Rutgers basketball: 5 thoughts from summer practice with ‘refreshing’ vibe

Ace Bailey saw his point guard dribble toward the right side of the court, and the star Rutgers freshman did not hesitate to make his move. As he cut toward the basket, running up the baseline from the right corner, Bailey received a well-placed bounce pass from Jeremiah Williams.

Without breaking stride and with a defender on either side of him, the 6-foot-9 forward took two steps, rose up and threw a reverse dunk that led multiple teammates to later refer to him as a “freak of nature.”

“He does stuff you can’t teach, that you’ve never seen people do,” Williams said. “When he does stuff like that, it just brings a little juice, a little excitement. He has a talent, a gift that many people have. So it’s a blessing and it’s fun to play with him out there.”

The move was the highlight of the Scarlet Knights’ one-hour practice on Thursday, the fourth of Bailey’s young college career. The highest-ranked recruit in Rutgers basketball history knocked down a number of threes on air in individual drills, put together some good reps in one-on-one action against veteran teammate PJ Hayes and flashed his immense potential in a brief five-on-five session at the end of practice, highlighted by his reverse dunk.

Those standout moments are apparently becoming regular occurrences in Piscataway.

“He does something every day that you just say ‘wow,” head coach Steve Pikiell said. “He makes it look easy, when I know it’s not.”

Some other impressions from Thursday’s practice, which was the first viewed by NJ Advance Media this summer:

How did center spot look?

Pikiell has harped on the versatility he has at the center position entering the summer workout program, and that was clearly displayed during Thursday’s practice.

During the one-on-one drill, he matched up 6-foot-7 Princeton transfer Zach Martini against Emmanuel Ogbole, the hulking 6-foot-11 junior college transfer who, according to Pikiell, has a higher vertical leap than former starter Cliff Omoruyi.

When the latter had the ball, he posted up Martini and finished over him near the rim; on the other end, Martini attempted a three-pointer.

Lathan Sommerville, a 6-foot-10, 285-pound freshman who will play a role at center, went to the hole in both of his one-on-one reps against fellow first-year forward Dylan Grant.

“Big, strong, physical players,” Martini said of his fellow centers. “Me personally, I love playing against guys like that. It’s a great challenge for me. The Big Ten is a physical league, so I’m sure there’s a lot more players like that. It’s great to go up against those guys every day. It’s been great so far.”

Still, because the Scarlet Knights did not add a center through the transfer portal to replace Omoruyi, the position is arguably the biggest question mark about the roster and will be a major topic outside the program leading up to the winter.

For Martini’s part, there is a lot of confidence Rutgers will “figure it out” at center. He admitted that Pikiell, who has expressed a desire to play positionless basketball this winter, told him to bring some of his experience from playing in a five-out system at Princeton.

“I trust every guy in the building,” Martini said. “Coach Pikes trusts every guy in the building. We know how to play the right way. In today’s basketball, you can almost be positionless, so we’ll see where it takes us. I’m not worried about it.”

Returnees make progress

Williams, Ogbole and rising sophomore Jamichael Davis remained on campus throughout the offseason, Williams said, forgoing trips back home to “anchor down” and work on themselves.

“We were in the weight room every day with each other, being together on the court together every day,” Williams said. “We did what we could, trying to improve and make strides.”

The positive returns came in the weight room — all three gained noticeable muscle — and on the court. Perhaps the best matchup in one-on-one drills came between Williams and Davis, two strong on-ball defenders who pestered each other down the court. In one rep, Davis forced a shot-clock violation — a rarity.

“We know what it’s like here,” Williams said. “We do the same drills from last year, so we have a step up in terms of that. Everyone’s leadership skills have improved more. Big E has improved on the court, leadership-wise. Same with JaMichael Davis, being a freshman last year, he has a bigger role now in leadership. In terms of me, … being in the system and the program a year now helped me a lot.”

The vibes are strong

Bailey is among the nine newcomers for the Scarlet Knights, who revamped their roster with five freshman and four incoming transfers this offseason. After convening for the first time less than a week ago, the group is still “getting to know each other,” according to Martini.

But one thing has already stuck out early to the Princeton transfer.

“Everyone’s got a great work ethic,” Martini said. “I’m (at the practice facility) at 10am or 9 p.m., there’s 10 people here. It’s (the fourth practice), so we’re still figuring it out, but the work ethic has been second to none so far.”

For Williams, who is one of the three returning players from last season’s roster, there is a “new vibe that is refreshing and infectious.”

“Everyone’s been in the gym, everyone’s been communicating a lot, everyone’s trying to figure out stuff as a team early on, talking about goals we want to have during the season,” he said. “The energy has been different and I think that’s a testament to all of the new guys. Everyone coming here with pretty much the same mindset. I think everyone wants to win here. Everyone came here for a common goal, so that’s the thing that’s been exciting and surprised me the most is how infectious and talkative everyone’s been. We’re trying to figure stuff out, so it’s been good.”

As a veteran, Williams has taken the lead on helping their new teammates make “as smooth of a transition as possible” into the program. The elder statesman of the team, he will be leaned upon often, tasked with navigating a young group through the high expectations they hold entering this winter.

But that pressure can be a good thing, too.

“Everyone knows we have a good chance to be good this year, and it’s fun when you know you have a chance to be good and you can win something,” he said. “That’s the goal.”

Loose Notes

• Jordan Derkack, the reigning Northeast Conference Defensive Player of the Year, looked the part. His hands were very active, forcing steals and smacking the ball out of opponent’s hands on multiple occasions.”He’s got great hands,” Pikiell said.
• Hayes, who shot 39.7% on threes last season, knocked down a majority of the three-point attempts he took throughout the day.
• Five-star freshman Dylan Harper did not participate as he continues to recover from the voluntary procedure he underwent last week, but he was in attendance.

Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust.

Brian Fonseca may be reached at bfonseca@njadvancemedia.com.