HIGH POINT, N.C. – Darris Nichols found himself in a
familiar place with a familiar feeling.
About 20 months ago and a few steps down the same hall at
High Point’s Qubein Center, Nichols sat in a chair, clearly feeling the effects
of a 99-74 loss by his then-Radford Highlanders to High Point. Nichols was
struggling with a team that had lost its way.
On this chilly December evening, with Christmas lights
twinkling outside and the bright bulbs in the arena on full display, Nichols
again searched for answers. Nichols’ La Salle team – the school for which he
left his hometown prior to the season after Fran Dunphy retired – had just
dropped a 12-point decision to the Panthers. The feeling – when compared to
that prior night and his first season at Radford, at least – was similar for
Nichols.
“In terms of how I feel, it’s very similar,” Nichols said.
“My first year (at Radford), we came out of Christmas and some games were
canceled. My first year after I got (the Radford) job, the next day, the team
went home for the summer. This year, I got the job in the spring. I had nobody
working out but one player (Eric Acker). It’s trying to build continuity and
consistency with the guys you have. You need a spring to go into (the new
program).”
The Explorers, who fell to 4-9 with the loss at High Point
and a subsequent loss at Michigan two days later, have been beset by key
losses. Forward Jerome Brewer missed the loss at High Point and had not played
in nearly a month, with transfer guards Josue Grullon and Jaden Johnson both
unavailable. Neither Grullon nor Johnson had appeared in a game this season.
The losses left Nichols unable to fully assess the potential of his team.
“I don’t know, because we’ve got to get healthy,” Nichols
said. “I have three dudes over there that are potential starters, so I don’t
know.”
La Salle collected its most recent victory December 6,
turning away Drexel, 69-64, in the Big 5 Classic. Despite the missing players,
Nichols – as he often does – saw a teaching opportunity with his team.
“Sometimes, I think (with) the ups and downs of the season,
guys get poisoned by accomplishment. Then, they’ll be in the valley of
disappointment. You don’t really know where they are. If you’re high and you’re
low, it’s a recipe for disaster. I think a lot of them are going through that.”
Nichols then elaborated on the process of working through
struggles and maintaining consistency.
“Jaden Johnson has (developed as a voice), but he’s hurt. I
think – it’s different guys (taking leadership roles). That’s what I’m trying
to get them to understand. They feel their voice is more powerful when they’re
playing well. If they’re not playing well, they don’t talk. I told them they
can’t be up and down. Emotionally, we’re draining each other. If things aren’t
going well for you, you stop talking, but things are going well for you now, so
you’re talking. The emotional part of the season – of the game – is something
that we’ve got to overcome. You see different versions of guys based on how
they’re playing.”
The Michigan game also created an opportunity for Nichols to
share a helpful lesson.
“The thing about it is that (Michigan head coach) Dusty May
and I worked together for all those years with (Jacksonville coach) Jordan
Mincy. We all have head (coaching) jobs because we were unselfish. I said (to
the team) that we weren’t draining each other in the office every day.”
“I told them that most of you guys know it’s about to get
harder in real life. That’s why everybody wants their (extra) year back. You
better master this, because it’s about to get harder. You don’t get your year
back. You’ve got to go into the real world and it gets really hard.”
The transfer portal also presents a challenge for Nichols,
who is a leader who thrives on relationships. Nichols acknowledges the
challenges of retaining players while remaining true to who he is as a coach.
“Some of it may be different lineups. Some of it may be
different patterns of guys’ plans,” Nichols said. “A lot of it is, ‘Okay, I’m
going here. I’m here for a year. Let’s see what happens.’ That’s the nature we’re
in. If you’ve got guys who are thinking like that, sometimes it shows on the
court.”
As the portal takes from Nichols and schools like La Salle,
it also gives. The Explorers added 12 players to the roster in the offseason,
and that group is still finding its way. Nichols acknowledges that many of
those players are taking on increased roles in the Explorers’ lineup.
“That’s just the ups and downs of the game. A lot of these
guys haven’t been in those situations. The last two years, (guard) Rob Dockery
sat beside the water cooler at Texas A&M. If he got in, he got in when the
team was up 30 or down 30. Now they’ve got to get used to the ups and downs of
the game, and some of them are struggling.”
La Salle will need to use the holiday break to work through
the struggles Nichols cited. The Explorers’ first five games in A-10 play start
with a home date against George Mason on New Year’s Eve, with a game at John E.
Glaser Arena in Philadelphia the only other home outing mixed in with road
tests at George Washington, Rhode Island, and Richmond. Nichols lamented the lack
of road contests early in the season to help his group bond, but the league
slate will accelerate that bonding process.
“I didn’t take into consideration (before the season) how important it is to get these guys on the road,” Nichols said. “We didn’t have our first road game until December 13. I think that’s a bonding experience where guys are around each other for a majority of the day. I didn’t – a lot of the schedule was already made, but I didn’t – you don’t think about that as much.”
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