A few notes of interest which emerged from ASU men’s basketball media day on Thursday …
–Practice can officially begin on Friday, but freshman forward Victor Rudd probably won’t be there. He’s waiting for some paperwork approval from the NCAA clearinghouse. It’s nothing out of the ordinary, but while the vibe was it wouldn’t take long for this to be sorted out, nobody at ASU could give a reasonable timetable. It’s at the whim of the NCAA. Could be Friday, could be Monday, could be in two weeks.
Rudd is a 6-foot-7 forward from Los Angeles who played last season at Findlay Prep near Las Vegas last season before leaving the school early following an altercation. He finished school at home (which might have something to do with this NCAA process).
–Apparently when you lose James Harden and Jeff Pendergraph to the NBA, another shake-up was required. Acording to senior point guard Derek Glasser, this will essentially be his fifth different offensive system in four years at ASU.
(Replacing those two in some form was, understandably, asked about to players and coach Herb Sendek in about 125 different ways).
–For the little it’s worth at this point, freshman Trent Lockett (Hopkins, Minn.) drew the most praise among the newcomers.
–Juniors Jamelle McMillan and Ty Abbott looked like they gained 10 pounds.
–Sendek gushed optimism surrounding center Eric Boateng, predicting an “outstanding” season for the 6-foot-10 senior.
–Assistant coach Scott Pera was not in attendance for media day. He was recruiting big men in New Jersey.
