Everyone needs to read this! Trevor and Bostick updates from Katz

Donate To GopherHole
GopherLady

GopherLady

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 5, 2008
Messages
9,306
Reaction score
866
Points
113
I know if I don't start reading a thread, I usually don't start after it's a few pages. So, for those of you not reading the "What happened to Myron's..." thread (and I know there's a number of you, as I've been getting texts with questions).

Here are the key points in the Katz article that came up midway through that thread:

Smith said Bostick should be back for next week's Big Ten/ACC Challenge game at Miami on Dec. 2. Bostick did what he was supposed to do and is scheduled to be cleared by UM athletic director Joel Maturi.
Click to expand...

Smith said Mbakwe could be back with the team any day because they anticipate his case could be dropped.

White is a different matter.

"He's dealing with some things emotionally and mentally,'' Smith said. "But shoplifting, you can't get around that one. Royce is going through a legal situation with shoplifting. I'll make a decision if he's going to be a part of this program or not.''
Click to expand...

Good news! :clap:

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/blog/index?entryID=4688078&name=katz_andy
 


Thanks Nadine, that's (fingers still crossed) great news regarding Mbawke and Bostick's situations.
 

wow, thanksgiving came early. this is huge! We need a banger in the post to become elite...
 

Curseislifted33 said:
wow, thanksgiving came early. this is huge! We need a banger in the post to become elite...
Click to expand...

Exactly - we're a tourney team without a PF, with Trevor, I can see us making a nice little run in the tourney.

Not to mention, I just want all of this to be over for him. Since day 1, I have thought he was innocent, and that's just a horrible thing for a decent, young man to go through. I hope this doesn't follow him around.
 



I've been pretty quiet on these matters. If you have nothing good to say, don't say anything at all... that was my stance, esp. with Royce.

All I can do is echo what other posters have said. This team is in dire need of a rebounding-physical PF. Trevor, if cleared to play, will bring this squad to a whole new level.

Let this be true!
 

I tend to not believe a lot of things like this, but when it's coming straight from the mouth of Tubby it raises the likelihood of it quite significantly. I really like our chances with Trevor and Devron back on the court. :clap:
 

Thanks for the update, GL. It's good news regarding both Bostick and Mbakwe.

But I'll admit that I appreciate Tubby's thinking when he says: "(Wh'ite's) dealing with some things emotionally and mentally. But shoplifting, you can't get around that one. Royce is going through a legal situation with shoplifting. I'll make a decision if he's going to be a part of this program or not.''

Some here have minimized the MoA charges. It doesn't sound like Tubby does.
 



Rick Mons said:
Thanks for the update, GL. It's good news regarding both Bostick and Mbakwe.

But I'll admit that I appreciate Tubby's thinking when he says: "(Wh'ite's) dealing with some things emotionally and mentally. But shoplifting, you can't get around that one. Royce is going through a legal situation with shoplifting. I'll make a decision if he's going to be a part of this program or not.''

Some here have minimized the MoA charges. It doesn't sound like Tubby does.
Click to expand...

I couldn't be happier with Tubby's comments. He has dignity and class one would wish of every top coach in collegiate athletics. White's problems aren't just MOA. It is all these things added together that will lead to whatever happens. Hopefully White does a 180, but with his history that doesn't appear likely to happen. People change though, and there isn't a better person for him to be around than Tubby Smith.
 

I'm not just saying this because he's almost back, but I thought Mbakwe had a chance to make a bigger impact THIS SEASON than White. How about 10 points and 7 boards a night!! I'm very pleased!!!:D
 

Best case scenario IMO...Trevor is back soon as expected obviously, and White is hopefully not guilty of the laptop but still suspended for the entire year to hopefully learn that he's not above the program. We could actually be better off that way (having just Trevor this year instead of both). We'd get an extra year out of White (in this best case scenario) not competing against Trevor for PT, and maybe this way he gets it through his head early that he's on his last straw and needs to shape up.
 

I hope you are right Andy Katz...

I agree with the other comments above...Mbakwe will allow us to compete with some upper echelon teams.
 



Good News.

It would be nice to have both players for this weekends games but still nice to have them back before we head to the Big Ten Schedule. That being said lets remember we are talking about one player who didn't exactly thrive as a Gopher last season and another who has yet to play a minute for the team. Its great to have them back it will be interesting to see what they can provide the team and just how much they help.

Bostick may not be able to get much playing time with Westbrook and Joseph in front of him at the OG position and at SF he has Williams, Johnson, and Carter all possibly playing the position if Mbakwe can take over at PF.

Mbakwe never impressed me in high school other than a good athlete his game was not great. His first year in college was up and down. I usually throw out JUCO numbers as we have seen in the past many times they dont mean a thing. If Mbakwe can bring power to the offense and aggressive rebounding and the occassional strong post up he will be huge. If the Gophers have one short coming it is they dont have a strong post offense and might be a bit weak on the low blocks. Sampson is not a power post player and Iverson is still developing and though he is a stronger guy he hasnt put it all together yet. Combine Iverson, Sampson, and Mbakwe in a three man rotation on the low blocks the Gophers could have something special.
 

