Ben Criddle talks BYU sports every weekday from 2 to 6 pm.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome macnus of marches right around the corner and the
Cougars are.
Speaker 2 (00:04):
In the metal level.
Speaker 1 (00:05):
It's time to talk some college basketball on Cougar Sports
with Ben Cribbins.
Speaker 3 (00:11):
Welcome back with your sports photo.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
PREE nine ninety boys re ESPN the fan up at
Turtle Badcasting from our Vanderwelth Studios, Banterwealth dot com. Get
on a pree Q and a no obligation doing BESTQNA
with our tax more wealth advisors, certify financial planners.
Speaker 3 (00:22):
Let's band together build wealth.
Speaker 1 (00:24):
Stable and sustainable financial positions and options are always available
at Vanderwealth, Banterwealth dot comed. He's noted for a little
college basketball segment. I know it's football season I and
we're getting ready for the Week one kickoff, but look,
KYU is always at the tip of our tongues. I've
been chatting with a lot of Cougar fames and they
are always wanting to stay up to date on BYU basketball.
(00:45):
So we're gonna be giving you basketball content throughout the
football season and delve into it every single week. It's
gonna be brought to you by Orthopros of Utah and
American Fork. If you're looking to stay healthy and strong
throughout the long and orgies high school football season. Maybe
got an offensive or defensivelignment within the walls of your home.
Breaks up their knees. There's there's ankles, those wrists, those elbows.
(01:07):
Sometimes you tape, you may want to brace instead brace.
Taping loses its elasticity and tensile strength as you sweat
ten to fifteen minutes into your activity, So you may
want to brace instead of biomechanical support that keeps you
on the field of play and reduces injury. At Orthopos
of Utah, we can put out to your insurance or
(01:27):
you can utilize an HSAFSA card.
Speaker 3 (01:29):
Let's get out to the hotline.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
Welcome and former by you bucket together the Brazilian bomber
six eight two hundred and fifteen pounds of solid muscle.
Speaker 3 (01:37):
Let's welcome in Jonathan Tabinar to the show. What's up? JT?
Speaker 2 (01:41):
Man? You know a little dreary, getting cold in the mornings.
It is it is falling football weather, my friend.
Speaker 3 (01:49):
I know, man, I love, I love that we got moisture.
Speaker 1 (01:53):
I said my prayers all this last week and I've
been praying for more moisture. We finally got it a
little bit of moisture along the way off that front,
and it started to cool down a little bit. I
love fall weather. I love getting a little moisture in
those mountains. We needed to clear out all the muck
in the air. But basketball season right around the corner
as well, not too far off from hoop season. What
(02:13):
have you been keeping your eye on in relation to
the basketball squad right now as they continue to you know,
practice and install and get their squad ready for.
Speaker 3 (02:22):
The tip off.
Speaker 2 (02:24):
Well, I'm gonna answer that right away. But first of all,
first things first, Benjamin, congratulations on being sealed to your family.
My friend, that way man, A beautiful thing. I saw
the polls I shared with Kiri. We started crying. What
a beautiful thing. And you know, COVID was a wild
time man, and you know, I know how busy you
(02:46):
are and just things happen, and what a fantastic thing
for you and the missus and the family. So first
things for is my brother, congratulations.
Speaker 3 (02:54):
No, I appreciate that.
Speaker 1 (02:55):
And you know I don't divulge too much of my
personal life on the show. Oh, but I figured this
one was one that we needed to kind of share
with everybody, because everyone has a unique path that they
that they tread in this life. And you know, for us,
we got married during COVID and we did get busy,
there's no doubt.
Speaker 3 (03:13):
And then there was another component.
Speaker 1 (03:15):
So like you know, Brooke had been married very early
in her in her life, you know, twenty years old,
you know, one of those early marriages, and it just
didn't work out. It was it was short lived, she
didn't have any kids, and so there was that component
two that kind.
Speaker 3 (03:28):
Of delayed I think the ceiling.
Speaker 1 (03:30):
And so you know, I just want everybody to know that,
like you know, in your individual path to maybe ceiling
or certain covenants, and it doesn't have to be the
traditional linear path that most people are advised to take.
There are undulations in life. And I'll tell you what
it was so special the reason why I loved this
(03:51):
particular path for us. I can't tell you how emotional
I got when I was kneeling across the altar with
my four year year old and my two year old
that are cognizant and and and they they they may remember.
