Brian Fish answers commonly-asked questions
Photo by: Kelly Gorham
Brian Fish FAQ
4/4/2014 3:08:00 PM | Men's Basketball
MSU's new head basketball coach answers some of the most-asked questions
Since joining the Montana State men's basketball program as its head coach on Tuesday, Brian Fish has faced an endless stream of questions. Many of them, though, arrive regardless of the questioner. Below are the most frequently asked questions Fish has faced…
When will you hire a staff? I'm not in a hurry to put my staff together. I'd like to have one coach hired by the middle of April to help run things, but otherwise it will probably be May sometime. There's no rush. It's about finding people who are the right fit, not just getting the positions filled.
What style will the Bobcats play? My simple answer to that has been whatever style will win us a game. Each team is different, and the great thing is that as a program we can evolve each year. Ideally I'd like to play up tempo, but we'll see what this team's strengths are and go from there.
What's the biggest challenge you face at MSU? The first thing I want to do is establish trust within the program. In this day and age, with all the social media, the importance of developing that trust is at an all-time high. The next thing is to get the fans back. This is the (MSU) students' team, and our players are their closest connection to the program. There's no better feeling for a player than having a student tell them in class or walking across campus, 'Great game last night! Man, I had fun!' Whatever it takes to get the students back involved, we'll do. And then we want to get the fans excited about Bobcat basketball. When our gym is full and it's rocking, it's going to be difficult for people to come in here and win.
What will the recruiting process be this spring, and will you retain the players signed last fall? My biggest recruit arrives on (April 8) when my daughter comes to visit campus. She's a junior at Oregon, and she's my first recruit. I want to reach out to the families of our (current) players, I need to reach out to our (signees) and their families. My recruiting philosophy all along has been that it starts with character, and if that fits then we'll go from there. But that process is on-going. We have two or three scholarships available (this spring), but again, character and finding players who fit what we want our program to become will be the top priority.
MSU's rival, Montana, is one of the best teams in the Big Sky. How will you approach the rivalry? I'm sure Wayne Tinkle is not sitting over there worrying about Brian Fish. We need to worry about the Bobcats. I worry just about what I can control, and that's something that our players will pick up on. I was at Kansas State, which is 60 miles away from Kansas, a pretty good program, and obviously Oregon-Oregon State is a big rivalry, but the important thing is that we worry about what it takes for the Bobcats to be successful.
What do you think about the Bobcats after watching video of the team play? I told the players that their evaluation begins with what they do the day I got the job. The only area of past performance I'll evaluate the players on is academics, otherwise they are getting a fresh start with me.
You talk about playing basketball the right way, what is the right way? The only thing I'll promise is that we'll work hard. Playing the right way means coming to work every day, diving on loose balls, taking charges, blocking out, getting after it. Playing the right way means being committed to doing the things it takes to win games. I'm looking forward to getting to know the players and letting the players getting to know me, spending time with them in the locker room, letting them see that I'm completely bought in and what I expect from them.
When will you hire a staff? I'm not in a hurry to put my staff together. I'd like to have one coach hired by the middle of April to help run things, but otherwise it will probably be May sometime. There's no rush. It's about finding people who are the right fit, not just getting the positions filled.
What style will the Bobcats play? My simple answer to that has been whatever style will win us a game. Each team is different, and the great thing is that as a program we can evolve each year. Ideally I'd like to play up tempo, but we'll see what this team's strengths are and go from there.
What's the biggest challenge you face at MSU? The first thing I want to do is establish trust within the program. In this day and age, with all the social media, the importance of developing that trust is at an all-time high. The next thing is to get the fans back. This is the (MSU) students' team, and our players are their closest connection to the program. There's no better feeling for a player than having a student tell them in class or walking across campus, 'Great game last night! Man, I had fun!' Whatever it takes to get the students back involved, we'll do. And then we want to get the fans excited about Bobcat basketball. When our gym is full and it's rocking, it's going to be difficult for people to come in here and win.
What will the recruiting process be this spring, and will you retain the players signed last fall? My biggest recruit arrives on (April 8) when my daughter comes to visit campus. She's a junior at Oregon, and she's my first recruit. I want to reach out to the families of our (current) players, I need to reach out to our (signees) and their families. My recruiting philosophy all along has been that it starts with character, and if that fits then we'll go from there. But that process is on-going. We have two or three scholarships available (this spring), but again, character and finding players who fit what we want our program to become will be the top priority.
MSU's rival, Montana, is one of the best teams in the Big Sky. How will you approach the rivalry? I'm sure Wayne Tinkle is not sitting over there worrying about Brian Fish. We need to worry about the Bobcats. I worry just about what I can control, and that's something that our players will pick up on. I was at Kansas State, which is 60 miles away from Kansas, a pretty good program, and obviously Oregon-Oregon State is a big rivalry, but the important thing is that we worry about what it takes for the Bobcats to be successful.
What do you think about the Bobcats after watching video of the team play? I told the players that their evaluation begins with what they do the day I got the job. The only area of past performance I'll evaluate the players on is academics, otherwise they are getting a fresh start with me.
You talk about playing basketball the right way, what is the right way? The only thing I'll promise is that we'll work hard. Playing the right way means coming to work every day, diving on loose balls, taking charges, blocking out, getting after it. Playing the right way means being committed to doing the things it takes to win games. I'm looking forward to getting to know the players and letting the players getting to know me, spending time with them in the locker room, letting them see that I'm completely bought in and what I expect from them.
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