it's it's.
Speaker 2 (08:28):
Certainly tricky, and it's like I said, it's just another
element that you have to navigate. And you know, Joe,
you have to navigate it well too, right, You have
to do your research, you have to have a lot
of communication you have as a staff, and then you
have to also have a lot of communication with your
athletic department.
Speaker 3 (08:48):
Now and I can't.
Speaker 2 (08:51):
Say enough of how supportive Dave Benedict and Jason Beattiekofer
have been when it comes to that. We're we're we're
discussing cruits with them on a daily, if not hourly
basis at times, and they've been tremendously supportive as well.
We're gonna go Mike then Mark, Hey, Tom, Mike, how
(09:17):
are you good?
Speaker 3 (09:18):
How you doing good? What's that hat you get on?
We used? Oh?
Speaker 7 (09:22):
Okay, Pinehurst, I went and spread the ball all over
that place last last year.
Speaker 3 (09:28):
I was going to say, I didn't expect you to
take that down that track down, So no, no.
Speaker 7 (09:32):
I'm not ready for that. I'm not ready to do that.
Speaker 3 (09:34):
That's fine.
Speaker 7 (09:36):
I just wanted to pick your brain on like the
wild nature of working in college athletics and you know
you have this unique position within a with an elite program.
Could you go into a little bit more about just
the scope of your job year round? Obviously a lot
of today's discussion is very specific to roster building, but
(09:56):
you know the rev share angle. You you're kind of
at the intersection of basketball and business, it seems in
a lot of ways. Just wondering how in this role
you you hope to distinguish yourself and if you could
just explain all that's packed into it.
Speaker 4 (10:11):
Some of it.
Speaker 3 (10:12):
Yeah, good question, multi layered question.
Speaker 2 (10:16):
I've been I've been spending probably half of my time
in an assistant coaching role, in probably half my time
in a quasi GM position over the last three years.
Dan and I really saw we like to say, I
think we saw the need to it.
Speaker 3 (10:33):
It sort of smacked us all.
Speaker 2 (10:34):
In the face at the spring in the spring of
twenty twenty two when Tyreese Martin and RJ. Cole had
another year left of eligibility, but the r NIL wasn't
really a thing in the twenty one to twenty two season,
so they really didn't make any money off NIL, any
(10:54):
any sizeable amount of money, and they both turned down
and opportunity to come back because they had to just
start earning money as as as basketball players, because they
only have a finite amount of years all of these
kids in order to you know, earn money. So it
was then when I think Dan and me and Kamani
(11:16):
and Luke at the time were just like, we have
to start doing something with this. So my job in
the last couple of years has really been about donor
outreach and donor education to try to get our collective
to help in any way that I could get the
collective up and running and operational and flourishing. And it's
(11:39):
been mostly a fundraising job for me. In the GM
aspects of it, there are a lot of different ways
people are using the position, and some of you guys
on the call have have probably seen some colleges are
going with an NBA general manager or assistant general manager.
(12:00):
I know Cincinnati has done that. LSU has done that. Recently,
North Carolina hired an agent as you know, Saint Bonaventure
hired Woje. There's other places. NC State recently hired a
recruiting uh guy from the NBA who was a scout
in the NBA but used to be a sort of
(12:21):
a high school grassroots recruiting expert. You can, you can
use the position in a lot of different ways. And
I think uh Dan is so smart and and so
calculated and so ahead of the curve that he's got
a lot of things on his mind with how he
thinks this thing can look as we go forward. He
and I have talked quite a bit about how it
(12:45):
will be best served here.
Speaker 3 (12:47):
At Yukon and and what the role will look like.
Speaker 2 (12:51):
And we're trying to make sure we figure out that
am I is this something that that fits me the best?
Speaker 3 (12:56):
Too? And am I am I the best person for it?
You know, to be honest with you, So right.
Speaker 2 (13:01):
Now, the thing here entails a lot of fundraising, donor outreach,
a lot of scheduling, game scheduling, both high major games
in the by games, some roster you know, roster sort
of construction, a lot of talk between the athletic you know,
(13:26):
a sort of a goal between between our staff and
the athletic department. It's sort of a catch all, and
I think Dan and I are thinking about the position
as we sort of go through it and what we
think is essential and what we think isn't.
Speaker 3 (13:43):
One of the fascinating parts of it is.