Speaker 3 (04:06):
I think the four year old will remember.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
They were holding hands across the altar and we were
sealed to them. You know, if they had been just
born into the covenant and we had accelerated this ceiling,
I wouldn't have had that extremely spiritual, impactful moment with
my children across the altar.
Speaker 3 (04:23):
So like I'm not saying one ways better than the other.
Speaker 1 (04:27):
I'm not saying that, like you know, every What all
I'm saying is that my personal anecdoties, that was extremely
impactful and spiritual for me to have that moment with
my two kids in the temple, and not everyone gets
that experience, so it was it was awesome. I appreciate you,
love you, and I know you've always been supportive of
everything that I do.
Speaker 2 (04:47):
And folks, that's your spiritual intake for today. So there
you go. You're welcome. And then I will tell you what, man.
You know, this time of the year for the basketball team,
regardless of nil or not, it's pretty similar and it
has been throughout all you know, the you know mother
and lets say the mother in times of BUYU basketball,
(05:09):
which is the guys are off, they're back home, they're
they're resting a little bit.
Speaker 1 (05:14):
Right.
Speaker 2 (05:15):
You have some psychos like Ritchie that never take time off,
and so they're in the gym twice as much now
because there's no official practice. But this is a time that,
you know, what I appreciate about the way BUYU does things,
And this has carried from Dave Row, from Steve Cleveland
to Dave Rose, to Mark pope Uh to Kevin Young,
(05:36):
which is this time they spend time with family, they
focus on things that matter most, and and the and
and the players. They actually have a time to almost
recenter themselves, right. This is a time where they're preparing
for the upcoming school year. They're upcoming, they're preparing for
the season. Some guys are usually and you remember this
(05:57):
has been some guys are usually changing where they live
because of the summer. The summer term is over. They're
going to go to fall so they can change housing,
they can get some things adjusted. And I know this
is gonna sound weird, but it's just a great time
that right after class, you know, right after the morning workouts,
you can go home and just take a long nap
(06:19):
and you can wake up and then go around and
go hang out. This is one of the times that
you get to be a little bit of a kid.
You get to be a little bit of a uh,
you know, a college kid, right, and so it is
a time where, you know, a lot of the preparation
for the season is done. It's not like the coaches
(06:41):
are in the office all day every day, you know,
for twelve hours a day. And uh, you know, certainly
they're working, they're putting in their their fair share of
uh of activities, but it's a time that they're preparing
for things. Right. There may be some film analyzing, some scheduling,
conversations happening for the upcoming seasons. You know, obviously I'm
(07:04):
not gonna name names, but I've been in the office
where there are a lot of conversations and hey, now
with this the way exhibition games are played, why don't
we have this in place? Why don't we have that
in place, you know, with with big name schools, And
so these are some of the things that that are happening.
And this is the time that they're aligning on on
(07:26):
on preparing not only for this upcoming season, but also
for the season to come. And so right now, that's
the way things are for bu Yu basketball. You know,
school starts next week and uh, and and with that
being around the corner, you know, I absolutely love having
a football game before school started because it was the
unofficial you know, you know, final party off the summer
(07:49):
and just got to see your friends and and so
on and and so that's where things are right now
for for the b YU team with the status and
you know, in this little break that they had after
you know, summer spring and summer workouts.
Speaker 1 (08:04):
Jonathan Devenard here on ESPN, the Fantok and some by
U Basketball in a segment brought to you by Orthropos
of Utah Arthroposofutah dot com brace up for the high
school football season at arthropros so JT. Who's made the
most progress do you think this offseason within the basketball
program and why?
Speaker 2 (08:24):
So? I have to say, I'm probably gonna go with
Canard Davis, Canard Davis. So I'll say this Canard Davis
number one, Tyler Mruss number two, and and then I
won't say Dominick Kadeem. I'll probably stick with with with
Canard and Tyler Canard because you know, high expectations for him,
(08:47):
but for him to actually be able. One thing, man
is for you to talk to talk. And I'm not
saying that Carnard was talking right, I'm saying one thing
is for you to have the hype. The other one
is for you to live the hype. Right. I think
this is you know the A J the bands, that thing. Right,
that kid talks the talk, walk the walk, you know,
plays the flute. I mean he is the whole shebanga
bang right. But Canard Davis was someone that coming in
(09:11):
high expectations, is he gonna be able to deliver? How's
he going to do? And boy, old boy, did he deliver?
