Canes desperately need frontcourt help. Could a seldom-used freshman be ready to chip in?
As Jim Larranaga ran through the list of available bodies for his Miami Hurricanes the day before facing the Florida State Seminoles, he left a “we’ll see” next to the status of Anthony Walker, not because of an injury or anything physically presenting the forward from playing. The question of Walker’s availability comes down to readiness to play at the level Miami expects of him.
Larranaga isn’t shy about playing freshman and he hopes at some point Walker will become the latest one he can get on the court for major minutes. He won’t rule out the possibility of it coming as soon as Saturday in Coral Gables.
“I think every player coming out of high school has a comfort zone and they play at a certain speed, they play at a certain level of toughness, but when you get to college the physicality is just so much greater,” Larranaga said. “The speed of the game is so much faster, the level of athlete you play against is so much better and you’ve got to raise your level in all those different categories, and he hasn’t really been able to do it yet.”
The Hurricanes (10-6, 2-4 Atlantic Coast) are desperately awaiting Walker’s presence. Miami will once again be without forwards Keith Stone and Deng Gak when it faces No. 9 Florida State at the Watsco Center, which makes Walker its most natural fit as the backup post player behind forward Sam Waardenburg and center Anthony Miller.
Walker, however, has taken longer to develop than guards Harlond Beverly and Isaiah Wong, both of whom are averaging more than 13 minutes per game. Walker wasn’t a top-200 prospect in the 247Sports.com composite rankings coming out of Brewster Academy in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, and early season opportuities have faded. The freshman hasn’t played in either of the Hurricanes’ past two games and has played a total of just 11 minutes in January.
Miller, who battles against Walker in practice, sees positive signs, particularly on the defensive end. Larranaga wants to see Walker play at maximum effort at all times, and Miller said it’s the biggest area of progression for Walker this year.
“I feel like the most difficult part for a freshman is on the defensive end, knowing the rotations, knowing where to be, where you’re supposed to be and then being there every single time,” Miller said. “I feel like hes gotten a lot better at being in his spots and just trying to give the extra effort I think has gotten better than where it used to be, than just learning how to exert yourself on every possession, don’t take a possession off because those are the possessions that count the most.”
Vasiljevic honored
D.J. Vasiljevic is one of the most productive seniors in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Now he’s also a finalist for the Senior CLASS Award.
The guard was named one of 30 candidates for the award Friday, and he is the only one of the 30 from the ACC. The Senior CLASS Award, which is an acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, has been handed out each year since 2001 to the senior “who best exemplifies excellence in the four C’s of community, classroom, character and competition.” Typically, the award is given to the top senior in the country, like former North Carolina Tar Heels forward Luke Maye last year or former West Virginia Mountaineers point guard Jevon Carter in 2018. The field will narrow next month to 10 finalists, who are considered Senior All-Americans. The winner will be announced at the Final Four in April.
Vasiljevic is averaging a career-high 14.4 points per game this season and shooting a career-best 41.7 percent from three-point range. He ranks second in the ACC in three-point percentage and sixth in the conference in three-pointers made. He also ranks fourth in the league in offensive rating as Miami is averaging 127.7 points per 100 possessions when he’s on the floor. Entering Friday, Vasiljevic’s offensive rating was third best among seniors nationwide and his three-point percentage is 13th.
Vasiljevic, who leads the Hurricanes playing 34.3 minutes per game, also has a GoFundMe.com campaign to benefit his native Australia. The senior from Melbourne is donating $5 for every three he makes in conference play to bushfire crisis relief.
This story was originally published January 17, 2020 at 4:12 PM.
