True freshmen Davion Mintz and Kobe Paras working to impress their coaches and teammates

[dropcap]These[/dropcap] days the basketballs aren’t the only things flying around the Championship Center on Creighton’s campus. With the upgrade in size and athleticism on the 2016-2017 roster, the Bluejays are looking a little faster and a little more athletic on the perimeter as they enter their fourth season in the Big East with high expectations.

The coaches picked Creighton third in the league’s preseason poll behind reigning national champion Villanova and a Xavier squad that many around the country believe is a top ten team. Incoming freshman guard Kobe Paras isn’t nervous about living up to expectations in his first year of Division 1 basketball; in fact he believes the outsiders are in lock step with everyone inside the locker room.

“People see us as one of the best in the Big East right now,” Paras said. “We just need to show what we’re made of. We’ve been practicing a lot, and we’ve been practicing really hard, so we’re going to make the most out of it.

“I’m excited, because just watching March Madness last year and Villanova winning it out of the Big East it goes to show that it’s a very big conference. The team is all in the same circle right now, we all want the same thing — a Big East Championship.”

His fellow classmate Davion Mintz, a 6-foot-3 point guard out of Huntersville, N.C., tries to block out most of the noise coming from outside of the gym, but it’s nearly impossible to ignore it all.

“I try to stay away from the social media stuff, but I’m very excited that the fans are excited,” Mintz said. “Being here I believe the team is going to have a big year as well. This is the closest team I’ve ever been on in my life — we’re like brothers, so the fans should really be excited. I try to stay away from it, because I haven’t played a college game yet, so I can’t let the opinions get to me, positive or negative. I’m just here to play.”

Speaking of that play on the court, Creighton head coach Greg McDermott has been impressed with the progression early from the two freshmen, especially on the end of the floor that requires the most attention to detail.

“They are typical freshmen in that they have some good days and some bad days,” McDermott said. “Both of them defensively are probably ahead of where most freshmen are — they both move their feet pretty well, they both kind of understand defensive concepts, and now it’s just a matter of doing it consistently.”

That last part is the most crucial to whether or not they will see significant playing time as the season goes on. Right now, as expected, it’s a work in progress in that area.

“With any freshman, before you put them on the floor you’re looking for consistency,” McDermott added. “That’s where the two of them are lacking, and frankly they should be — they’re 10 days into practice and it takes time, but I’m pleased with their progress.”

For Mintz the challenges in consistency aren’t exclusive to the defensive end as he is also trying to learn how to run the offense and give the coaches a reliable, athletic backup to senior All-Big East point guard Maurice Watson Jr.

“I believe Coach McDermott did a good job recruiting me as a smart point guard,” Mintz said. “I feel like with the speed of the game you have to have a really tough mindset, because you have to be able to think on the money and be right on time. That’s the toughest part.”

Along with catching up to what’s he’s supposed to do and when he’s supposed to do it, the North Mecklenburg High School product is also finding out first hand how competitive he needs to be every day in order to keep with Watson’s well-documented desire to win.

“I’ve learned from playing with Wop that you have to take every rep seriously,” Mintz said. “He has a passion for the game and he always wants to win whether it’s one-on-one drills or five-on-five, it doesn’t matter. Playing with him I’ve learned to take it serious, and he’s a big film guy, so I try to get in there and watch film with him. I know that when I’m behind him, or taking a rep with him, it’s going to be a serious rep and I’m going to have to go hard.”

The senior point guard sees Mintz as the future at that position for the Bluejays, and takes it as a personal responsibility to push him be ready to take over next season.

“For Davion, he is listening,” Watson said. “That is the best thing about him, because he has the talent. I want to make sure when I leave next year that he can step in and not be lost.

“I’ll tell him that I’m not losing any drills to him and that he has to prove what he wants here. When practice starts it’s about earning minutes, and while I am the returning starter I have no complacency in that regard. I’m not going to come out and take it easy on him. And if I end up being one of the best point guards in the conference, for him to follow behind me, and learn what I try to put back into him, as well as what Coach Mac is teaching him and what he learns on his own, then it will be easier for him to step in next year and take over the team.”

The situation on the wing is a little different for Paras. The 6-foot-6 guard is in a log jam at his position group, but has at times managed to stand out with his high-flying athleticism, play-making ability, and surprisingly sweet stroke on his perimeter shot.

“We’re using him pretty much as a wing right now because I don’t want to confuse him with having to learn more than one spot,” McDermott said. “It’s confusing enough to try to pick everything the way it is, but he’s doing pretty well. He’s going to be a really good player in our program.”

The toughest hurdle for the native of the Phillippines has been to reign in some of that play-making prowess and not try to be a hero. Luckily for him, he also enjoy doing the dirty work.

“I’m a hustle plays type of guy — I clean up the trash,” Paras said. “Getting the rebounds, diving for loose balls, those little things that will change the game.”

Not only has that ability been noticed by his coaches on sideline, but the one on the court has picked up on it as well.

“I think the best thing about Kobe is that he’s trying,” Watson said. “We’ve had to kind of put it more into his head that he is around other players that can score, so it’s okay to give up some shots for other teammates. Then he saw that they started getting him shots right back, and that with our offense there is a lot of opportunity for him. If he defends, and rebounds, and uses his athleticism he’s going to have an impact for our team.

“He likes to do a lot of putback dunks, so it’s going to be a lot of fun for the CenturyLink crowd to see that.”

Finding motivation on a daily basis, even during stretches where they may be struggling on the court, has been as easy as literally opening their eyes. That’s because plastered all over the walls of the Championship Center and hanging from the ceiling are examples of what the hard work at Creighton could earn them in the future.

“They were in our position at one time,” Paras said as he stared up at the larger-than-life sized portraits of Creighton standouts turned NBA players, Doug McDermott, Anthony Tolliver, and Kyle Korver.

“It just goes to show that anyone can be part of something amazing. You’re at Creighton and you represent this place, but then from your individual standpoint you become something else and represent a different type of brand. It’s just amazing to see how Doug did it — he was here for four years, and usually these days when people go to the league they do it after one or two years. He’s an inspiration to us, because it goes to show how to stay true to the student-athlete values with school coming first, then being an athlete.”