Right right after that, I think I say Tyler Ruse
because the way Tyler has played very much came to
b i U as the stigma of he is only
a catch and shoe guy. He's only a shooter guy.
(09:31):
And and and you know again because of where he played,
It's not like there was a ton of publicity and
attention around him. But for him to be able to
come into the into into the spring and summer situation,
you know, the transfer portal, and to be willing to
do anything and everything that he takes to win, a
mentality that we saw Richie Saunders have the last the
(09:53):
last two years of his career. That has been a
side to see the coaches highly appreciate that he is
highly motivated. You know, people will say he's a locker
room guy. I don't mean a locker room guy like
he's a scrub at the end of the bench. He's
a locker room guy where he has earned his respect
around the team. They have seen his hard work, and
(10:15):
so that's someone I'm very surprised about. So I'll probably
say Ben that you know, those two are the one
that stood out for me the most out of everything
that I've seen.
Speaker 1 (10:27):
I love that breakdown, and you do need an elevated
off season, I think in order to maximize your potential. Right,
we all know about the talent that's coming into b
YU and that that that that Kyu has required through
the portal or brought in as a true freshman, and.
Speaker 3 (10:47):
The expectations are high.
Speaker 1 (10:48):
But you've gotta be willing and ready to put in
the work necessary in order to build the cohesion, chemistry
and culture that a final four team. Uh, you know,
ultimately I would more often than not emits and exhibits.
Speaker 3 (11:03):
I think that's the question. It's not always like this.
Speaker 1 (11:06):
Fab five modern day team that makes it to the
Final four, e lead eight and into a national championship run.
The get old, Stay old, adage is still tried and true.
Speaker 3 (11:18):
You see that with Houston this last year.
Speaker 1 (11:20):
They've been together for a long time with continuity and
chemistry and cohesion. And BYU, they do have retention here
of former players, but there's a lot of new faces.
What gives you optimism that they can build that get
old stay oled culture within such a little amount of.
Speaker 2 (11:37):
Time because so one thing I want to highlight that
you said, and you hit the nail right on the head.
We are no longer in the era of basketball that
are big two or Big three can deliver you a championship.
Multiple examples for that. Houston's continued success is I think
the poster child for college of basketball. Flip the script.
(12:02):
Baylor's lack of continuity. Kansas lack of continuity has also
been you know, has also you know, created a very
interesting dynamics where those guys were constant Sweet sixteen, Elite eight,
Final four, you know, uh players, right, and they were
always there. They were fixtures. The same thing with Gonzaga, right.
(12:26):
And so I think d y U is getting to
that point if you look at Richie Saunders is there,
Keba Keda is there, and then you know, having the
understanding like I mentioned Kadema earlier, but he's been a
year at b YU right and he read shirt it.
But then he'll be able to play now. And so
I think your core of about three four five players
(12:49):
that has been in the program, it's going back to
the times of you know, the eighties and then you
know the nineties weren't super successful, but the eighties and
the two thousands and it's twenty tens for BYU basketball
where there was continuity of the roster and so that
to me is factor number one. Factor number two is
(13:10):
the coaching staff. You gave that man a couple of
months to put together a roster in a team last
year and he got YU to the sweet sixteen. We're
now giving Kevin Young an entire off season to prepare
for things it people should be scared, like if people
should be like dang, they able to accomplish that with
(13:31):
him have foot in at BYU and the other half
foot in the NBA with the Suns. And so that's
something that it's also not talked about enough. We'll void
Brian Dunstan, John, Chris Burgess. The entire staff has been
there for over a year now and they know each
other better, They understand each other better, They get now
(13:53):
that they didn't get the vision before. But there's a
difference band and you know what I'm talking about, you know,
in terms of, hey, you know this is going to work,
let's do it, and hey, this actually works, let's keep
doing it. And so to me, those are the factors
that make up a massive foundation for the success of
(14:13):
by U basketball this upcoming season.
Speaker 1 (14:17):
Jonathan Taban, are you talking some BYU basketball here on
your Utah ESPN Radio network brought to you by Orthropos
of Utah and American Fork. We distributed with Medican Sports
Medicine Devices building out to your insurance or you can
utilize in hsa FSA card JT. One last thing before
we let you go this how good is aj Debons?
(14:38):
I mean, you've seen this kid? Who would you compare
him to? You have a player comp what his ceiling
is this season?
