Will Wade gives media a glimpse of “Havoc”
Photo by Bryant Drayton
Men’s basketball head coach Will Wade and assistant athletic director Scott Day hosted members of the media for lunch and an overview of Wade’s tactical plans for the upcoming season on Tuesday.
The event was open to members of the local media but most of the specific tactical aspects that Wade discussed were asked to be kept private. Those who attended were then invited to come watch the team as they held an open practice at the Franklin Street Gym.
Mike Gilmore with the easy finish #vcu #RamNation pic.twitter.com/lGgiYhUds2
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Wade emphasized that the trademark defensive system the Rams employed under Shaka Smart, which was his area of focus as an assistant coach at VCU, would continue to be a staple under his coaching, but with the addition of his own variations.
“On the surface what we’ll do will look relatively similar to years past in that we’re going to press and try to create steals, but there’s a lot of ways you can do that.” Wade said.
Wade highlighted another key difference between his predecessor Shaka Smart’s styles of play.
“I’m more conservative and I don’t like to give up layups,” Wade said.
Wade also talked about the personnel in VCU’s lineup, pointing out that he believes many of the players on this season’s roster have the ability to get a lot of minutes for the Rams this year.
He also believes that this year’s team will be deeper than in previous years.
“The thing about our team is I think we’re not gonna overwhelm you with our starters, but we’ve got ten or eleven players that are really, really good.” Wade said.
Wade was introduced as the new head coach of the program in April as the successor to Shaka Smart.
He was awarded Southern Conference Coach of the Year at University of Tennessee at Chattanooga last year after finishing the season with a 22-10 overall record, and came in second to Furman University in the Southern Conference Championship.
Wade formerly coached under Smart as an assistant coach at VCU from 2009-2013, before leaving the university for the head coaching position at Chattanooga.
The Rams will begin preseason games later this month when they take part in the annual Black and Gold Scrimmage on Oct. 24.
Fadel Allassan, Staff Writer
Fadel is a sophomore print journalism major. He is fluent in English and French and enjoys writing about politics. // Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn
allassanfg@commonwealthtimes.org
