As assistant coach Darren Tillis tutors two promising big men at Marshall, he knows their joys and tribulations, and knows them from his own 6-foot-11 point of view.
As assistant coach Darren Tillis tutors two promising big men at Marshall, he knows their joys and tribulations, and knows them from his own 6-foot-11 point of view.
Tillis has walked more than the requisite mile in the big shoes of Hassan Whiteside and Nigel Spikes. He entered Cleveland State as an unrefined post player in 1978 and worked tirelessly to turn himself into an NBA first-round draft pick in 1982.
Yes, he admits it helped that he grew 6 inches while in college. But he said he owes his college success and seven-season pro career, in the NBA and in Europe, to hours of practice and instruction.
He hopes to use that experience to maximize the potential of Whiteside, the 7-footer who already has become a Thundering Herd fan favorite, and of Spikes, a 6-foot-11 prospect who sat out last season as a non-qualifier. And after five games, it's clear that both are loaded with potential.
Both certainly will see a lot of playing time Thursday, when Marshall takes on Salem International at Cam Henderson Center. Tipoff is at 7 p.m.
"Their upside could be a lot better than mine, and I played seven years of pro basketball," Tillis said Tuesday, while on a recruiting trip. "They have more upside as a freshman."
Whiteside, a native of Gastonia, N.C., was selected as Conference USA rookie of the week after dominant games against Lamar and Ohio. Against Lamar, he scored 14 points, pulled down 12 rebounds and had four of the team's record-tying 13 rejections.
In his first game at the Charleston Civic Center, he nearly swatted Ohio off the map, tying the school's single-game record with nine rejections. In five games, he is averaging an even 10 points and leads Conference USA in rebounds (9.4 average) and blocks (23).
Against Ohio, he seemed to block every variety of shot in every way possible. He batted away a 3-pointer, came in from the weak side to foil driving layups and, in a show of unexpected strength, overwhelmed what appeared to be a dunk attempt.
Even worse for the Bobcats - and perhaps future foes - Whiteside showed much more discipline and stayed away from cheap fouls, the bugaboo of many a young big man. In other words, he wasn't giving in to the temptation to try to block everything.
"We teach them to 'wall,' put your body out and keep your hands up in the sky," Tillis said. "He did a good job when he blocked the nine shots - he probably had four more where he intimidated, but didn't leave his feet. They had traveling calls, altered shots, changed their minds.
"We've been explaining to him when to block a shot and when not to block a shot."
Spikes has been going through the same education, though he has yet to make a Whiteside-style splash. Still, he has 14 points and six rebounds to show for his 34 minutes, and he is 6-for-9 from the floor.
The Fort Lauderdale, Fla., native hasn't necessarily suffered rustiness from his year of sitting out, as some players have. Tillis thinks, in this instance, the hiatus helped Spikes.
"He got to see some of the workouts, got to go through some of the preseason stuff with the weight coach," Tillis said. "He got set back when he hurt his back and hurt his knee, but got acclimated academically, and got to see the speed of the game; it's just like day an night [from high school].
As assistant coach Darren Tillis tutors two promising big men at Marshall, he knows their joys and tribulations, and knows them from his own 6-foot-11 point of view.
Tillis has walked more than the requisite mile in the big shoes of Hassan Whiteside and Nigel Spikes. He entered Cleveland State as an unrefined post player in 1978 and worked tirelessly to turn himself into an NBA first-round draft pick in 1982.
Yes, he admits it helped that he grew 6 inches while in college. But he said he owes his college success and seven-season pro career, in the NBA and in Europe, to hours of practice and instruction.
He hopes to use that experience to maximize the potential of Whiteside, the 7-footer who already has become a Thundering Herd fan favorite, and of Spikes, a 6-foot-11 prospect who sat out last season as a non-qualifier. And after five games, it's clear that both are loaded with potential.
Both certainly will see a lot of playing time Thursday, when Marshall takes on Salem International at Cam Henderson Center. Tipoff is at 7 p.m.
"Their upside could be a lot better than mine, and I played seven years of pro basketball," Tillis said Tuesday, while on a recruiting trip. "They have more upside as a freshman."