Speaker 3 (14:45):
For productivity? Who he looks like, who he feels like,
who he plays like?
Speaker 1 (14:49):
What are we what are we gonna witness this year
at the Marriott Center watching this young man play?
Speaker 2 (14:55):
You know, it's interesting enough, you know for one of
the other one of the other networks that I'm that
I'm you know, I'm doing work for this season. I
watched about an hour of actual game film of AJ
where I sped through and I look at him every
single possession with the ball and without the ball. I
think a comparison Ben that I would say is Tracy
(15:18):
McGrady now the ish the you know, when you think
about t Mac, you think about the you know, Kobeasque
moves and the length and the dunks and the fade
away and the shooting AJ. I feel like, if and
I've always said this, if AJ is able to improve
his ball handling a little bit now that it's not good,
(15:40):
but there's a difference between AJ ball handling today and
Steph Curry and Chris and Chris Paul to have that
thing on a yo yo right, And so I think
if AJ tightens his handles a little bit, the comparison
to T Mac. And to me, I'll say it, not
a whole lot of people say it. He reminds me
a lot of Penny Hard the way because Penny had
(16:02):
that just the way he moves and he gets to
traffic and he watches the game. But Penny also always
played with the ball in his hand. AJ is amazing
off the ball with beckdor cuts, rebounding, tip dunks, understanding
the game and so he's a very unique player. And
(16:24):
so I would probably say to me he is a
cross between t mac and Penny and you know, maybe
Grin Hill off the ball because he's also got the
linked A lot of people think about KG and they
talk about Kevin Gardner and the way he plays and
and even Kevin Durant. I just I don't think I
would go that route just because of the way how
long those guys are and AJ is freakish, athletic and long.
(16:48):
But you know, I think regardless of whatever NBA comparison
he wants to do, Ben, it is safe to say,
you know that by U has gotten a one of
one guy and and something that to keep in mind.
And you know, I was having a conversation with a big,
big donor over the weekend, and it was interesting because
(17:10):
we were talking about a J and we're talking about
you know, brother Gilbert and uh, you know, the just
the educational aspect of by U and n I L
And again, you know, we've said this on the show
so many times. No one is ready for the level
of attention that b Yu is going to get this
(17:32):
year and for the years to come in because every
time Yegor is going to be announced in the NBA,
and AJ is gonna be announced in the NBA, and
then Robert Wright is going to be announced in the NBA,
and and Dominique is going to be announced in the NBA,
and and and Canard and most likely Kadeem and and
Xavion most likely, and Richie most likely. They're gonna say
(17:56):
six whatever and out of by you, out of Brigham
Young University. And you cannot put a dollar sign on
what that means to kids everywhere in the world that
are dreaming of playing college basketball. And so, you know,
I think AJ is one of one. I think he's
(18:18):
gonna have a fantastic senior year, a fantastic freshman year
at BUYU, you know. And and I'm happy that I
get to be a little bit closer uh, you know,
uh to the court, you know, just to enjoy this writing.
Speaker 3 (18:32):
JT.
Speaker 1 (18:32):
We appreciate you is always blessings having you on the show.
Thanks for uh talking some be ball today on Cougar Sports.
Speaker 2 (18:40):
Hey always in forever my brother go Koogs and football
team is gonna win by a bajillion on Saturday.
Speaker 3 (18:48):
Boom shocka Locke.
Speaker 1 (18:49):
Love that Jonathan Debinari four three JT for Jonathan Tabinari,
the Brazilian bomber, appreciate him. That segment was brought to
you by Orthopos of Utah American Fork. If you're in
the market for bracing supports, impression where gerbile medical equipment,
bone growth stimulators, for fractures, modalities to keep you on
the field, to play, the accelerate healing of muscular skeletal conditions,
(19:09):
to anopathies, ligamentous disruptions, anything of the sort.
Speaker 3 (19:12):
Hit us up.
Speaker 1 (19:13):
We can put out your insurance or you can utilize
an HSA FSA card ETAL one four hundred five through
and eight. That's EIGHTAL one, four hundred five through and
eight Orthopos of Utah Orthoposifutah dot com.
Speaker 3 (19:23):
We'll take a brief time out.
Speaker 1 (19:24):
We'll be back to August twenty sixth, Tuesday edition of
Cougar Sports.
