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twitterREBELS BASKETBALL:
Hamga’s future at UNLV up in the air
Freshman center, Kruger holding ongoing meetings
Thursday, Dec. 11, 2008 | 9:49 p.m.
UPDATE: Team reaction: Frustrated at playing time, Hamga departs UNLV
UNLV center Beas Hamga pressures Cal forward Jamal Boykin during the second half of the game Nov. 28 at the Thomas & Mack Center. Cal won the game 73-55.
Lon Kruger has preached patience with Beas Hamga ever since the 7-foot center from Cameroon arrived on campus over a year ago. Now, it might hold true in terms of determining the redshirt freshman's future with the UNLV program.
Jerry Meyer of Rivals.com wrote Thursday night that Hamga had been granted an official release from UNLV. He reported the story without attribution.
Kruger said Thursday night that nothing is official yet regarding Hamga's potential departure -- or his return.
"We're talking with Beas right now, nothing official has happened -- not to say that it won't," Kruger said. "We've been meeting with him the last couple of days. It will be ongoing."
Hamga, along with the rest of the Rebels, wraps up finals week for the fall semester on Friday. If Hamga were to leave, it would ideally be before the start of the spring semester on Jan. 12. That way, a transfer to another Division-I school would make him eligible following next year's fall semester, as opposed to sitting out an entire year if he left following this season.
Fans have had to be just as patient as Kruger has been with Hamga, who is still developing his raw skills.
Plenty of expectations have followed Hamga, ever since Rivals tapped him as a five-star recruit and the No. 26 overall prospect in the class of 2007. But this season, he's only appeared in five of nine games for the 7-2 Rebels. While playing 5.2 minutes per game, he's averaged 1 point and 0.8 rebounds per contest.
He hasn't appeared in a game since UNLV's 73-55 loss to California on Nov. 28. He played one minute in the defeat.
Meanwhile, junior college transfer Darris Santee and freshman Brice Massamba currently have strangleholds on the starting and backup center spots, respectively.
"It's one of those deals, it's a tough situation for Beas," Kruger added. "We certainly appreciate that. He doesn't get the opportunity to play very much, and he's got the expectations. He's done a nice job, worked hard, yet it's difficult."
Now, the two sides will play the patience card yet again, with no date set for a final decision on Hamga's future.
"There's no rigid timetable," Kruger said. "We'll meet with him each day and just play it by ear."
Discussion: 7 comments so far…
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I predicted this would happen. With Lopez coming in next year and Massamba getting the jump on him already, Hamga has seen the writing on the wall.
I hoped this wouldn't happen, but had a feeling it would. He will develop in the a real good player down the road. But obviously with Brice, and Santee he won't see much time this year, and then next year with Lopez coming in, things will still be thin. Hopefully things work out for him whatever he does. He is a real nice hardworking guy.
Playing time is earned in practice.
It's a concept that reasonable members of UNLV's basketball team understand and respect.
The choice belongs to Beas. He can sit out ANOTHER year and end up like Roberson and Edeife. Or he can stick to the program and end up like Anthony and Amundson.
Kruger and staff have proven they can develop big men. The element lacking here is patience.
Not just patience. How about the ability to catch a ball. Hamga's 5 stars were based on potential.
Anthony couldn't catch the ball either and that man altered game after game with his style of play and now look where he is. Although I get what you're saying John, Anthony wasn't a 5 star prospect.
Fast, and others, doesn't this put some questions on those "five-star" rankings? Those are a joke, flat-out. On current ability? Uh, no. Beas has difficulty with the most basic of low-post moves. On potential? OK, so, say, he doesn't pan out, transfers, gets with the wrong coaches, it doesn't work out again and he winds up in the French second division? Where is the accountability for the clowns who placed those five stars on him? Laughable, eh?
It was ranked on his potential basically is what I was told. They didn't get to see him much over the summer he was here for the AAU circuit. They said he had a 7'7" wingspan and could run the floor and block shots on occasion. That was good enough for 5 stars I guess when you are tall. Work ethic isn't part of the equation.