Colorado University Athletics
Tad Boyle Press Conference Quotes
OPENING STATEMENT- "Obviously, we are celebrating a great year for Colorado basketball, and I wish we were still playing this week (in the Sweet 16) but were not. But as we reflect back on the year we had, and another 24 win season, it was a great run at the end. I am really happy with where the program is today, and probably more importantly now, where it is going in the future."
ON HAVING A YOUNG TEAM NEXT YEAR- "I am both excited and nervous. We are going to have a lot of young faces, a lot of new faces. A lot like last year's transition, we have some key parts coming back, and we have an opportunity for some guys coming back to establish themselves as go-to guys."
ON SPENCER DINWIDDIE PLAYING POINT GUARD- "Spencer is a natural point (guard), and we recruited him like that. I will play two or even three point guards together, so I don't get caught up in the numbers. We just want guys that can pass, dribble, and shoot, and (Spencer) can do all three of those things pretty well. In terms of thinking like a point guard, we need to get him to do that a little bit more, and I think Nate (Tomlinson) was a great role model for him to do that."
ON DINWIDDIE AND ASKIA BOOKER BECOMING LEADERS- "We had four seniors this year, and our team voted on captains, you can vote on captains, you can appoint captains, but you can't appoint leaders. I don't care if the kid is a sophomore, or a junior, or even a freshman, leaders emerge on your team. But I think both (Dinwiddie and Booker) have leadership qualities, but they need to continue to but cultivated, and they are both different in that regard. The one thing about this team is we had great leadership this year that was apparent as we played in close games down the stretch. We had guys like Nate, Austin (Dufault), and Carlon (Brown) that really stepped up and led this team, so it will be interesting to see, again, who those guys that step forward next year are."
ON COMMITTMENT LEVEL TO THE UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO- "I said when I got this job that this was my dream job, and I don't feel any differently today. I am a Colorado guy, and I am as excited to be the coach here today, as I was two years ago when I was announced (as head coach). I am committed to this place, I am the coach at Colorado, I want to be the coach at Colorado. Nobody can predict the future, but all I know is that this is where I want to be, and recruiting has gone extremely well. We continue to recruit the 2013 and 2014 classes extremely hard, and I don't want anything to derail that. My commitment level to Colorado basketball is as high as it has ever been. I am fortunate to be here, I am humbled to be here, and I'm hungry."
ON FIGURING OUT HOW TO SCHEDULE- "I'm not sure I've figured it out, what I figured out is you better win the games that are on your schedule. You better win them in November, you better win them in December, and you better win them in league play, that is the only thing I figured out. One of the things we have tried to do to create interest and excitement with basketball in this region, is to start series with Air Force and Wyoming, we have one with CSU. Those are three good games, and playing tournaments that will give us national exposure like we did this year, and we will next year with (The Charleston Classic), and then you have to figure out what to do with those other five to six games. With a young team you gotta be careful, and you have to strike a balance. It is an art, not a science, and sometimes you have to get lucky just like you do in recruiting."
ON WHAT IT TAKES TO SIGN MCDONALDS ALL-AMERICANS- "You just have to try to get in the door, and we are going to do that. We are trying to recruit those guys, and you just have to give it a shot. You might get in the top four or five this year, you might get in the top two or three next year, and then you land one. You have to get lucky, there's no doubt, it would be nice if one or two of them were in Colorado, then you would have a shot there. But you just keep banging on the door. It is just like with your team, you keep coming to practice every day, trying to get better, trying to get better. You develop relationships, and now I do think we have a brand that we are trying to establish, Colorado basketball in the west coast, and what we did this year in the Pac-12 tournament opened some eyes so that might open some doors. It doesn't mean you are going to get those kids, but it opens some doors, and you just have to be ready to walk in and put your best foot forward and get them to campus."