Speaker 3 (19:27):
Are one of three nine pinety eight point three
Welcome macnus of marches right around the corner and the
Cougars are.
Speaker 2 (00:04):
In the metal level.
Speaker 1 (00:05):
It's time to talk some college basketball on Cougar Sports
with Ben Cribbins.
Speaker 3 (00:11):
Welcome back with your sports photo.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
PREE nine ninety boys re ESPN the fan up at
Turtle Badcasting from our Vanderwelth Studios, Banterwealth dot com. Get
on a pree Q and a no obligation doing BESTQNA
with our tax more wealth advisors, certify financial planners.
Speaker 3 (00:22):
Let's band together build wealth.
Speaker 1 (00:24):
Stable and sustainable financial positions and options are always available
at Vanderwealth, Banterwealth dot comed. He's noted for a little
college basketball segment. I know it's football season I and
we're getting ready for the Week one kickoff, but look,
KYU is always at the tip of our tongues. I've
been chatting with a lot of Cougar fames and they
are always wanting to stay up to date on BYU basketball.
(00:45):
So we're gonna be giving you basketball content throughout the
football season and delve into it every single week. It's
gonna be brought to you by Orthopros of Utah and
American Fork. If you're looking to stay healthy and strong
throughout the long and orgies high school football season. Maybe
got an offensive or defensivelignment within the walls of your home.
Breaks up their knees. There's there's ankles, those wrists, those elbows.
(01:07):
Sometimes you tape, you may want to brace instead brace.
Taping loses its elasticity and tensile strength as you sweat
ten to fifteen minutes into your activity, So you may
want to brace instead of biomechanical support that keeps you
on the field of play and reduces injury. At Orthopos
of Utah, we can put out to your insurance or
(01:27):
you can utilize an HSAFSA card.
Speaker 3 (01:29):
Let's get out to the hotline.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
Welcome and former by you bucket together the Brazilian bomber
six eight two hundred and fifteen pounds of solid muscle.
Speaker 3 (01:37):
Let's welcome in Jonathan Tabinar to the show. What's up? JT?
Speaker 2 (01:41):
Man? You know a little dreary, getting cold in the mornings.
It is it is falling football weather, my friend.
Speaker 3 (01:49):
I know, man, I love, I love that we got moisture.
Speaker 1 (01:53):
I said my prayers all this last week and I've
been praying for more moisture. We finally got it a
little bit of moisture along the way off that front,
and it started to cool down a little bit. I
love fall weather. I love getting a little moisture in
those mountains. We needed to clear out all the muck
in the air. But basketball season right around the corner
as well, not too far off from hoop season. What
(02:13):
have you been keeping your eye on in relation to
the basketball squad right now as they continue to you know,
practice and install and get their squad ready for.
Speaker 3 (02:22):
The tip off.
Speaker 2 (02:24):
Well, I'm gonna answer that right away. But first of all,
first things first, Benjamin, congratulations on being sealed to your family.
My friend, that way man, A beautiful thing. I saw
the polls I shared with Kiri. We started crying. What
a beautiful thing. And you know, COVID was a wild
time man, and you know, I know how busy you
(02:46):
are and just things happen, and what a fantastic thing
for you and the missus and the family. So first
things for is my brother, congratulations.
Speaker 3 (02:54):
No, I appreciate that.
Speaker 1 (02:55):
And you know I don't divulge too much of my
personal life on the show. Oh, but I figured this
one was one that we needed to kind of share
with everybody, because everyone has a unique path that they
that they tread in this life. And you know, for us,
we got married during COVID and we did get busy,
there's no doubt.
Speaker 3 (03:13):
And then there was another component.
Speaker 1 (03:15):
So like you know, Brooke had been married very early
in her in her life, you know, twenty years old,
you know, one of those early marriages, and it just
didn't work out. It was it was short lived, she
didn't have any kids, and so there was that component
two that kind.
Speaker 3 (03:28):
Of delayed I think the ceiling.
Speaker 1 (03:30):
And so you know, I just want everybody to know that,
like you know, in your individual path to maybe ceiling
or certain covenants, and it doesn't have to be the
traditional linear path that most people are advised to take.
There are undulations in life. And I'll tell you what
it was so special the reason why I loved this
(03:51):
particular path for us. I can't tell you how emotional
I got when I was kneeling across the altar with
my four year year old and my two year old
that are cognizant and and and they they they may remember.
