FORT COLLINS – “Challenge” perhaps isn’t the best word choice.
What first-year men’s basketball coach Niko Medved walked into at Colorado State is more of a test. A test of his ability as a head coach, yes, but also of fortitude.
If his roster evaluates that performance, he’s passed the latter with an exceptional score.
CSU forward Nico Carvacho said Tuesday that itap not a rebuilding situation Medved faces, but considering the Rams went 11-21 last year – their first losing season since 2008-2009 – itap hard to classify 2018-19 as anything but. Granted, Medved made his job easier by convincing Carvacho and guard Kris Martin to not leave the program.
How?
“I think I was just myself,” Medved said.
Carvacho, who averaged 11.3 points and 12.3 rebounds per conference game last season as a sophomore, and Martin, who sat out 2017-18 after transferring from Oral Roberts, were granted permission to look at potential transfer destinations in the aftermath of former coach Larry Eustachy’s resignation. Martin initially committed to Oklahoma before returning to CSU, and Carvacho (6-foot-11, 240 pounds) had his pick of Power Six opportunities.
Carvacho said after meeting the families of Medved and his coaching staff and realizing they were “genuine people” who liked to actually joke around and have fun in addition to basketball, the choice for him to stay at CSU was obvious. “It was a team effort, but I saw how good of guys they were. … Honestly, Niko’s just a great guy and thatap what I liked,” he said.
For Martin, he said it was a matter of having a head coach he felt could trust.
“Here’s what I told them, I said to Nico, ‘put down your roots. You have the chance to leave this program as one of the best players to ever come through here. You have the opportunity to come back to CSU some day, walk through Moby Arena with your kids or grandkids and point up to the rafters and show off what you accomplished – not many players get to do that,’” Medved said.
“And with Kris it was just a matter of asking him if he wants to play. He’s transferred once already, does he really want to transfer and have to sit out again? ‘Play for us next year and show the world what kind of player you are.’ I think he can really be a great one.”
— , The Denver Post
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