BleedGopher
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MN Daily: The Transition: J.B. Bickerstaff
The former Gophers basketball player is an NBA head coaching prospect.
Bickerstaff came to the Gophers under the assumption he’d be playing for then-head coach Clem Haskins. But Haskins was let go by the University in June 1999 amid allegations of academic fraud.
“He was a father figure in all of our lives,” Bickerstaff said of Haskins. “It was a heartbreaking situation, especially for me not being able to play a game for him.”
So when the Gophers hired Monson to take over the position a month later, the transition was difficult.
Bickerstaff, who’d already been voted Gophers captain without playing a game, was considering transferring weeks after Monson’s arrival. It took a while for he and Monson to establish a trust on and off the court, he said.
“We’re both pretty set in our ways,” Bickerstaff said. “That took some getting used to.”
Over time, the two hashed out their differences and established a strong bond, Bickerstaff said. During his two-year career, Bickerstaff served as a coach on the floor, Monson said.
“J.B. was a very intelligent student of the game,” he said. “He studied it from maybe a different angle than most players did.”
During his Gophers career, which included a one-year postseason ban stemming from Haskins’ tenure, Bickerstaff averaged more than nine points and five rebounds while leading Minnesota to a combined 30-30 record.
Bickerstaff felt it was the team’s responsibility to change the program’s image, which he said was viewed as cheaters.
“I think that that’s what we did,” he said. “I think by the time we left, people started thinking of us as competitors — hard-working, disciplined, good human beings.”
http://www.mndaily.com/sports/trans...erstaff?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter
Go Gophers!!
The former Gophers basketball player is an NBA head coaching prospect.
Bickerstaff came to the Gophers under the assumption he’d be playing for then-head coach Clem Haskins. But Haskins was let go by the University in June 1999 amid allegations of academic fraud.
“He was a father figure in all of our lives,” Bickerstaff said of Haskins. “It was a heartbreaking situation, especially for me not being able to play a game for him.”
So when the Gophers hired Monson to take over the position a month later, the transition was difficult.
Bickerstaff, who’d already been voted Gophers captain without playing a game, was considering transferring weeks after Monson’s arrival. It took a while for he and Monson to establish a trust on and off the court, he said.
“We’re both pretty set in our ways,” Bickerstaff said. “That took some getting used to.”
Over time, the two hashed out their differences and established a strong bond, Bickerstaff said. During his two-year career, Bickerstaff served as a coach on the floor, Monson said.
“J.B. was a very intelligent student of the game,” he said. “He studied it from maybe a different angle than most players did.”
During his Gophers career, which included a one-year postseason ban stemming from Haskins’ tenure, Bickerstaff averaged more than nine points and five rebounds while leading Minnesota to a combined 30-30 record.
Bickerstaff felt it was the team’s responsibility to change the program’s image, which he said was viewed as cheaters.
“I think that that’s what we did,” he said. “I think by the time we left, people started thinking of us as competitors — hard-working, disciplined, good human beings.”
http://www.mndaily.com/sports/trans...erstaff?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter
Go Gophers!!