Speaker 3 (04:06):
I think the four year old will remember.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
They were holding hands across the altar and we were
sealed to them. You know, if they had been just
born into the covenant and we had accelerated this ceiling,
I wouldn't have had that extremely spiritual, impactful moment with
my children across the altar.
Speaker 3 (04:23):
So like I'm not saying one ways better than the other.
Speaker 1 (04:27):
I'm not saying that, like you know, every What all
I'm saying is that my personal anecdoties, that was extremely
impactful and spiritual for me to have that moment with
my two kids in the temple, and not everyone gets
that experience, so it was it was awesome. I appreciate you,
love you, and I know you've always been supportive of
everything that I do.
Speaker 2 (04:47):
And folks, that's your spiritual intake for today. So there
you go. You're welcome. And then I will tell you what, man.
You know, this time of the year for the basketball team,
regardless of nil or not, it's pretty similar and it
has been throughout all you know, the you know mother
and lets say the mother in times of BUYU basketball,
(05:09):
which is the guys are off, they're back home, they're
they're resting a little bit.
Speaker 1 (05:14):
Right.
Speaker 2 (05:15):
You have some psychos like Ritchie that never take time off,
and so they're in the gym twice as much now
because there's no official practice. But this is a time that,
you know, what I appreciate about the way BUYU does things,
And this has carried from Dave Row, from Steve Cleveland
to Dave Rose, to Mark pope Uh to Kevin Young,
(05:36):
which is this time they spend time with family, they
focus on things that matter most, and and the and
and the players. They actually have a time to almost
recenter themselves, right. This is a time where they're preparing
for the upcoming school year. They're upcoming, they're preparing for
the season. Some guys are usually and you remember this
(05:57):
has been some guys are usually changing where they live
because of the summer. The summer term is over. They're
going to go to fall so they can change housing,
they can get some things adjusted. And I know this
is gonna sound weird, but it's just a great time
that right after class, you know, right after the morning workouts,
you can go home and just take a long nap
(06:19):
and you can wake up and then go around and
go hang out. This is one of the times that
you get to be a little bit of a kid.
You get to be a little bit of a uh,
you know, a college kid, right, and so it is
a time where, you know, a lot of the preparation
for the season is done. It's not like the coaches
(06:41):
are in the office all day every day, you know,
for twelve hours a day. And uh, you know, certainly
they're working, they're putting in their their fair share of
uh of activities, but it's a time that they're preparing
for things. Right. There may be some film analyzing, some scheduling,
conversations happening for the upcoming seasons. You know, obviously I'm
(07:04):
not gonna name names, but I've been in the office
where there are a lot of conversations and hey, now
with this the way exhibition games are played, why don't
we have this in place? Why don't we have that
in place, you know, with with big name schools, And
so these are some of the things that that are happening.
And this is the time that they're aligning on on
(07:26):
on preparing not only for this upcoming season, but also
for the season to come. And so right now, that's
the way things are for bu Yu basketball. You know,
school starts next week and uh, and and with that
being around the corner, you know, I absolutely love having
a football game before school started because it was the
unofficial you know, you know, final party off the summer
(07:49):
and just got to see your friends and and so
on and and so that's where things are right now
for for the b YU team with the status and
you know, in this little break that they had after
you know, summer spring and summer workouts.
Speaker 1 (08:04):
Jonathan Devenard here on ESPN, the Fantok and some by
U Basketball in a segment brought to you by Orthropos
of Utah Arthroposofutah dot com brace up for the high
school football season at arthropros so JT. Who's made the
most progress do you think this offseason within the basketball
program and why?
Speaker 2 (08:24):
So? I have to say, I'm probably gonna go with
Canard Davis, Canard Davis. So I'll say this Canard Davis
number one, Tyler Mruss number two, and and then I
won't say Dominick Kadeem. I'll probably stick with with with
Canard and Tyler Canard because you know, high expectations for him,
(08:47):
but for him to actually be able. One thing, man
is for you to talk to talk. And I'm not
saying that Carnard was talking right, I'm saying one thing
is for you to have the hype. The other one
is for you to live the hype. Right. I think
this is you know the A J the bands, that thing. Right,
that kid talks the talk, walk the walk, you know,
plays the flute. I mean he is the whole shebanga
bang right. But Canard Davis was someone that coming in
(09:11):
high expectations, is he gonna be able to deliver? How's
he going to do? And boy, old boy, did he deliver?