Speaker 2 (13:47):
Trying to figure out, you know, is the generalman like
in some places, what they're doing with this thing is
the general managers are starting to run it or trying
to run it like a pro sports organization where their
office is also responsible for bringing in the talent and
basically the coaching staff is tasked with coaching the talent
(14:09):
that's brought in. Now that that is not the way
it's gonna look here. You know, obviously with Dan Hurley,
who's I think one of the best evaluators of talent
and one of the best constructor you know, roster construction
head coaches I've ever seen, and then with two recruiting
assistants like Kamani Young and Luke Murray, I mean that
(14:32):
that thing is is on lock, so we don't have
to really worry about that. So you know, we're looking
at it from a different angle and a different lens
right now where we sort of see the position as
a it's more of a like I said, a donor education,
a donor outreach, game scheduling, uh, dealings with the Big
(14:54):
East Conference on day to day issues there, and then
some oversight in our own basketball support staff, working with
our strength coach and trainer and medical team and academics
and sports information. And although Bobby's tough, I mean I
I can't really I can't really control Bobby. He's he's
(15:15):
tough for me to handle. He's tough because of the Mets.
He brings up the Mets all the time now that
they are on a roll. So uh, it's it's hard
to hard to get.
Speaker 3 (15:25):
Him get them back.
Speaker 4 (15:26):
Sorry did you say my name?
Speaker 3 (15:30):
But anyway, So yeah, that's that's the thing, Mike.
Speaker 2 (15:33):
It's it's sort of evolving and it's it's it's something
that again Dan and I are sort of discussing, feels like,
on a weekly basis on how we want the thing
to look.
Speaker 6 (15:43):
Yeah, excellent, thanks for sharing all.
Speaker 8 (15:45):
That, No problem, Hey, Tom Marcseno Biggie s Energy. Considering
Yukon's multifaceted recruiting strategy, are you guys exploring the possibility
of targeting players currently in the NBA draft process who
may withdraw and return to college, and how does that
potential avenue fit into what you discussed today for finalizing
the roster.
Speaker 2 (16:06):
H good question, Mark, No, I don't I don't see
that anymore.
Speaker 3 (16:11):
We we've.
Speaker 2 (16:14):
Uh, those young men that are in still in the
draft process and make them back to college will probably
command an extremely high nil value and we're not We're
not in that in that market anymore for the rest
of this you know, twenty five, twenty six rosters.
Speaker 3 (16:34):
So these these.
Speaker 2 (16:36):
Guys, I think our fans need to understand, uh, these
next four or five people that we bring in uh.
And I've been thinking a lot about this this weekend
in advance to this call. They're going to look drastically
different than maybe any other recruits that have come through
Yukon in the terms of who they're being recruited by
(16:59):
and what their profile is it. You know, you can
make a case that pretty much every kid who's come
in on scholarship in the last thirty forty years has
been probably recruited by a lot of high major schools,
and it's been an intense recruiting battle for us to
try to win. Even for the guys who ended up
falling into eleven, twelve or thirteenth man role and only
(17:22):
lasting a year or two and then transfer on the
way in, it was a fight.
Speaker 3 (17:27):
Now, what we're seeing is a lot of the.
Speaker 2 (17:30):
High major schools who pretty much have their roster set
in terms of the finances after eight, nine or ten,
guys have to really get creative with how they want.
Speaker 3 (17:42):
The bottom of the roster to look.
Speaker 2 (17:43):
So the profile coming in of these next three or
four guys may be really different than the profile of.
Speaker 3 (17:52):
Guys we've had over the years.
Speaker 2 (17:54):
So I don't expect, you know, for us to bring
in somebody who's put his name in the draft process
right now. That would be a huge splash. And that's
not where where we're looking right now.
Speaker 8 (18:08):
Thanks, thank you, Tom.
Speaker 4 (18:10):
No problem, Mark, We'll go uh a few more quick ones.
Speaker 1 (18:14):
See Anthony Jaden.
Speaker 6 (18:16):
Eric wrap it up, Hey, coach, tell you Tom. Question
for you talking a lot about roster construction, but in
terms of roster management, what happened with Darius Adams. Are
we going to see more players? Are we gonna see
fewer freshmen that actually get a lot of playing time
(18:37):
unless they're want and done.
