Ten Things: K-State basketball media day

What Ten Things did I learn during Kansas State's basketball media day?

I don't even expect DaJuan Gordon to open the season as a starter for Kansas State, and he may not become a starter at any point this year. That said, Bruce Weber talked about him playing around 22 or 23 minutes a game - borderline starter minutes - called him a "stat-sheet stuffer," and also referenced him shooting the best percentage from 3-point range of any Wildcat in practice as of late. I already expected Gordon to make an immediate impact, but now I see him as a key player on this roster. This year. And, for clarity, Gordon is indeed a full 6-foot-4.

Xavier Sneed told multiple reporters he doesn't expect to play much of the four again this season and truly sees himself as a three. None of this is ground breaking or hasn't been reported, before, but my impression of Sneed's desire to stay at the three, as much as possible, did become more strong today.

I've already stated a personal belief Cartier Diarra will be Kansas State's leading scorer this year, and I think the junior has a chance to become the face of the K-State program. Sneed, all things considered, will probably still be the best overall player. But Diarra will have the ball in his hands more, is the most versatile offensive player on the roster and has a little more, perhaps, charisma than we're used to seeing, or hearing, in a Wildcat player. I wouldn't be surprised if, by the end of the year, he's the player most associated with K-State basketball.

Last week on both Boscoe's Boys and The Game - I think - I projected Levi Stockard as the starting power forward for K-State's opening game. I still think that will be the case, and I'm probably even more certain of it after today's press conference. Virtually all of K-State's numbers are tracked in every practice, and Weber noted today that Stockard has been the leading rebounder throughout practice and the second-leading scorer over the last week. I still see Stockard ending up outside the top five for minutes played this year, and maybe even outside of the top seven, but I wouldn't be stunned if he starts for a while.

K-State's true freshman power forwards both have good size when seen in person. Each is listed at 6-foot-9, and it's possible those listings are close to accurate. I'm confident each is at least in the legit 6-foot-8 range, and length (wing span, specifically) doesn't look like an issue for either. They're different players, with Antonio Gordon a better shooter and scorer while Montavious Murphy probably a better athlete with more natural passing and post skills, but each should be asked to help out, at least in some manner, this year.

David Sloan, to oversimplify things, was described Wednesday as a great passer who's got to be better at limiting turnovers and improving on the defensive end. You could probably share similar thoughts, maybe even with a notch less enthusiasm, on Shaun Williams. Both are gifted, true point guards who have a chance to be solid players for K-State this year. There's no reason to fret, seriously, about them at this point. That said, there's still not a clear leader between the two, and Mike McGuirl, though not a true point, probably has an excellent shot to be the fifth starter and slide Diarra into more of a dominant ball-handler type of role. At least early in the season.

This point can be pretty brief. Today Weber stated that, out of roughly 15 practices, he's only had one session he wasn't particularly pleased with. I'm sure there are loads of things in every single session he'd like to see improved upon, but, in general, he seems truly happy with the effort and direction of this team.

Kellis Robinett of the Kansas City Star and Wichita Eagle wrote a story recently outlining changes in recruits perspective as it relates to Kansas State basketball. Weber did relay a story he told Robinett for that story again on Wednesday, one about a local recruit not correctly guessing Kansas State as last year's Big 12 Champions after three guesses. Despite that example, Weber did say they've noticed a difference in how they're received by recruits recently. He, of course, could not talk specifics, but he referenced recruits in the national top 50 not even listening in the past, and it being somewhat rare to get the attention of those ranked between 51 and 150. K-State, of course, currently has four commitments from the Rivals150 for the Class of 2020, the most of any class in program history.

Every team says they are going to get out and run more. Every. Team. Ever. And, of course, K-State is saying the same this year. I do, however, believe it will indeed be a little more of a focus for the Wildcats this year. Even Weber seemed to make as much clear, believing this team will need to take advantage of its athleticism and depth to get some easy baskets in manners they didn't in previous years. This is not going to turn into a mid-to-late 1990s Kentucky team that's pressing and running constantly, or even close, but I do think you'll see more of it, sincerely.

You're probably better off looking at Derek Young's photo gallery, included above, or watching our videos than hearing me try and describe body types. That said, it's safe to say that, across the board, the Wildcats have clearly made progress physically.

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