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Posted on: March 26, 2021 at 10:33:59 CT

https://www.kpvi.com/sports/read-the-full-transcript-of-dave-matters-thursday-mizzou-chat/article_1d65e931-3a3d-5db1-85ee-415d6e947924.html

I asked a staff member shortly after the game if Pinson was hurt. Replay was pretty snappy: "Not hurt, doesn't guard." It's natural to fixate on the offensive stats, but Pinson was letting OU's guards blow by him regularly in that game. Dru Smith had a hard job trying to stay in front of Austin Reaves, but OU's other guards off the ball, whether that was Harkless or Gibson, didn't have any resistance when they were matched against Pinson. He tried two lob passes to Tilmon on consecutive possessions that went nowhere. The first one nearly connected. The second one was terrible. Then he tried throwing a pass behind his head from the top of the key that went nowhere. Once again, zero free throw attempts and he settled for 3s and went 0 of 3. Martin was clearly fed up and believed Buggs gave them a better chance to win late in the game.

Tough call for the coach there. Remember the home loss to Ole Miss: Pinson was on the bench for the entire 15-2 second-half run that got Mizzou back in the game. Buggs was the point guard during the whole stretch. But when the Tigers fell behind by a couple possessions late in the game, Martin went with Pinson over Buggs - and fans on Twitter roasted him for that decision. So, this time, when Pinson is having a bad game, he goes with Buggs - and gets roasted again. In the OU game, Mizzou needed a ball-handler on the floor to get Dru Smith the ball to score. He was the hot hand.

I was surprised he came back for his junior year based on conversations I had over the summer. When players were allowed to return home during quarantine let's just say the communication wasn't great from Pinson's end. Once the season tipped off, Martin was candid after games when he thought Pinson wasn't playing to his strengths and going off script when it came to game plans/scouting reports.

First of all, Pinson was not a high-ranking recruit. He was a player who outperformed his ranking: Three-star point guard ranked No. 248 nationally by 247.
Just to recap ...
Blake Harris was a nightmare. His parents were all over Martin after some games early his first season because he wasn't playing enough. He's since transferred a couple times and this year averaged 8 points and 3 turnovers per game at North Carolina A&T.
Mario McKinney was a recruiting mistake. Bad fit for the locker room. He committed to New Mexico State yesterday after a junior college detour but didn't last the whole season at his juco program. There was hope that Mizzou could land EJ Liddell if it took McKinney because McKinney played up the "package deal." That backfired.
Tray Jackson had tremendous upside. I thought that situation could have been salvaged last year. But he wasn't as invested as the staff wanted him. He barely got off the bench at Seton Hall this year.
Ultimately if you're recruiting guys who don't fit your culture then that falls on the coaching staff, but it's hardly uncommon. At last check there are more than 800 players in the transfer portal. Not everyone works out.


1. Of the five freshmen, Anton Brookshire should get a chance to play right away on the perimeter unless there transfer portal delivers multiple point guards/combo guards who can play immediately. Martin really likes Trevon Brezile's upside as a shot-blocker/rebounder. Yaya Keita is recovering from ACL surgery and has started practicing/working out and still has another six months-plus to recover before the season. Sean Durugordon has been with the team since January, so he should have a headstart on knowing the system and all the time demands that are new to freshmen. I'm not sure how Kaleb Brown fits in. He's been more of a point guard in high school but I would think he plays more on the wing in college.
2. I don't know about chemistry issues, but I didn't sense things were always hunky dory, especially when you need a midseason team meeting to clear the air on things that aren't clicking on the court. I suspected all along that had a lot to do with the way Pinson was playing at the time - because he started playing better/more engaged after the team meeting. Players were clearly frustrated with his play midway through the season when you read between the lines during postgame interviews.
3. I'd give Mizzou a fighting chance to land McKissic. We'll see.

Wilmore and Chang are huge question marks this offseason. Martin said recently that Wilmore has to "love the game" more if he's ever going to develop into a productive player. That's a red flag for me. He also needs to get in better shape. He's not fit to play heavy minutes at this level. He needs a full and productive offseason with Nicodemus Christopher before he's ever going to be a rotation player in this program. He was late to report to the team this summer, so he never got a chance to get in ideal shape.
As for Chang, Martin planned to redshirt him this season before the NCAA decided this year wouldn't count against any players' eligibility. I'm not sure exactly why they took a chance on him, but if they see some value in keeping him and he wants to stay, then I assume he'll stick around. Nothing would surprise me at this point.


There is no expectation that any of Mizzou's five senior will return for the 2021-22 season. Nationally, I don't think we're going to see many of what are being called "super seniors." Two reasons ...
1. There are far more opportunities to play professional basketball around the globe compared to professional football.
2. More football players lost a bigger chunk of their senior season due to COVID protocols/canceled games. Most seniors in college hoops got a full senior year experience.

Mitchell Smith and Dru Smith (business school) graduated in December. Buggs graduated from Hawaii, so he's in grad school at Mizzou. Tilmon and Mark Smith earn degrees in May, I believe.

I would think Dru will be on a summer league team this year in Vegas or Orlando. If Jordan Barnett and Jordan Geist can get a summer league workouts/contracts, then Smith has the goods to at least earn a look from NBA teams.
I'm not sure Tilmon will get drafted. His lack of shooting range is going to hurt his stock. He's got some obvious skills and natural gifts, but he's going to have to really impress teams in workouts to land a contract for next season. I could see him playing in the G League.