Speaker 3 (18:41):
That's a that's a great question to Anthony it boy.
Speaker 2 (18:46):
I mean when I speak on this, I'm speaking for Ukon,
so I don't really want to speak for high.
Speaker 3 (18:50):
Made all speak for coaches in general.
Speaker 2 (18:56):
But the way we see it, it does feel like, well,
we we may get away from bringing in huge freshman classes.
I think the uh Dan and Luther mclinny fee like
they're gonna targeting probably a few more elite high school
prospects that have the potential to be one and done
(19:18):
and maybe less guys that will, you know, fill out
a class so we can sort of reevaluate at the
end of a year and maybe take one extra transfer.
So to your point, yeah, I mean I think you
may see us go all in on a one and
done or a few one and dons guys that we
(19:40):
see immediate impact guys, because let's face it, anyone who's
an immediate impact guy at at at a Yukon as
a freshman is probably going to be considered a one
and done type of player, like Steph and like Liam
and what Donovan could have done.
Speaker 3 (19:55):
You know, a couple of years ago.
Speaker 2 (19:57):
So yeah, I see us taking swing is that a
few more of those guys and trying to land one
and maybe not extending the classes deep year in and
year out as we have in the last couple classes.
So just because it seems like the portal and having
roster flexibility in the spring is more important than being
(20:21):
overloaded with numbers in an incoming freshman class.
Speaker 6 (20:27):
And just to just a quick follow up, how do
you manage expectations of these players? Because all of them
are very talented players, how do you manage those expectations?
I know that goes over to Coach Hurley's job, but
how do you manage them because you're helping bring them
in the front door, so to speak.
Speaker 3 (20:40):
Yeah, coach does a great job of being honest.
Speaker 2 (20:43):
I've never been around to you know, anyone who's gets
the heart of a matter with a recruit as well
as he does, and as tactfully as he does, and
as honestly as he does. He has very specific ideas
in mind as to how he wants the rush to
look and how he wants to use each of these
roster spots. So when he's sitting in front of a
(21:05):
kid and his parents, he's telling them exactly how he
sees the young man fitting. What can be tricky is
is you know, you're trying to secure a commitment from
a high school kid in June, July, August, September of
their senior year, and you have to project what the
roster is going to look like in the spring after
(21:26):
a season, and that can be tricky because when we're
sitting there talking to them in August to September and
we're trying to secure the commitment, we have an idea
in mind as to how all of our returning players
are going to play, and it's always generally positive that
it's going to be an upward trajectory for all of them.
(21:46):
This year, what happened in a couple of spots is
guys didn't progress like we thought and maybe weren't what
we thought, and they ended up transferring. And now we
have two open spots that we have to three open
spots that we have to now go get in the
portal that we didn't anticipate having to get when we
were talking to these kids last July and August.
Speaker 3 (22:09):
So it does become tricky.
Speaker 2 (22:11):
You need people who are who are in it for
like I said, not L I L, not nil centric,
not just bottom line dollar highest dollar amount centric and
people who are understanding that the roster may look one
way in July and August, and then it's going to
look different depending on how kids do during the year
(22:32):
in March and April.
Speaker 3 (22:35):
Thank you, no problem, Tony, Tom.
Speaker 9 (22:38):
How are you my friends good?
Speaker 3 (22:40):
What's up? Jaden?
Speaker 9 (22:41):
Nothing much? Not the much question for you now going
into this role full time after coming off the road
and being an assistant and doing double duty for the
last couple of years. How's the transition process been for
you the past couple of weeks month or so since
the season ended and Mike Narty came up on board,
And also to follow up, how much of a role
(23:02):
of you played with integrating Mic into the.
Speaker 2 (23:07):
It's been It's it's been interesting, still trying to figure
it out, and I'm still trying to get comfortable with it.
It's I'm trying to find that the challenges and and
and then get excited about the challenges and uh, it's
(23:27):
much more right now. Uh, Jayden, I'm heavily invested in
working out the buy games on the non conference schedule
and finalizing some of the other games in the in
the non conference schedule. We're finishing up all the nil
commitments to the guys on the twenty four to twenty
five roster and working through with agents and compact guys
(23:52):
in the twenty five twenty six roster. Trying again to
get better at everything, trying to grow, trying to expand,
and it's been uh it's not as much uh time
with with Dan Camani.
