Opinion
Takeaways from WVU Basketball Summer Practice
WVU basketball opened its doors for the media on Tuesday morning to get a glimpse of practice. West Virginia is preparing for a trip to Italy beginning July 31, which consists of three games.
The Mountaineers are beginning a new era under first-year head coach Darian DeVries. WVU has a whole new coaching staff and roster. Sophomore Ofri Naveh is the only returning player from last season’s team.
The team went through multiple drills and ended the day with a 5v5 full-court scrimmage of eight-minute halves. Here are some takeaways from practice.
Lack of Size Will Need Solution
West Virginia currently has one true center in Eduardo Andre. Andre, 6-foot-11, comes by way of Fresno State and has one year of eligibility. Illinois transfer Amani Hansberry will have to play the five when Andre is not on the floor. Hansberry is listed at 6-foot-8, 240 pounds with upside, but the Mountaineers could use another true center to help the front-court depth out once the season rolls around.
DeVries is hoping to find something in his group that can neutralize the lack of big men.
Scrimmage Was Interesting
The coaching staff split the roster into two teams for their scrimmage.
Blue: Javon Small, Jayden Stone, Tucker DeVries, Toby Okani, Amani Hansberry
White: KJ Tenner, Sencire Harris, Jonathan Powell, Ofri Naveh, Eduardo Andre, Jake Auer
The white team won the scrimmage and it was never really close, putting in effort on defense. The blue team struggled getting back on defense in transition which led to a numbers game the other group took advantage of. On offense, Tucker DeVries and Javon Small were the primary ball handlers finding Jayden Stone, Toby Okani and Hansberry at times but those two ran the offense.
Powell Highlights Upside
Freshman guard Jonathan Powell showed upside during practice whether that was through the drills or practice. DeVries and the team are happy with the competitive effort Powell and KJ Tenner are putting in as first-year players. Powell, a 6-foot-6 guard, could develop into a nice scoring piece for the Mountaineers down the line. The Dayton, Ohio native was also not afraid to shoot the ball anywhere on the floor.
Don’t be surprised if Powell and Tenner get a nice opportunity their first year to see playing time.
WVU Has Time, But Need Identity
Identity was the theme for DeVries on Tuesday.
WVU has seen this before as last season the team struggled to get every player on the floor together. It was always an issue of someone not being eligible or injured.
DeVries has a roster of 11 scholarship players that are from different playing levels in the country. Sencire Harris and Hansberry are familiar with each other at Illinois. Tucker DeVries shared a conference with Toby Okani in the last two seasons. Other than that, it’s putting the pieces together with a team mostly built through the transfer portal. The goal for West Virginia this summer and heading into the fall is finding an identity. DeVries wants spectators to leave the gym knowing what the team can do. They have time, a lot more time than Josh Eilert’s roster, but there’s still a lack of identity that will continue to be worked on throughout the offseason.
Naveh’s Shot Form Looks Improved
For West Virginia fans, Ofri Naveh is the only familiar face on the team. Naveh appeared in 24 games for the Mountaineers last season, playing a lot during the non-conference slate. Naveh showed potential with his offensive IQ during his true freshman season as he transitioned his European style of basketball into the American game.
While getting used to the speed of Division-I basketball, Naveh looked awkward at times, especially in his shooting release. On Tuesday, it appeared Naveh modified his form and worked on a smoother release.
Last season, Naveh shot 29% from the field and 27% from three. As he works on his shot, perhaps those numbers increase heading into the new season.
Click here to watch highlights from Tuesday’s practice.
