Drew Gooden has the potential to be the best basketball player Roy Williams has ever coached.
Who says so?
Williams, Kansas’ 13th-year coach, that’s who.
“I think Drew can be a 10 (on a scale of 1-to-10),” Williams said of Gooden, a 6-foot-10 sophomore from Richmond, Calif., who was named first-team all-Big 12 by the Associated Press on Monday. “I have not had five players since I’ve been here who could be a 10, but Drew can be a 10.”
Currently Gooden, who takes a 15.8-point, 8.3-rebound average into the postseason, rates about a “6 or 7,” Williams said.
“I’d think Raef (LaFrentz) and Paul (Pierce) got to where they were 10s and possibly Jacque (Vaughn). I don’t know if I’ve got anybody else who got to be a 10,” Williams said.
“It’ll be a hard burden for him, but he likes that too. He likes the challenge of wanting to be one of the best. I’d like Drew to want to be THE best.”
Actually Gooden he earned KU’s defensive player of the game honors for the first time this season Sunday in a win over Missouri wants to be better than THE best player of all time.
Yes, all time.
“People think Michael Jordan was the best. I think with my skills, the tools I have, I think I can be better than Michael Jordan,” Gooden said.
“That’s not me being arrogant. It’s me as an individual having that goal in life. I think everybody should have goals. It’s tough trying to beat out Michael Jordan, but anything is possible.”
Gooden says Williams has inspired him to shoot for the stars.
“Coach Williams told me I could be a great player when he recruited me,” Gooden said. “That’s one reason he pushed me so hard my freshman year. Every little mistake I made he corrected me. This year I’ve corrected a lot of those mistakes. He’ll tell me I do something wrong three times at practice instead of 100 times.”
His work at practice carrying over into games helped him win all-league honors despite the fact he missed five games because of a fracture in his right wrist.
“I thought (missing) five games would hurt. But I knew I was supposed to be on that team,” Gooden said. “I knew I had a good year and deserved to be on that team by my play. I felt it was in God’s hands. Fortunately I made it.”
Williams says Gooden’s practice habits and concentration level at practice has changed “175 degrees” for the better this season.
Who knows how much better it’ll be next year? Yes, next year. Gooden at this time firmly believes he’ll be back for his junior season.
“Right now, as far as my play, this is not the time for me to leave to go to the NBA,” Gooden said.
“I’m not saying I would not get picked. I’ve seen guys last year who left early who do not get any playing time. They basically lost another year in college where they could get better.”
He cited the case of DerMarr Johnson, who left the University of Cincinnati after his freshman season for little playing time with the Atlanta Hawks.
“I’m not saying he can’t get better, but watching from the bench and just going to shootarounds … it’s tough to get better,” Gooden said.
Gooden says the NBA is always on college players’ minds.
“You’ll see NBA scouts at our games. They will walk past you and they’ll wink,” Gooden said. “I know as an individual I can play in the NBA. I will get picked whenever I do enter the draft. I am not doubtful. My goal is to get better to reach my full potential and leave when I think I’m ready to leave.”
He said basically his preseason statement still holds true concerning the NBA.
“I told everybody at the beginning of the season my intentions would be here for four years but if anything happens … basically play it by ear. Anything good goes for me,” Gooden said.
He’d love to have a big postseason … for his team’s sake.
“That’s where you get all your love from the tournament,” Gooden quipped. “Do good in the tournament and it’s where you get love. All the media attention. Guys on the winning teams average 10 or 11 points and they say he’s ready for the NBA.
“I think we have the talent to accomplish some big things this postseason. I think we all hate to lose. I know I hate to lose. Last year I’d get over a loss in a couple hours. This year … I still remember those games we lost.”
If Gooden can someday be a ’10,’ what about fellow sophs Kirk Hinrich and Nick Collison?
“I can’t say that in front of Kirk,” Williams quipped at the end of his weekly media session, with Hinrich set to be interviewed. “I can’t make Kirk feel too good today.”
Williams simply loves his sophomore class. Iowans Hinrich and Collison were named second-team AP all-Big 12.
“The best thing I can say about Kansas basketball is those three rascals,” Williams said. “They play their rear ends off. Yesterday we were messing around (after shooting drills). Drew and Kirk were having a shooting contest. I just love that (competitive attitude).”
Hinrich won the contest over Gooden, hitting eight of 10 three-pointers from about 28 feet.
“I stayed even with Kirk from two rounds. Then he was hitting ’em from the ‘K’ in Kansas on the court,” Gooden said.
The three sophomores and their potential is a big reason Williams did not take the North Carolina job last summer.
“Last summer that was one question I couldn’t answer: How I could tell those three guys I wasn’t going to be here? I decided I couldn’t tell ’em,” Williams said.
Luke Axtell will rest his bad back until Thursday’s practice. Williams is hoping to get some production out of Axtell in Friday’s 6:10 p.m. battle against the winner of Thursday’s Kansas State-Nebraska contest.
