by Craig Morgan for TheSunDevils.com
Top five college basketball teams don't often add reinforcements in the middle of the season. The No. 3 Sun Devils will do just that.
ASU's regular rotation of Tra Holder, Shannon Evans, Kodi Justice, Romello White, Remy Martin, De'Quon Lake and Vitaliy Shibel got deeper when sophomore forward Mickey Mitchell returned to the lineup four games ago against Kansas after missing the season's first eight games because of NCAA transfer rules (Ohio State).
Freshman forward Kimani Lawrence sustained a stress fracture in his left foot just before the season opener, but he has been practicing fully with the team. It's possible he could make his season debut on Saturday when the Sun Devils (12-0) face No. 17 Arizona (10-3) at McKale Center in Tucson.
"He had reps with the first unit and he was moving very well," coach Bobby Hurley said Thursday. "I have to see how he responds to that. It's going to go right down to the wire if he is going to be available."
ASU has already taken the nation by storm and surprise with its ability to score. The Sun Devils' 91.8 points per game are fourth in the nation and first in the Pac-12. Their 50.8 field goal percentage is 17th in the nation.
Mitchell and Lawrence, both 6-foot-7, add another element...and Kimani's 6-11 wingspan means he can play bigger.
"We're like bigger guards," Mitchell said. "We can guard one through five really, so with our athleticism, our length and our intensity, I think we just bring a great aspect of defensiveness to our team.
"It just gives coach a better matchup sometimes, whether teams want to play bigger or play smaller. I think we help coach out with our versatility."
Mitchell had an uneven debut in his first game back against the Jayhawks, but by Game No. 2 against Vanderbilt, he looked at home. He intercepted a pass and took it in for a dunk. He dribbled through traffic and hit a difficult shot in transition, and he finished with 13 rebounds in 23 minutes.
"It was tough missing last season and the first half of this year, but I wasn't going to sit around and sulk about it," he said. "I did what I could in practice, bring the level up and help these guys get ready for every game they played. It's all I had but I took it as a challenge."
With each passing day, Mitchell's progress is more evident.
"Mickey has been as good as he has been all year in this week," Hurley said. "He looks terrific, he's playing great, doing all the things that we need him to do. He's got a jump-start on Kimani because of Kimani's injury and trying to get back, but Kimani got some good live reps [Thurs]day and is progressing and going in the right direction.
"I'm excited to bring a guy on the bus [to Arizona] with me like Mitchell because he's not going to be afraid of this game. He's a tough dude and a hard-nosed guy."
Hurley cites Mitchell's rebounding at both ends, his passing, his defensive awareness and his ability to take bigger players off the dribble as strengths, calling him a point forward.
"Kimani is similar," Hurley said. "Kimani played more a of a true wing for us and more of a guard than a four in a lot of our preseason. He's long enough and big enough to play multiple positions so he does kind of some of the same things that Mickey would do."
Lawrence started in ASU's three exhibition games, averaging 11.3 points and 5.3 rebounds while giving Hurley a hint of the player he can be. With Pac-12 play beginning and a deeper roster at his disposal, Hurley will conduct a lot more experiments.
"We've practiced a number of different ways that we can play now that we're getting healthy and we're getting guys back like Mickey Mitchell," Hurley said. "It's hard to even project that right now. I don't know what's going to happen in terms of how we're playing in the game, who's playing well, who might have foul issues."
The Sun Devils like the sneak peek they have been granted.
"Kimani looked really good Thursday so I'm excited to see what he does," Evans said.
Justice already has a sense of what Mitchell brings.
"Somebody will shoot a shot and you'll think, 'there's no way he can get an offensive rebound' and he goes and gets a tip-in or he's diving on the ground or he's making a good pass," Justice said. "His energy, it's super contagious."
Top five college basketball teams don't often add reinforcements in the middle of the season. The No. 3 Sun Devils will do just that.
ASU's regular rotation of Tra Holder, Shannon Evans, Kodi Justice, Romello White, Remy Martin, De'Quon Lake and Vitaliy Shibel got deeper when sophomore forward Mickey Mitchell returned to the lineup four games ago against Kansas after missing the season's first eight games because of NCAA transfer rules (Ohio State).
Freshman forward Kimani Lawrence sustained a stress fracture in his left foot just before the season opener, but he has been practicing fully with the team. It's possible he could make his season debut on Saturday when the Sun Devils (12-0) face No. 17 Arizona (10-3) at McKale Center in Tucson.
"He had reps with the first unit and he was moving very well," coach Bobby Hurley said Thursday. "I have to see how he responds to that. It's going to go right down to the wire if he is going to be available."
ASU has already taken the nation by storm and surprise with its ability to score. The Sun Devils' 91.8 points per game are fourth in the nation and first in the Pac-12. Their 50.8 field goal percentage is 17th in the nation.
Mitchell and Lawrence, both 6-foot-7, add another element...and Kimani's 6-11 wingspan means he can play bigger.
"We're like bigger guards," Mitchell said. "We can guard one through five really, so with our athleticism, our length and our intensity, I think we just bring a great aspect of defensiveness to our team.
"It just gives coach a better matchup sometimes, whether teams want to play bigger or play smaller. I think we help coach out with our versatility."
Mitchell had an uneven debut in his first game back against the Jayhawks, but by Game No. 2 against Vanderbilt, he looked at home. He intercepted a pass and took it in for a dunk. He dribbled through traffic and hit a difficult shot in transition, and he finished with 13 rebounds in 23 minutes.
"It was tough missing last season and the first half of this year, but I wasn't going to sit around and sulk about it," he said. "I did what I could in practice, bring the level up and help these guys get ready for every game they played. It's all I had but I took it as a challenge."
With each passing day, Mitchell's progress is more evident.
"Mickey has been as good as he has been all year in this week," Hurley said. "He looks terrific, he's playing great, doing all the things that we need him to do. He's got a jump-start on Kimani because of Kimani's injury and trying to get back, but Kimani got some good live reps [Thurs]day and is progressing and going in the right direction.
"I'm excited to bring a guy on the bus [to Arizona] with me like Mitchell because he's not going to be afraid of this game. He's a tough dude and a hard-nosed guy."
Hurley cites Mitchell's rebounding at both ends, his passing, his defensive awareness and his ability to take bigger players off the dribble as strengths, calling him a point forward.
"Kimani is similar," Hurley said. "Kimani played more a of a true wing for us and more of a guard than a four in a lot of our preseason. He's long enough and big enough to play multiple positions so he does kind of some of the same things that Mickey would do."
Lawrence started in ASU's three exhibition games, averaging 11.3 points and 5.3 rebounds while giving Hurley a hint of the player he can be. With Pac-12 play beginning and a deeper roster at his disposal, Hurley will conduct a lot more experiments.
"We've practiced a number of different ways that we can play now that we're getting healthy and we're getting guys back like Mickey Mitchell," Hurley said. "It's hard to even project that right now. I don't know what's going to happen in terms of how we're playing in the game, who's playing well, who might have foul issues."
The Sun Devils like the sneak peek they have been granted.
"Kimani looked really good Thursday so I'm excited to see what he does," Evans said.
Justice already has a sense of what Mitchell brings.
"Somebody will shoot a shot and you'll think, 'there's no way he can get an offensive rebound' and he goes and gets a tip-in or he's diving on the ground or he's making a good pass," Justice said. "His energy, it's super contagious."