When Tyree Crump heard that Tom Crean had been hired as Georgia’s new basketball coach, one thought immediately jumped to mind.
“He coached Dwyane Wade,” said Crump, who along with Crean and teammate Nick Claxton met with beat writers Tuesday afternoon.
The thought crossed Nicolas Claxton’s mind as well.
“Oh yeah, me too, that’s my favorite player growing up. When I saw that, first thing I thought was we might get a chance to meet him and that would be huge,” Claxton said. “I have his jersey, I have his little replica in my room, all that.”
According to Claxton, anytime your coach can say he’s put multiple players in the NBA, especially a future Hall-of-Fame like Wade, it speaks volumes.
“Most definitely. It shows they know what they are talking about,” Claxton said “The other day on Twitter, Victor Olapido was there working on his free throws and Dwyane was shouting him out on Twitter,” Claxton said. “That shows the love they genuinely have for each other.”
Although there’s no shortage of tasks currently on Crean’s plate – recruiting, filling out his staff, for example – getting to know his players has been Job 1.
“The most important thing for me has been getting to know this team, getting to know these players,” Crean said. “You can talk about vision a lot, which you do at the beginning, but you’ve got to act them out It’s one thing to talk about, it’s another thing to be out there with them.”
Both players like what they’ve heard.
For fans who bemoaned the slower-paced offense of former coach Mark Fox, that apparently won’t be an issue with Crean.
“It’s more of an NBA style offense, it’s how the game is going today, using everyone’s versatility and using the three-point line more,” said Claxton. “I think it’s going to be a lot of fun.”
Such a move figures to benefit Crump – the team’s best free throw shooter more than anybody.
“What he’s doing to upgrade the offense and what we’re probably going to run, it’s going to be a great fit for me,” Crump said. “We’re still learning about each other. He’s still feeling out me, I’m still feeling out him. We’ll see how that flows in the game.”
That’s not all.
“I think it will make us tougher to guard because we will be more spread out and have a lot more options with a lot more different looks,” Crump said. “I think everyone’s excited.”
NOTES: Crean said that guard Jordan Harris continues to take part and practice with the team. He remained vague when asked if the junior was still officially suspended but said he had not been told by anyone that Harris could no longer be part of the program. … Crean praised former assistant Jonas Hayes for his work with the Bulldogs and for the way he handled his job search, which culminated with Monday’s hiring by Xavier. “When you’re the Georgia head coach, doors are obviously going to open and Jonas certainly helped open those and bridge some of those gaps,” Crean said. “We would have loved to have had him stay, but I totally get where he is at in this and wanting to have something for his growth. I think he’s going to be a head coach. Would I have liked to have helped him grow into that from here? Absolutely. But as much as I would have liked for him to stay I totally understand him wanting to step out into another area, another part of the country, another league and take those next steps.” … Crean said that Sean Hayes will remain the team’s strength and conditioning coach. … Crean said he is “not married to any certain thing” when it comes to using his one available scholarship on signing a player or adding a graduate transfer to the team’s roster.