Right right after that, I think I say Tyler Ruse
because the way Tyler has played very much came to
b i U as the stigma of he is only
a catch and shoe guy. He's only a shooter guy.
(09:31):
And and and you know again because of where he played,
It's not like there was a ton of publicity and
attention around him. But for him to be able to
come into the into into the spring and summer situation,
you know, the transfer portal, and to be willing to
do anything and everything that he takes to win, a
mentality that we saw Richie Saunders have the last the
(09:53):
last two years of his career. That has been a
side to see the coaches highly appreciate that he is
highly motivated. You know, people will say he's a locker
room guy. I don't mean a locker room guy like
he's a scrub at the end of the bench. He's
a locker room guy where he has earned his respect
around the team. They have seen his hard work, and
(10:15):
so that's someone I'm very surprised about. So I'll probably
say Ben that you know, those two are the one
that stood out for me the most out of everything
that I've seen.
Speaker 1 (10:27):
I love that breakdown, and you do need an elevated
off season, I think in order to maximize your potential. Right,
we all know about the talent that's coming into b
YU and that that that that Kyu has required through
the portal or brought in as a true freshman, and.
Speaker 3 (10:47):
The expectations are high.
Speaker 1 (10:48):
But you've gotta be willing and ready to put in
the work necessary in order to build the cohesion, chemistry
and culture that a final four team. Uh, you know,
ultimately I would more often than not emits and exhibits.
Speaker 3 (11:03):
I think that's the question. It's not always like this.
Speaker 1 (11:06):
Fab five modern day team that makes it to the
Final four, e lead eight and into a national championship run.
The get old, Stay old, adage is still tried and true.
Speaker 3 (11:18):
You see that with Houston this last year.
Speaker 1 (11:20):
They've been together for a long time with continuity and
chemistry and cohesion. And BYU, they do have retention here
of former players, but there's a lot of new faces.
What gives you optimism that they can build that get
old stay oled culture within such a little amount of.
Speaker 2 (11:37):
Time because so one thing I want to highlight that
you said, and you hit the nail right on the head.
We are no longer in the era of basketball that
are big two or Big three can deliver you a championship.
Multiple examples for that. Houston's continued success is I think
the poster child for college of basketball. Flip the script.
(12:02):
Baylor's lack of continuity. Kansas lack of continuity has also
been you know, has also you know, created a very
interesting dynamics where those guys were constant Sweet sixteen, Elite eight,
Final four, you know, uh players, right, and they were
always there. They were fixtures. The same thing with Gonzaga, right.
(12:26):
And so I think d y U is getting to
that point if you look at Richie Saunders is there,
Keba Keda is there, and then you know, having the
understanding like I mentioned Kadema earlier, but he's been a
year at b YU right and he read shirt it.
But then he'll be able to play now. And so
I think your core of about three four five players
(12:49):
that has been in the program, it's going back to
the times of you know, the eighties and then you
know the nineties weren't super successful, but the eighties and
the two thousands and it's twenty tens for BYU basketball
where there was continuity of the roster and so that
to me is factor number one. Factor number two is
(13:10):
the coaching staff. You gave that man a couple of
months to put together a roster in a team last
year and he got YU to the sweet sixteen. We're
now giving Kevin Young an entire off season to prepare
for things it people should be scared, like if people
should be like dang, they able to accomplish that with
(13:31):
him have foot in at BYU and the other half
foot in the NBA with the Suns. And so that's
something that it's also not talked about enough. We'll void
Brian Dunstan, John, Chris Burgess. The entire staff has been
there for over a year now and they know each
other better, They understand each other better, They get now
(13:53):
that they didn't get the vision before. But there's a
difference band and you know what I'm talking about, you know,
in terms of, hey, you know this is going to work,
let's do it, and hey, this actually works, let's keep
doing it. And so to me, those are the factors
that make up a massive foundation for the success of
(14:13):
by U basketball this upcoming season.
Speaker 1 (14:17):
Jonathan Taban, are you talking some BYU basketball here on
your Utah ESPN Radio network brought to you by Orthropos
of Utah and American Fork. We distributed with Medican Sports
Medicine Devices building out to your insurance or you can
utilize in hsa FSA card JT. One last thing before
we let you go this how good is aj Debons?
(14:38):
I mean, you've seen this kid? Who would you compare
him to? You have a player comp what his ceiling
is this season?
