Sports: Schools want players who do it all

College basketball

Schools want players who do it all

Programs increasingly seek athleticism as they shy from traditional roles.

By BRIAN LANDMAN, Times Staff Writer

TAMPA -- Not that long ago, college coaches courted players to fill distinct positions.

If they needed a center, they would look for the tall, burly youngster with a bit of a mean streak. A shooting guard? Give them that guy with the textbook stroke, a la the Hoosiers' Jimmy Chitwood.

But these days, coaches put a premium on athletic versatility, not basketball specificity.

At least, the winning ones do.

"I like guys who have a high skill level," said Florida coach Billy Donovan, whose Gators, the No. 2 seed in the South Region, meet No. 15 Sam Houston State in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday at the St. Pete Times Forum. "I like guys who can handle, pass and shoot."

No surprise that his best player is senior forward Matt Bonner. At 6-feet-10, he possesses the size you might expect in a back-to-the-basket type. He can score in the low post, but he can shoot a bit from long range, too. He has hit 48.3 percent of his 3-pointers.

And the more players you have like Bonner or Wake Forest's Josh Howard, who can score or create opportunities from anywhere on the court, especially from beyond the 3-point line, the more interchangeable they are.

That causes offensive and defensive mismatches, transforming the game much in the way that football schools in the Sunshine State stressed speed rather than bulk to alter the playing field.

"I don't know if there's very many coaches out there who play with more interchangeable parts than we do," said coach Bill Self of Big Ten tournament champion Illinois, the No. 4 seed in the West. "When you talk about the perimeter, all three positions are strictly interchangeable. Sometimes, we play with two point guards (Dee Brown and Deron Williams). And both our interior positions are totally interchangeable."

Perhaps no team has as many versatile players as Arizona.

"We have an (Andre) Iguodala who's a 6-6 freshman," associate coach Jim Rosborough said. "He comes off the board with a rebound and can get it up the floor as well as really any guard we have in the program. ... We can use Andre at the 2 or the 3."

Then there's senior forward Luke Walton.

"He's a point-forward," Rosborough said. "Like a Scottie Pippen. He's a 6-8 kid who can play inside for us, he can play outside and when we're playing zone (defense), he's up at the point."

It's no coincidence Arizona is the top seed in the West Region.

It's no coincidence that another Wildcat team also is a No. 1.

Kentucky, the top seed in the Midwest Region, has versatile athletes such as 6-8 junior forward Erik Daniels. Coach Tubby Smith said Daniels has that rare blend of talent and size to play point guard, 2-guard or small or power forward.

"We try to find guys like that," Smith said, mentioning sophomore forward Chuck Hayes as another example. "You need players who can attack the press, who can help bring the ball up the court, rebound, put the ball on the floor, shoot with range, because you do have the 3-point shot."

The Duke Blue Devils, he said, are the blueprint.

"They've been able to win and win big with athletes," Smith said. "That's what NCAA basketball has evolved into."

Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski wasn't prescient, merely pragmatic. True centers such as Patrick Ewing and Shaquille O'Neal have been disappearing as the most promising prep giants have tried jumping straight to the NBA.

"It's tough to get a couple big guys who are really good on each team," Krzyzewski said. "College is about playing at a lot of different positions, and that's why we've never tried to stereotype our kids to think of themselves as any one position, because you never know how you're going to have to use a kid."

Some of his best big guys have been dangerous outside shooters; see Christian Laettner and Shane Battier.

This year, the Blue Devils, the No. 3 seed in the West, use a lineup of essentially four wing players: Chris Duhon, Daniel Ewing, J.J. Redick and Dahntay Jones.

"Even if you're a tall kid, you work to become a perimeter player," said Oklahoma coach Kelvin Sampson, whose Sooners won the Big 12 tournament to wrap up the East's No. 1 seed.

But then kids see how versatility pays off, both collegiately and professionally, and even the taller ones work to round out their game.

"Post guys want to be able to put it on the floor and shoot outside shots and the guards want to be able to go inside and post up the smaller player," Smith said. "You see that in high school. They see guys playing so many different positions and they want to do that."