THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2013
PAGE 3A
MEN'S BASKETBALU
Wiggins focuses on improving, not fame
GEORGE MULLINIX/KANSAN
Freshman Andrew Wiggins returns to his team during the men's basketball Media Day. Jayhawks fans are eager to see how Wiggins will develop during the season.
BLAKE SCHUSTER
bschuster@kansan.com
Andrew Wiggins hears people talking about him. He chooses not to listen.
"I know he had a GQ photo shoot last week," Rob Fulford, Wiggins high school coach said. "I can promise you unless somebody hands him the magazine, he'll never see it. He just wants to play basketball."
Some might be at newsstands waiting for the issue to stock the shelves, while others tweet out links. Not this kid.
No matter how bright the lights get, the demeanor of Kansas' star freshman remains the same.
Because Andrew Wiggins knows the truth: he still needs to get better.
"I need to work on off-the-ball defending." Wiggins said during Kansas' media day before an elongated pause. "Nothing is perfect."
It's not that Wiggins can't be the best player, or that he hasn't shown he may already be. The truth about Wiggins is that he hasn't been able to do it for a complete game. Instead, the grand hype is matched in spurts. At various points he'll show off his mixtape-worthy talent. And at others he'll get by on his athletic ability.
The truth about Andrew Wiggins is that he morphs into a phenom for short sprints. Fortunately for the Jayhawks, Bill Self coaches marathons.
"Everyone would like for him to have that switch on all the time," Fulford said. "That's one of the things that we worked on with him here, but that's why Self makes the big bucks. It will come. It's going to take some time."
Self acknowledged Wiggins' talent, saying he could be the best scorer, or the best rebounder, the best ball handler, the best teammate, he just hasn't been able to put it all together.
In West Virginia, Grant Traylor got an up close look at Wiggins while covering Huntington Prep for the Herald-Dispatch. During
his senior season, Wiggins averaged 23.4 points, 11.2 rebounds and 2.6 blocks. Trayler witnessed
the bursts as well as the rest of the game.
"He's got to get it into his mind set that he's going to dominate for a full 40 minutes," Traylor said while acknowledging the most important aspect. "It's not an effort issue."
says, once the switch is flipped it's game over. The issue is more mental than anything else.
"He's got to get it into his mindset that he's going to dominate for a full 40 minutes. It's not an effort issue."
Nope. Wiggins can dominate when he chooses, and as Traylor
GRANT TRAYLOR Herald-Dispatch
Fulford calls it "exposing the Alpha Dog," Self says "He sees it in flashes" and Traylor notes when he maxes out it's a mismatch for everybody
have to work on a lot this year. The excitement that Wiggins creates comes from his abilities, not
He'll need to get bigger and stronger as he prepares for a likely NBA career, but there are more pressing matters at the moment.
"He has a ton of potential but he's just a freshman, he's going to be finding his way just like everybody else," Self said. "He can do a lot of things but if he doesn't do it every possession, he won't do any of them."
But Wiggins said it best.
"I think it's something I
his potential. Many have seen that talent exposed. Few have seen it stretched out. Learning the mentality to dominate an entire game is the biggest adjustment Wiggins will have to make at the college level.
This is not to say that only when Wiggins is playing at his best does
"Andrew is so smooth that I think we take that as him not playing hard or playing with as much effort as possible," Huntington Prep coach Rob Fulford said. "One thing I know about Andrew is when the lights are on, he brings it."
he affect the game. He prides himself on being as good of a teammate as a player. With his talent, "coasting" is not equivalent to other players doing the same.
And there are those who misjudge Wiggins for just that.
Edited by Hannah Barling
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POLICE REPORTS
Information based on the Douglas County Sheriff's Office booking recap.
- A 39-year-old female was arrested Tuesday on the 900 block of W. 24th Street on suspicion of domestic battery. No bond was posted.
- A 24-year-old female was arrested Tuesday on the 100 block of E. 11th Street on suspicion of aggravated battery. No bond was posted.
- A 35-year-old male was arrested yesterday on the 800 block of Michigan Street on suspicion of possessing drug paraphernalia and a controlled substance. A $7,000 bond was posted.
- A 49-year-old female was arrested yesterday on the 900 block of Connecticut Street on suspicion of domestic battery. No bond was posted.