The Kansas basketball team plowed its way through Day 3 of Bill Self’s annual preseason Boot Camp on Wednesday and was at it again bright and early for Day 4 on Thursday morning.
That puts the Jayhawks one day away from the halfway point of the annual ritual that players often deem to be torture while going through it and often see — and appreciate — the benefit of down the road, as they mature mentally and physically and move deeper into their college careers.
“As you go through them more and more, you really see that it’s for our benefit,” KU forward Landen Lucas said after Day 1 of this year’s camp. “At the beginning, you go out there and it really sucks, but, between the conditioning and just the team building and going through some adversity with teammates, it actually is something that will definitely help you in the long run.”
Asked where he keeps his mind focused, before during and after Boot Camp, Lucas offered a very direct answer.
“Just focusing on getting something out of it and building from (that),” he said.
As for the specifics of Boot Camp, Lucas provided a general overview of what each day is like and KU assistant coach Jerrance Howard recently posted a quick video that takes you behind the curtain.
“We usually start off with some stretching, some jump ropes, light warm-ups. You get tired after warm-ups,” Lucas said. “And then you go to some stations and do some other drills and, really, if you can get through a day with no mistakes, it goes pretty quick. Where you hurt yourself is mess-ups and having to do stuff over again. Once you kind of get into a bad groove, it’s just a downhill spiral. You just try to make it through.”
Check back with KUsports.com on Friday for more from Boot Camp 2016, including photos and feedback from KU coach Bill Self.
A quick look at Boot Camp 2016 via Kansas Athletics… pic.twitter.com/TxmYCJtWYU
— KUsports.com (@KUsports) September 22, 2016
For those who didn’t see the coverage from Friday, here’s a quick look at some of the action via a video I made.