This is great news, Bostick though no superstar was in the rotation last year and played some minutes and hopefully he worked hard in the offseason to improve his game. And Mbakwe as others have noted here will bring a big body that we need down low, I think he will bring us extra offensive posessions every game with his work on the boards.

As far as Royce White, I think Tubby is handling his situation with the class and integrity he has always shown. I hope he learns a lesson from the MOA incident and most importantly I hope he was humbled by it and realizes the opputunity he has here, I also did hear a bit of second-hand information concerning the laptop theft, someone I play baseball against has a player who lives in the same dorm as Royce and said although he is not good friends with Royce after the police investigate this there is no way that he will be charged, I just hope Royce has a attitude change, learns from this and contributes to the team be it this year or next year, and if he doesn't I don't think Tubby will hesitate removing permanently him from the team.

On a side note, I just joined this site yesterday (i was following the Gophers on cbs.com) I have to say how impressed I am with the knowledge, intelligent posts and information that is here, I have grown up loving the Gophers since the Trent Tucker days and have always followed them so this is a great site for me.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone....Go Gophers!!!!!!
 

This just shows what a tool Myron is...in his latest blog he pretty much states that Trevor will be out all year. He is such a gopher hater. Not saying that a journalist should be a fan of the team, but he so obviously is writing from the perspective of one of our rivals that it's just as unprofessional.
 

Sparlimb said:
I couldn't be happier with Tubby's comments. He has dignity and class one would wish of every top coach in collegiate athletics. White's problems aren't just MOA. It is all these things added together that will lead to whatever happens. Hopefully White does a 180, but with his history that doesn't appear likely to happen. People change though, and there isn't a better person for him to be around than Tubby Smith.
Click to expand...

I don't know, but I'm pretty hopeful for a Royce White change in attitude. Why? He got in trouble in his first few weeks up at the U. Now that it's obvious that he can't get away with the crap that he thought he could (thanks to the U, MofA, and Tubby), he should grow up quickly. Either that, or he flames out on what could have been an amazing life.

He'll have plenty of advantages being a star bball player that hardly anyone else ever gets. Hopefully he's realized that he doesn't need to push those limits.
 

Foggie14 said:
On a side note, I just joined this site yesterday (i was following the Gophers on cbs.com) I have to say how impressed I am with the knowledge, intelligent posts and information that is here, I have grown up loving the Gophers since the Trent Tucker days and have always followed them so this is a great site for me.
Click to expand...

Just know there are also trolls and other BS you have to sift through once in a while. If you stick with it you figure out who is worth reading and who isn't. (the ignore list is a nice feature)

Rob, Cory, Nadine, and Doogie (am I forgetting anyone?) also do some great stories that a lot of us find to be the best and most in-depth Gophers coverage available.
 

My instinct said Trevor was not guilty on this one so hopefully it was right and he'll be with the team shortly. Just to echo what others have said, I'm excited about Trevor joining us because if we had one weakness this past year it was the lack of a physical "banger" in the post. What someone here once called him a "stare down" forward because he's the guy who will stand toe to toe with the toughest guy on the other team, stare him down and not blink.

I'm not ready to count out Bostick either. It's not uncommon for a Juco to take a year to adjust and then finally turn it on their Senior year. Bobby Jackson being the obvious case in point. Bostick addresses our other glaring need and that's a go-to scorer. Westbrook and perhaps Joseph are the only natural scorers on the team at this point and we need a guy who can fill it up, which was Bostick's MO coming into the program.

Royce, well it's no surprise that he's got some psychological issues is it? As I said a couple weeks ago I think he's Bi-polar or perhaps a textbook psychopath? It would explain how he's able to reel people in with his easy going personality one day and go predator on people the next. I don't like bullies and I think that's what Royce is. That said I think Tubby's handling this really well. If Royce agrees to counseling, medication and sitting out a year to get his LIFE in order he could really be a winner. I'll tell you one thing, as much as my knee jerk reaction was to run from this kid, molding young men and teaching them how to succeed at the game of life is more important than basketball. If Tubby dumps him it almost guarantees his fate is sealed IMO. If Tubby can help him become a productive, functioning adult it'll be a much bigger victory than anything found on the hardwood.
 

Spar...

Sparlimb said:
I couldn't be happier with Tubby's comments. He has dignity and class one would wish of every top coach in collegiate athletics. White's problems aren't just MOA. It is all these things added together that will lead to whatever happens. Hopefully White does a 180, but with his history that doesn't appear likely to happen. People change though, and there isn't a better person for him to be around than Tubby Smith.
Click to expand...

Agreed.
 

maturi and smith on the same page.

It will be good to have resolution on two out of three of these big issues. I'm thankful that I was not the one that had to weave through this mess that fell on to the AD and the head coach.