Whiteside, a native of Gastonia, N.C., was selected as Conference USA rookie of the week after dominant games against Lamar and Ohio. Against Lamar, he scored 14 points, pulled down 12 rebounds and had four of the team's record-tying 13 rejections.
In his first game at the Charleston Civic Center, he nearly swatted Ohio off the map, tying the school's single-game record with nine rejections. In five games, he is averaging an even 10 points and leads Conference USA in rebounds (9.4 average) and blocks (23).
Against Ohio, he seemed to block every variety of shot in every way possible. He batted away a 3-pointer, came in from the weak side to foil driving layups and, in a show of unexpected strength, overwhelmed what appeared to be a dunk attempt.
Even worse for the Bobcats - and perhaps future foes - Whiteside showed much more discipline and stayed away from cheap fouls, the bugaboo of many a young big man. In other words, he wasn't giving in to the temptation to try to block everything.
"We teach them to 'wall,' put your body out and keep your hands up in the sky," Tillis said. "He did a good job when he blocked the nine shots - he probably had four more where he intimidated, but didn't leave his feet. They had traveling calls, altered shots, changed their minds.
"We've been explaining to him when to block a shot and when not to block a shot."
Spikes has been going through the same education, though he has yet to make a Whiteside-style splash. Still, he has 14 points and six rebounds to show for his 34 minutes, and he is 6-for-9 from the floor.
The Fort Lauderdale, Fla., native hasn't necessarily suffered rustiness from his year of sitting out, as some players have. Tillis thinks, in this instance, the hiatus helped Spikes.
"He got to see some of the workouts, got to go through some of the preseason stuff with the weight coach," Tillis said. "He got set back when he hurt his back and hurt his knee, but got acclimated academically, and got to see the speed of the game; it's just like day an night [from high school].
"And he got to play pickup ball with the other guys. He got to touch it and feel it for a year or so. It probably benefited him."
Tillis was a four-year starter at Cleveland State from 1978-82, when the Vikings averaged 18 wins a season. He averaged 17.3 points and 12.8 rebounds in 1981-82, earning him honorable mention All-American honors from The Sporting News.
He was recruited to CSU by Larry Shyatt, currently an assistant on Billy Donovan's Florida staff. Tillis and Shyatt later coached together at Wyoming and Clemson, a relationship that helped lead Tillis to MU when ex-Florida assistant Donnie Jones assembled his new staff in 2007.
Tillis developed his playing skills under Shyatt, but received much one-on-one instruction from a volunteer instructor, Phil Della. Tillis and Della met daily, holidays and all, and Tillis remains grateful for all those hours.
"He took me to the gym the last three years [of my college career] every day," Tillis said. "He wasn't getting paid, and he worked me out more than anybody. We're still good friends to this day. He's retired, spending all that money he earned then [i.e., none]."
Tillis is on the MU payroll to develop the young big guys, much like he helped shape Tyler Wilkerson and Tirrell Baines into potent inside forces. Tillis says fellow assistant Shawn Finney, the former Tulane head coach, is a tremendous help on technique-related matters.
Often, a player the size of Whiteside and Spikes played a simple defense in high school, perhaps patrolling the lane in a zone. Concepts such as post defense, weak-side help and coping with ball screens are foreign.
Then there's the physical nature of the college game. Whiteside and Spikes have gotten a taste, but still face culture shocks when the Herd plays North Carolina later this month, and the Conference USA schedule later.
Both need weight-room work and an equally strong mentality.
"You've got to grow into your body, got to get over your awkwardness," Tillis said. "A lot of kids, they're gentle giants. You've got to have a little mean streak. When you're growing up, you're so big and everybody's telling you, 'Don't hurt anybody,' it makes you a gentle giant."
Tillis said both have been good pupils, overwhelmed at times but trying to absorb all the coaching, film study, scouting reports, etc. And if they stray away, there's a support system to bring them back.
A very simple support system, as it turns out, triggered by exactly one phone call.
"They have two strong moms that take no stuff," Tillis said. "If I call home, their mom's on them, and it's a whole new day in practice."
Reach Doug Smock at 304-348-5130 or dougsm...@wvgazette.com.
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