‘Better safe than sorry’: Bruce Weber embraces COVID precautions at K-State practice
Bruce Weber would like to definitively say that Kansas State’s basketball players were excited for their first organized practice of the summer earlier this week, but it’s hard for him to judge things like excitement levels at the moment.
“You can’t see anyone’s face,” Weber said, “because they are all wearing masks. But I do think we have had a great few days of workouts. Our guys did a good job with all their voluntary weights and shooting and I think that carried over into our mandatory time. Everything has been very positive.”
After a long hiatus, the Wildcats on Monday held their first basketball practice since the 2019-20 season ended abruptly at the Big 12 Tournament in March. It felt good for everyone involved to be back on the floor, but it wasn’t your typical practice session.
Instead of working out as one large group, three pods of teammates rotated in and out of the gym in order to reduce the odds of coronavirus cases spreading across the roster. K-State’s five freshmen made up one pod, while coaches spread out the team’s older players across the other two pods. Social distancing was preferred over team huddles. And everyone in attendance wore masks from start to finish.
That will take some getting used to.
“You don’t notice it until you have to talk,” Weber said. “They don’t always hear you as well as normal, and I have found that when I am trying to demonstrate something on the court it is hard to catch your breath. It’s hard for our players to catch their breath. It has not been easy. You can see as the workouts go on their energy levels drop.”
Though K-State players would never to choose to wear masks while practicing basketball, they are happy to do so in order to return to some sense of normalcy in the middle of a pandemic and prepare for the 2020-21 season.
For now, they understand precautions are necessary.
“We are all just trying to keep our kids on the court,” Weber said. “There are a lot of places that started and have been shut down. Some other places haven’t even been allowed to start. We have talked a lot about that Doc Rivers quote about ‘winning the wait.’ We have got to take things day-by-day and just deal with it and make the most of it.”
Weber said no one on K-State’s roster has tested positive for COVID-19 since returning to campus, but antibody testing revealed some players had it and recovered during the spring.
The Wildcats haven’t encountered any major problems since they resumed voluntary workouts this month, but Weber said they have had some issues with players reporting small health issues. Every time a player complains about having an upset stomach, the team has to be “very cautious and get him re-tested” before he can return to workouts. In the past, that type of ailment would have been written off as mundane.
Boredom has also been a challenge. In past years, Weber has arranged for team outings to the movie theater, bowling alley and swimming pool on the weekends. This summer, that’s not an option.
“Better safe than sorry, “Weber said. “Right now, you can’t take a chance on anything. We are being cautious and safe and just happy that we are back in the gym. We have to take advantage of the opportunity.”
It’s too early to tell much from K-State’s summer workouts, but Weber has already noticed improvement from senior guard Mike McGuirl. The Wildcats will rely on him to lead next season, as he is the only remaining player on the roster that helped the Wildcats win a Big 12 championship two years ago. And it appears as though he is up for the challenge.
His game looks a bit more polished, too.
“He is doing everything a senior should do,” Weber said. “You can just see the progress. He has worked very hard and he is ready to go out the right way.”
Weber was also complimentary of K-State’s freshman class, which features Nijel Pack, Luke Kasubke, Seryee Lewis, Selton Miguel and Davion Bradford.
“We like them all,” he said. “They each have their strengths and they have come in with a great attitude. We haven’t had any problems.”
It remains unclear if college basketball games will be able to start on time in November. For that reason, Weber says this has been “without a doubt” the most unusual offseason he has ever experiences during his long coaching career.
Every week, when he holds video meetings with players, he isn’t sure how to answer all of their questions. But now that practice has resumed they have something new to focus on, regardless of when their next game will be played.
“You have got to be ready,” Weber said. “That’s the main thing I am stressing right now. We can’t worry about what happens. We just have to be ready whenever we are allowed to play.”