It is a very, very significant and positive sign that there does not seem to be an inch of daylight between Maturi and Smith. Maybe insiders know that there is some, but at least to the interested public, they have been in lockstep. Huge short and long term benefit to that! And, it doesn't always happen that way.

On a separate note, as to R. White. I don't know the kid at all but just from what I read, the fans, university, AD and coach should not spend a lot of time trying to "fix" him. We don't owe him a thing and it feels very much like throwing good money after bad to me. If he wants to take the initiative to pull himself together and humbly seek assistance I'd be all in favor of extending a hand. Failing that, he looks to be a train wreck waiting to happen. Better to be a few miles away when it does.

Not very much in the spirit of Thanksgiving, I know, but I see a pretty big risk of his taking a few people down with him on his journey and it's not worth it.
 

I beg to disagree...I suggest we all let Tubby and Donna handle all of this.

I have never, never, never given up on a young person. They are ALL worth saving.

And Tough Love saves more than it loses.

My daughter is 40, My son will be 42 this coming Wednesday. There is hardly ever a visit, phone call, conversation, family gathering, that those two beautiful children do not find time to thank me for handling "growing up" situations the way I did.
 

minimax said:
It will be good to have resolution on two out of three of these big issues. I'm thankful that I was not the one that had to weave through this mess that fell on to the AD and the head coach.

It is a very, very significant and positive sign that there does not seem to be an inch of daylight between Maturi and Smith. Maybe insiders know that there is some, but at least to the interested public, they have been in lockstep. Huge short and long term benefit to that! And, it doesn't always happen that way.

On a separate note, as to R. White. I don't know the kid at all but just from what I read, the fans, university, AD and coach should not spend a lot of time trying to "fix" him. We don't owe him a thing and it feels very much like throwing good money after bad to me. If he wants to take the initiative to pull himself together and humbly seek assistance I'd be all in favor of extending a hand. Failing that, he looks to be a train wreck waiting to happen. Better to be a few miles away when it does.

Not very much in the spirit of Thanksgiving, I know, but I see a pretty big risk of his taking a few people down with him on his journey and it's not worth it.
Click to expand...

I disagree. The University does 'owe' him something. Tubby convinced him to sign with him as opposed to other options. Tubby did this knowing the kid had issues. You don't throw a 19 yr old kid to the wind without at least trying to help him. Many programs promote family atmospheres and ask for dedication and loyalty from the players so it needs to work both ways.
 

If Tubby can help [White] become a productive, functioning adult it'll be a much bigger victory than anything found on the hardwood.
Click to expand...

Agreed
 

Well put Oleboy! I cannot for the sake of me imagine Tubby doing anything other than providing support to each of his young men and do so beyond what they might get from other basketball families.
 

I always thought the purpose of a University was to further the development of young men and women. Tough love combined with committment, the development of a family unit, maybe some good "father figure" mentoring by Tubby and others is what's needed for White. However he has to be receptive to the invitation and cannot drag down others.
 


Doc, just from reading your posts, I know that you must be a terrific dad. But neither you, I, nor anyone at the University of MN is Royce's dad. From everything I've read and heard, I can tell you this - Royce's time with the U will not end well. And nothing I've read makes me think it's worth risking the reputations' and futures' of the rest of those young men on the team to prove a point about the efficacy of tough love.

Gotta part company with you on this one.
 

Foggie14 said:
This is great news, Bostick though no superstar was in the rotation last year and played some minutes and hopefully he worked hard in the offseason to improve his game. And Mbakwe as others have noted here will bring a big body that we need down low, I think he will bring us extra offensive posessions every game with his work on the boards.

As far as Royce White, I think Tubby is handling his situation with the class and integrity he has always shown. I hope he learns a lesson from the MOA incident and most importantly I hope he was humbled by it and realizes the opputunity he has here, I also did hear a bit of second-hand information concerning the laptop theft, someone I play baseball against has a player who lives in the same dorm as Royce and said although he is not good friends with Royce after the police investigate this there is no way that he will be charged, I just hope Royce has a attitude change, learns from this and contributes to the team be it this year or next year, and if he doesn't I don't think Tubby will hesitate removing permanently him from the team.

On a side note, I just joined this site yesterday (i was following the Gophers on cbs.com) I have to say how impressed I am with the knowledge, intelligent posts and information that is here, I have grown up loving the Gophers since the Trent Tucker days and have always followed them so this is a great site for me.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone....Go Gophers!!!!!!
Click to expand...

My nephew's circle of friends include people that grew up with White. He said that everything that is being said about him just doesn't click. He was always just about sports. The rumor that he is hearing is that the bad influences on White are associated with people he met in the dorm after starting at the U.
 

I can only draw from my own life experience but my professors were my mentors and counselors in and out school. When I got into trouble, I needed their support and example to move forward powerfully. I think this is the same for Tubby and his players.
 

You must log in or register to reply here.



Top Bottom