Speaker 3 (24:09):
Luke and and Mike around.
Speaker 2 (24:11):
The conference table as it is, you know, being in
my office and and doing other work, you know, more
as an individual. So I'm I'm getting used to that.
I see them in the morning, I see them throughout
the day, I see them at night. We talk constantly.
I'm through there all the time. But it's it's a
different perspective for sure. I haven't had a chance yet
(24:34):
with Mike. He's been here like a week. I haven't
had a chance yet with Mike to like really sit
down and go over a lot of stuff. But I
plan to and will very soon. But I'm excited about
his addition to the staff. I think he's been someone
who everyone in our organization has always held in really
really high esteem since he was running around for Kevin
(24:57):
Boyle at Saint Patrick's as a player and throughout his
college playing career, and then every interaction we've had with
him as on the road and when we've played Villanova
as an assistant coach has been nothing but first class
and professionals. So we think he's going to bring a
lot to the table.
Speaker 6 (25:15):
Sounds good.
Speaker 9 (25:16):
Thanks, So I'm always pleasure.
Speaker 3 (25:17):
Same, Jaden, Tom, Eric Dobrats.
Speaker 10 (25:20):
How are you, Bud?
Speaker 3 (25:21):
What's up?
Speaker 2 (25:22):
Eric?
Speaker 5 (25:22):
Hey?
Speaker 10 (25:23):
Quick question for you? How hard was it to give
up the whistle? We all know you for being on
the sidelines, you know, on the bench. You've been a
coach your whole life. I mean, I'm sure your family
was involved. Like, just take me through the process if
you could have of walking away from being a coach
something you've known your whole life.
Speaker 2 (25:39):
Yeah, it's interesting, Eric, It's it's sort of.
Speaker 3 (25:46):
You know, the last couple of years.
Speaker 2 (25:47):
As I've been doing both, Dan and I have talked
a lot about like should I just commit totally to one?
And the one I was leaning to that seemed to
sort of demand or demand more of my attention was
the GM duties. So it hasn't been a drastic cut off,
(26:08):
you know, emotionally for me, where it's just like all
of a sudden it's over. It's been something that I've
been gradually weaned off in the last couple of years.
So I think with Dan being such a strong head
coach in all aspects of the head coach seat and
what a great job he does on a day in
and day out basis, and then having Kamani and Luke
(26:29):
also there, I mean, you have is the best three
person combination you could have in those three spots in
the country. So it allowed me to feel pretty good
about committing more of my time and energies towards the
GM thing. So I was as you as you said.
I was at every practice, I was on the bench
every game. You know, I was still you know, I
(26:52):
felt okay with putting my focus and my energies on
the GM duties. So it's been okay. Yeah, it's been
all right. It's been something that I think is uh
is bad in a way, but it's also the same
time and it's I'm blessed to be a part to
(27:13):
be back here at Yukon, you know, and have it
come full circle because the place means so much to me, so.
Speaker 3 (27:20):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (27:22):
I think Mike had one last one and then We'll
let Tom go back to time. The Rangers play already
an action coach.
Speaker 2 (27:28):
We scored more than one run today, Bobby, so the
gram was on the hill too, so.
Speaker 4 (27:34):
That's more run support than he's used to. Yes, were
Rangers over the marriage right now?
Speaker 3 (27:40):
Okay, yeah, it was.
Speaker 2 (27:41):
It was six to one when I when I jumped
on here. So we haven't scored six runs in about
three weeks total, so we'll take it.
Speaker 7 (27:50):
Actually, Tom, the question I had remaining was just pretty
much asked by Eric, So I don't I don't need
to bug you too much.
Speaker 3 (27:57):
I am curious.
Speaker 7 (27:58):
Where will you be during games now?
Speaker 3 (28:01):
I'm not sure yet.
Speaker 2 (28:02):
I'm not sure, and I have there's a couple more
things we probably will discuss over the course of the
summer because we're both sort of exchanging ideas and and
and to see where what he wants it to look like,
you know exactly what he wants it to look like.
There's there's a lot of ways that you know, there's
there's a lot.
Speaker 3 (28:21):
Of ways we can go with the thing.
Speaker 2 (28:23):
So well, there's still some questions out there that that
remain to be like sort of work through, but we'll
get there.
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