October 25, 2001
The Big 12 Conference held its unofficial kickoff of the 2001-02 men's basketball season this week, as the annual Men's Basketball Media Day was held Thursday at Irving's Las Colinas Marriott Hotel.
Coaches and players from all 12 member institutions were on hand to field questions from the large contingent of print and broadcast journalists gathered to look ahead to the year, now just a few weeks away.
On hand to field questions for the Aggies were fourth-year head coach Melvin Watkins, senior Andy Leatherman and junior Keith Bean.
SENIOR GUARD ANDY LEATHERMAN
(on being a senior that came in as a walk-on) "It's been a fun ride. I still remember going in and talking to Coach (Watkins) about having the opportunity to come in as a walk-on. I've seen a lot of things change, and seen a lot of players come in and come out. I've seen the whole mentality of program totally change and totally turn around. I'm happy to have the opportunity that I have had and I'm excited to see what we're going to do this year. I'm also excited to see this team develop and get better and to know that I've had a role in that and played some part in the growth of the program."
JUNIOR FORWARD KEITH BEAN
(on the return of Andy Slocum from injury) "With (Andy) Slocum coming back, that brings us a lot of inside presence. Maybe it will help me come back and play outside a bit at the four (guard position), but I'm not bothered with banging around down low. Right now I'm used to it. Banging around with Slocum makes it even more fun in practice."
(on Andy Slocum's size) "(Andy) Slocum's a pretty big guy, probably one of the biggest guys I've played against. He's so big body wise, and then he's got these little bitty arms. I call him Tyrannosaurus Rex."
HEAD COACH MELVIN WATKINS
(on the return of Tomas Ress and Andy Slocum) "They are back. They may not be at 100 percent, but they are surely close to that. They've been at practice every day and I'm excited about that. What's more important is that they are going to have to be back for us to be successful."
(on Tomas Ress) "He still has skills, there's no doubt about that. He has the ability to score and play defense, and we need assistance there. He has gained some weight back but he hasn't quite gotten his bulk back yet. That is something we will need to work on, and he's working hard at that. I think that young man is going to eventually have some NBA potential."
"We are working him in different spots everywhere from the 'two' to the 'five'. Some of where we play him will be which opponent we are playing, and some will be what we are trying to accomplish in that particular game. He has the physical and mental ability to play any of those spots."
(on Bernard King) "For us to be a good team, we are going to need things from Tomas (Ress) and Jesse King. Bernard, of all people, understands that. I think you are going to see a better player out of Bernard this year."
(on whether or not Bernard takes it personally that he was left off the all-conference teams) "I think to certain degree, yes. I hope it motivates him. He shouldn't try to prove that in one game or in practice. You should let your play do the talking for you. I've told him the biggest thing is to go out there and just have fun."
(on Andy Slocum's increase in size) "Yes, Coach (R.C.) Slocum invited him to come out and play tight end, that's how big he's gotten. Andy has put on some muscle, and gotten into some bodybuilding. We actually pulled him back from that a bit. In terms of strength, he surely has lots of that. We are working more on conditioning right now. He's a pretty big young man."
(Have you established a No. 1 point guard in practice?) "Right now, Michael (Gardener) is beginning to establish himself. I don't care which one of them starts, but both will definitely play. They will not only play, but they will have an impact on what we are doing. They both complement each other. Michael is a high-energy type of player that will take more risks both offensively and defensively. Bradley (Jackson) won't be as flashy, but he will be effective in getting the job done."
(on Daryl Mason, a local product [Bryan, TX]) "We hope we can bring him along like you would want to with a freshman. He is very athletic and a big competitor. He is going to log some minutes. I hope we won't have to depend on him like we have had to with freshmen in the past."
(on Nick Anderson) "He really did get better at the end of the season. As the season wound down, you could see him settling into a comfort zone. This year will be different. We will play him further out a bit more on the floor. We've changed his role some so he may take a step backwards. It may appear early on that he's not the same player but, as the season moves on, I think you'll see him get better."
(on this year's non-conference schedule) "I've always said we have tried to upgrade our schedule. You try to do that as a stepping stone. We want to be tested but not overly tested. I think this schedule has chance to beat us up pretty good if we are not ready to play. This is what we wanted to do, and I hope the kids will look at it as a big challenge. You have to take these types of challenges on if you want Aggie basketball to take some steps forward."
(What are your general impressions of this team?) "We are a lot closer to where we want to be. I think last year we had a chance to show that things were closer to where we wanted to be, but with the injuries it never happened that way. I think we could have a breakout year. This may be the year for it to happen. Unfortunately, as good as the Big 12 is, you may be better but still not be able to show it in the win column. I tell you what, you had better put your seat belt on. The conference race is going to be a battle this year."
"I think our kids are due. They've worked awfully hard and paid a big price, and they haven't seen the rewards of hard work. I'd like to see the kids reap the benefits of hard work. We want to see these kids see the things we've said could happen actually happen."
(on Bobby Knight joining the league) "He's another very good coach that's coming in. I'm sure he's got big things in mind that he wants to happen out there in Lubbock. I see it as another good coach that we will have to compete against."