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No spare change in SMU basketball
Tubbs and Mustangs make a lot of alterations and need all to pay off
11:26 AM CDT on Friday, October 15, 2004
By CALVIN WATKINS / The Dallas Morning News
UNIVERSITY PARK – Practice officially starts Saturday at 12:01 a.m. So does the Jimmy Tubbs era at SMU.
But changes in the men's basketball program's culture began soon after he was hired in March.
After a 12-18 season that cost Mike Dement his job, SMU president Gerald Turner and athletic director Jim Copeland made it clear that it was time that SMU reached the postseason.
To accomplish that, Tubbs said SMU needed sweeping changes. He altered the players' off-season conditioning drills, changed the schedule to add more home games, allowed all the assistant coaches more autonomy and helped in a new marketing strategy.
"I want the program to take on my personality," Tubbs said. "I want to make sure our kids are committed to the program and to bring in good people that want to be successful."
Irwin Thompson / DMN
SMU basketball head coch Jimmy Tubbs (left) and assistant Robert Lineburg hope they have the horses to reach the postseason.
Tubbs knows the task will be difficult. SMU has not reached the NCAA Tournament since 1993.
He decided his players needed to be tougher. Tubbs brought in new conditioning drills from Oklahoma, where he was an assistant for two seasons. Players and assistant coaches were required to report at 6 a.m. for weight lifting and running. Players had to run a mile under a specific time. Guards, for instance, had to finish the distance in under 5:40. Big men, under 6:00.
"We had never done these things before," leading scorer Bryan Hopkins said. "I knew coming from OU he would pick some stuff up there and expect us to do it."
Improved conditioning will be needed to run SMU's up-tempo offense and its pressure defense, something Tubbs was noted for during his days at Kimball, where he was the head coach for eight seasons (1982-90). Last season, SMU ran a matchup zone defense and a halfcourt offense.
"When we first started the drills, there was a certain amount of fear," Tubbs said. "I told them it would be tough. The first time they tried to achieve the goals we set for them, they failed. But what made me proud of them was that they made it the second time."
The weight program has paid off for several players. Hopkins said he's a lean 205 pounds, instead of a heavy 210. Patrick Simpson, at 6-9, weighed 220 pounds last season. Simpson, who will play near the basket this season, is 235.
Like Dement, Tubbs realized SMU needed more home games. SMU had three home dates among the 10 nonconference games last season. Dement's Mustangs also played three Big 12 opponents last season.
Tubbs, along with senior associate athletic director Carlton Cooper, scheduled five home games among the eight nonconference games. Schedule strength of the home games was reduced. Gone is Wake Forest, and in is UT-Tyler.
Tubbs, a former assistant under Dement, also realized his staff needed more autonomy. Dement was more hands-on with every basketball function. He often controlled everything from practice times, offensive and defensive plays and how players conducted off-season workouts.
Tubbs, who gave each assistant his own office, retained close friend Robert Lineburg from Dement's staff. Lineburg is top assistant and lead recruiter. He traveled with Tubbs to Senegal to meet Bamba Fall's parents. Fall, a 7-1 center from Oak Hill Academy in Virginia, made an oral commitment to SMU last month.
Tubbs chose other assistants to fill specific roles. One of Dean Christian's strengths is the academic side of recruiting, and he was influential in getting an oral commitment from Ryan Dermody of Loveland, Colo. Anthony Anderson has strong local ties. Tim Heskett, coordinator of basketball operations, helped organize the recent Jimmy Tubbs Golf Classic at Oak Cliff Country Club.
It's no coincidence that the tournament took place in Oak Cliff, where T
No spare change in SMU basketball
Tubbs and Mustangs make a lot of alterations and need all to pay off
11:26 AM CDT on Friday, October 15, 2004
By CALVIN WATKINS / The Dallas Morning News
UNIVERSITY PARK – Practice officially starts Saturday at 12:01 a.m. So does the Jimmy Tubbs era at SMU.
But changes in the men's basketball program's culture began soon after he was hired in March.
After a 12-18 season that cost Mike Dement his job, SMU president Gerald Turner and athletic director Jim Copeland made it clear that it was time that SMU reached the postseason.
To accomplish that, Tubbs said SMU needed sweeping changes. He altered the players' off-season conditioning drills, changed the schedule to add more home games, allowed all the assistant coaches more autonomy and helped in a new marketing strategy.
"I want the program to take on my personality," Tubbs said. "I want to make sure our kids are committed to the program and to bring in good people that want to be successful."
Irwin Thompson / DMN
SMU basketball head coch Jimmy Tubbs (left) and assistant Robert Lineburg hope they have the horses to reach the postseason.
Tubbs knows the task will be difficult. SMU has not reached the NCAA Tournament since 1993.
He decided his players needed to be tougher. Tubbs brought in new conditioning drills from Oklahoma, where he was an assistant for two seasons. Players and assistant coaches were required to report at 6 a.m. for weight lifting and running. Players had to run a mile under a specific time. Guards, for instance, had to finish the distance in under 5:40. Big men, under 6:00.
"We had never done these things before," leading scorer Bryan Hopkins said. "I knew coming from OU he would pick some stuff up there and expect us to do it."
Improved conditioning will be needed to run SMU's up-tempo offense and its pressure defense, something Tubbs was noted for during his days at Kimball, where he was the head coach for eight seasons (1982-90). Last season, SMU ran a matchup zone defense and a halfcourt offense.
"When we first started the drills, there was a certain amount of fear," Tubbs said. "I told them it would be tough. The first time they tried to achieve the goals we set for them, they failed. But what made me proud of them was that they made it the second time."
The weight program has paid off for several players. Hopkins said he's a lean 205 pounds, instead of a heavy 210. Patrick Simpson, at 6-9, weighed 220 pounds last season. Simpson, who will play near the basket this season, is 235.
Like Dement, Tubbs realized SMU needed more home games. SMU had three home dates among the 10 nonconference games last season. Dement's Mustangs also played three Big 12 opponents last season.
Tubbs, along with senior associate athletic director Carlton Cooper, scheduled five home games among the eight nonconference games. Schedule strength of the home games was reduced. Gone is Wake Forest, and in is UT-Tyler.
Tubbs, a former assistant under Dement, also realized his staff needed more autonomy. Dement was more hands-on with every basketball function. He often controlled everything from practice times, offensive and defensive plays and how players conducted off-season workouts.
Tubbs, who gave each assistant his own office, retained close friend Robert Lineburg from Dement's staff. Lineburg is top assistant and lead recruiter. He traveled with Tubbs to Senegal to meet Bamba Fall's parents. Fall, a 7-1 center from Oak Hill Academy in Virginia, made an oral commitment to SMU last month.
Tubbs chose other assistants to fill specific roles. One of Dean Christian's strengths is the academic side of recruiting, and he was influential in getting an oral commitment from Ryan Dermody of Loveland, Colo. Anthony Anderson has strong local ties. Tim Heskett, coordinator of basketball operations, helped organize the recent Jimmy Tubbs Golf Classic at Oak Cliff Country Club.
It's no coincidence that the tournament took place in Oak Cliff, where T
