Colorado University Athletics
Buffs' King Vows To Snap Recent Shooting Slump
January 05, 2016 | Men's Basketball, Neill Woelk
BOULDER — Every day after practice, long after most of his Colorado teammates have headed to the showers, George King shoots.
He shoots from every “slot” on the floor, working on his jumper. Mid-range, 3-pointers, from the right, from the left, from the top — he works from every position imaginable.
King, a redshirt sophomore, doesn't count how many shots he takes. Instead, he and a CU manager keep track of percentages, and he doesn't leave the floor until he's hit 80 percent of his shots from each slot.
Then, before he takes it in for the evening, he shoots free throws until he hits 10 in a row — preferably with each of them swishing cleanly through.
“If they bounce around a lot, they don't count,” King said.
On some days, his ritual takes maybe 10 to 15 minutes. Other days are longer. But the result, he believes, is a jump shot that's more consistent, more dependable and more likely to help the Buffs win.
“Coach Pri (assistant coach Jean Prioleau) kind of instilled that in me,” King said. “I asked him what I could do to make my shot more consistent and he showed me the drill. He said if I would commit to it, it would pay off. He said I still might have those nights where I might shoot like 1-for-6, but cumulatively, my percentage would be a lot better. He said it would increase my chances of having a really good shooting game.”
Early in the season, the routine paid big dividends. King literally burst on to the scene this year with 41 points in his first two games, including a 27-point effort in a win over Auburn that saw him hit five of his eight 3-point tries. The performances caught many CU observers by surprise. After a freshman year when he played an average of 5.5 minutes per game and scored 1.5 points per game followed by a redshirt season last year, he was almost a forgotten player.
But those first two games had CU followers remembering his name in a hurry, and they began to expect such performances on a regular basis. King admits he also got caught up in the excitement.
“I kind of thought I could do that every night,” King said.
But then, as he notes, “reality set in.” Opponents suddenly became very aware of his abilities and began guarding him accordingly, and his scoring average began to dip. “I think I started showing up on the scouting reports,” he said.
Still, King remains CU's second-leading scorer for the season, averaging 13.9 points per game. He has scored in double figures 11 times in CU's 15 games, is averaging 4.1 rebounds per game and has been an important part of the 12-3 Buffs' success thus far.
As part of head coach Tad Boyle's rotation at the wing position, King has started 10 of CU's 15 games thus far and is fourth on the team in minutes played (a scant three minutes by third-place Josh Fortune). He and fellow wings Tre'Shaun Fletcher and Josh Fortune have said they're not not bothered by the rotation, as it affords each of them the opportunity to start, and also the chance to come off the bench and provide a spark.
But King has also had his struggles as he adjusts once again to playing on a regular basis after sitting out a year. He is just eighth on the team in assists (10 for the season) and second in turnovers (34). He's also recently hit a shooting slump — he's shooting just 11-for-37 over his last three games (30 percent), dropping him to 46 percent for the season (still the second-best percentage of any of CU's starters).
“I'm still not playing to the best of my ability,” King said. “I know there's a lot of things in my game I could do better. I'm missing shots I could make in my sleep. There's a lot to my game I haven't shown, and I'm frustrating myself because I'm not making it happen.”
Along with his recent shooting, King said he needs to improve his rebounding numbers.
“I'm only averaging about four rebounds per game — that's pathetic for my size and my athleticism and my strength,” King said. “That's on me. I've got to go get the ball and come down with it.”
He also knows he needs to continue to improve his defense and cut down on his assist-turnover margin — and while he's at it, rediscover his shooting eye.
“There's a lot more in me,” King said. “There's a lot more to my game. It's a little frustrating right now, but I just have to keep working, keep pushing. It will come. I'm confident of that.”
PREPPING FOR UTES: With just one game on the schedule this week — Friday night's 7 p.m. home contest vs. Utah — the Buffs don't have to worry about preparing for a pair of foes. Instead, they are spending all their time preparing for the Utes, who will come to Boulder toting a two-game losing streak.
“Utah is going to come in here like a wounded animal on the side of the road,” head coach Tad Boyle said. “But they haven't been shot six times, they've been shot once or twice. They've got a lot of life in them and they're a little angry, mad right now and we've got to be ready to handle that.”
NO XJ UPDATE: Boyle said he has spoken with senior Xavier Johnson about the possibility of returning this year, as well as with Johnson's father, but no decision has been reached. Johnson hasn't played all season after suffering an Achilles injury last summer.
“We'll visit over the next couple of days and see where he's at mentally and physically,” Boyle said.
Johnson has begun limited participation in some non-contact drills, but is not taking part in any full-speed drills yet.
NO CHANGE AT POINT: Starting point guard Dom Collier has struggled recently in the assist department. The Buffs sophomore has seven turnovers and no assists in his last three games while backup Thomas Akyazili has 11 assists and just one turnover in the same span. Boyle, though, said he's not considering a change in the starting lineup, and will continue to use Akyazili and senior Xavier Talton off the bench. “I've got confidence in all those guys,” Boyle said.
INFINITI CHALLENGE: Boyle is once again participating in the Infiniti Coaches Charity Challenge with the opportunity to earn a $100,000 donation to Special Olympics of Colorado. The voting website is now open at ESPN.com/Infiniti. You do have to register an email address, but it is free of charge. You can vote once per day, per email address. Voting for the first round lasts until Jan. 24 at 10 a.m.
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
