On what it's like to be part of the community

It's been awesome. I've been getting to know different strands of people. I think getting hurt kind of made it hard to get around and to see more of the town. I am hoping this upcoming year I get to venture out more and go to more restaurants, more places and just be more active than I've been able to within the last couple of months. It's been awesome being part of this school and this program as well.

On his injury status

I definitely think I am on my way to getting back out there. I've just started to get back out on the court the past couple of weeks. Doing stuff—more athletic things. Just like leg raises and stuff I've been doing for the past couple of months since the surgery. It feels good to be moving more. It's not that fast yet but I'll get there.

On the toughest part of the injury

I think it was probably the fact that it's been my second major injury. It's hard to go through this stuff mentally as well as physically. Going through it the first time, I was like, I am not sure I can go through this again. When it happens again, it's hard to deal with mentally. You get through those harder days and you have really good ones where you see a lot of improvement. With our season not ending the way we wanted it to, I wanted to put myself in a position to help the team in any way. Achieve the goals we set out.

On who helped him through the process

Definitely Chris Williams, our trainer, and his intern Charlie. They've been my best friends throughout this. I've seen them every single day for the last couple of months. On days when it's been bad. These injuries happen and a lot of times people only want to talk about the injury, they give me space to talk about other stuff and what I'm gonna do after treatment, what shows they're watching. Just the day-to-day stuff to get me through the harder days.

On what a normal day looks like for him

Today, I had a lift at 10 and I went back and did some application work. Rehab and then I get shots up either before or after rehab. I'm doing something every day. I am on a five-day plan for rehab and then I get the weekends off. I still try to get some shots up and stuff like that.

On how he's been able to evolve as a basketball player

Definitely just watching, being able to watch a lot more. Watching Michigan play and just watching a lot of college basketball, watching NBA. You see the game a bit different when you're not out there. It can be slower and you notice things that you might not have noticed on the court. Just trying to remember those things so I can bring it back into my own game when I step back out onto that court.

On how excited to get back onto the court

I think one of the things is that even if I step out there for a second, a lot of people who might have gone through what I've gone through might have quit or put the ball down. Basketball has given me so many opportunities in life, I feel like there's still more for me to do. That just drives me to continue doing what I love.

On whether he had any doubts he wouldn't get the waiver

The math of it worked out so I was pretty confident that I was able to get it. Definitely, some worries when there's no official statement. I'm glad I have it now so I can focus on the future and it's more definite. I can sign my lease (laughs).

On the self-critique of his play before injury

Bad timing in that regard. It's hard to adjust to a new team and a new program. It takes a couple of games but I was always going to figure everything out. The coaching staff and the players, they have helped me all the way through the process. It was early to get hurt in that regard, I am happy it didn't happen any later because I may not have had the opportunity to come back. I'm thankful for that. I'm glad I have a year under my belt of watching and being around the program. I'm hoping to do the best I can during this upcoming year.

On Dug McDaniel and his growth

He's definitely grown a lot and it was fun to watch. He's a fantastic player and I think one of the things I tried to instill in him is just to keep his self-confidence and his swagger. He plays the game with a lot of heart. When he brings that heart to both sides of the floor, it's really fun to watch. I was just trying to fill him with confidence and life. It can be challenging for a freshman to come in, especially when it's not how you started the season.

On Tarris Reed

He's a beast on both ends. It's just exciting because when you have someone that big and athletic, when you make a mistake on the defensive end, he's the type of guy that can clean it up at the last second and make those crazy blocks, monster blocks that he does and then go down on the other end of the floor. He has the ability to go up and catch these lobs and dunks. He just brings such a high energy and a high motor. It's fun to watch and I'm excited to be able to play with him some more.

On Kobe Bufkin

I think I saw his talent level, I think, it was my second day moving in. He had just gotten into town and I had a workout with him and Isaiah Barnes and one of our graduate assistants. I could just tell that his work ethic was high level. It was consistent throughout the entire year. Whether he had a good game or a bad game, I knew he was going to put the work in and the work was going to show eventually.

On being able to play in the off-guard position

I think I can be able to do both. At my previous school, we played through our five a lot and we did some Princeton offense stuff. A lot of it is off-ball movement, cutting and screening, getting open. I'm used to that type of offense. I just want to be able to get healthy, that's the main goal. Getting out there in whatever capacity is needed from me to help the team.

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