Speaker 3 (14:45):
For productivity? Who he looks like, who he feels like,
who he plays like?
Speaker 1 (14:49):
What are we what are we gonna witness this year
at the Marriott Center watching this young man play?
Speaker 2 (14:55):
You know, it's interesting enough, you know for one of
the other one of the other networks that I'm that
I'm you know, I'm doing work for this season. I
watched about an hour of actual game film of AJ
where I sped through and I look at him every
single possession with the ball and without the ball. I
think a comparison Ben that I would say is Tracy
(15:18):
McGrady now the ish the you know, when you think
about t Mac, you think about the you know, Kobeasque
moves and the length and the dunks and the fade
away and the shooting AJ. I feel like, if and
I've always said this, if AJ is able to improve
his ball handling a little bit now that it's not good,
(15:40):
but there's a difference between AJ ball handling today and
Steph Curry and Chris and Chris Paul to have that
thing on a yo yo right, And so I think
if AJ tightens his handles a little bit, the comparison
to T Mac. And to me, I'll say it, not
a whole lot of people say it. He reminds me
a lot of Penny Hard the way because Penny had
(16:02):
that just the way he moves and he gets to
traffic and he watches the game. But Penny also always
played with the ball in his hand. AJ is amazing
off the ball with beckdor cuts, rebounding, tip dunks, understanding
the game and so he's a very unique player. And
(16:24):
so I would probably say to me he is a
cross between t mac and Penny and you know, maybe
Grin Hill off the ball because he's also got the
linked A lot of people think about KG and they
talk about Kevin Gardner and the way he plays and
and even Kevin Durant. I just I don't think I
would go that route just because of the way how
long those guys are and AJ is freakish, athletic and long.
(16:48):
But you know, I think regardless of whatever NBA comparison
he wants to do, Ben, it is safe to say,
you know that by U has gotten a one of
one guy and and something that to keep in mind.
And you know, I was having a conversation with a big,
big donor over the weekend, and it was interesting because
(17:10):
we were talking about a J and we're talking about
you know, brother Gilbert and uh, you know, the just
the educational aspect of by U and n I L
And again, you know, we've said this on the show
so many times. No one is ready for the level
of attention that b Yu is going to get this
(17:32):
year and for the years to come in because every
time Yegor is going to be announced in the NBA,
and AJ is gonna be announced in the NBA, and
then Robert Wright is going to be announced in the NBA,
and and Dominique is going to be announced in the NBA,
and and and Canard and most likely Kadeem and and
Xavion most likely, and Richie most likely. They're gonna say
(17:56):
six whatever and out of by you, out of Brigham
Young University. And you cannot put a dollar sign on
what that means to kids everywhere in the world that
are dreaming of playing college basketball. And so, you know,
I think AJ is one of one. I think he's
(18:18):
gonna have a fantastic senior year, a fantastic freshman year
at BUYU, you know. And and I'm happy that I
get to be a little bit closer uh, you know,
uh to the court, you know, just to enjoy this writing.
Speaker 3 (18:32):
JT.
Speaker 1 (18:32):
We appreciate you is always blessings having you on the show.
Thanks for uh talking some be ball today on Cougar Sports.
Speaker 2 (18:40):
Hey always in forever my brother go Koogs and football
team is gonna win by a bajillion on Saturday.
Speaker 3 (18:48):
Boom shocka Locke.
Speaker 1 (18:49):
Love that Jonathan Debinari four three JT for Jonathan Tabinari,
the Brazilian bomber, appreciate him. That segment was brought to
you by Orthopos of Utah American Fork. If you're in
the market for bracing supports, impression where gerbile medical equipment,
bone growth stimulators, for fractures, modalities to keep you on
the field, to play, the accelerate healing of muscular skeletal conditions,
(19:09):
to anopathies, ligamentous disruptions, anything of the sort.
Speaker 3 (19:12):
Hit us up.
Speaker 1 (19:13):
We can put out your insurance or you can utilize
an HSA FSA card ETAL one four hundred five through
and eight. That's EIGHTAL one, four hundred five through and
eight Orthopos of Utah Orthoposifutah dot com.
Speaker 3 (19:23):
We'll take a brief time out.
Speaker 1 (19:24):
We'll be back to August twenty sixth, Tuesday edition of
Cougar Sports.
Speaker 3 (19:27):
Are one of three nine pinety eight point three
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