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Was Devon Daniels a little too excited?
When Kyle Kuzma saw him retweeting every fan's tweet about his alley-oop in the Red-White game three weeks ago, he called out Daniels online. But the freshman, a Michigan native, isn't sorry.
"I'm showing love to the fans," he said after a practice this week, with Kuzma laughing in earshot. "I'm trying to show love."
Daniels is one of an intriguing batch of newcomers, and the freshman has some very evident physical gifts: speed, length, and an ability to touch the sky when he jumps. At 6-foot-5, Daniels is in the mix to play a role on the wing this year along with JoJo Zamora, Parker Van Dyke and Gabe Bealer.
He's not just getting good reviews from fans who saw him play last month: Teammates are intrigued as well.
"He can score the ball a little bit," senior guard Lorenzo Bonam said. "He's aggressive. He likes to play defense. He can be a hawk, he can be on you. I think he's going to be a nice part of the team as a defensive stopper."
Daniels is making his second big move in as many years. He comes to Utah from Prolific Prep in California, where he lived away from his Kalamazoo hometown in Michigan for the first time, playing alongside and against some of the top prep prospects in the country.
"Back in Michigan, there was like some good competition, but there's nothing like the prep school schedule," he said. "They got me more prepared for the next level."
Daniels said it's taken him about a month to get settled in Utah. It helps to have Kuzma and Bonam, also Michigan natives, on the roster. Much of the team has glued together quickly, he said.
While the whole team is still stringing together concepts, and Daniels said he's still learning, making the jump to prep school to college hasn't yet been overwhelming.
"It's kind of the same," he said. "It's definitely harder because of the level, but you just gotta trust the process."
Injuries piling up
At a recent practice, the Utes were running slower than they usually might around this time of the year. They had to, because of who is sitting out.
The Utes' roster is already hurting a week ahead of the team's first game against Northwest Nazarine on Nov. 12. Junior college transfer Tim Coleman, who missed the exhibition, had shoulder surgery and is out for the foreseeable future. Coach Larry Krystkowiak called it "a lengthy deal." Freshman Chris Seeley had offseason shoulder surgery and hasn't returned to full activity yet.
There are other ailments that are less serious but have still held players out of practice: Junior forward David Collette, who won't be able to play until late December, has a chip in his elbow. Junior forward Tyler Rawson hurt his neck taking a charge in Utah's closed scrimmage against Texas A&M over the weekend.
The result has been less intense practices, especially in a perilously thin frontcourt manned by Kuzma, Jayce Johnson, Jakub Jokl and walk-on Marc Reininger. At 6-foot-6, walk-on Beau Rydalch has also played in the post.
"It's a lot slower pace, and we don't get up and down as much because we're banged up right now," Kuzma said. "But it's good because we have some things we've got to tighten up right now on offensive stuff. It lets the walk-ons get the offense and earn more reps. We're going to need them by Pac-12 play. It's a long season."
Points from the scrimmage
NCAA rules prevent coaches and players from talking about closed scrimmages, but The Tribune has learned the Utes played a competitive closed session with Texas A&M in Denver. Utah also scrimmaged against the Aggies last year.
While Krystkowiak was unable to discuss specifics of the scrimmage itself, he said going forward, the team is focused on improving its transition defense and connectivity on both sides of the floor.
"We've got to really start getting locked into the importance of guarding," he said. "We're probably as fast as we've been up and down the floor. But we've got to get back in transition. And there's a lot of mistakes. With this many new guys, you're only as strong as your weakest links."
Areas of strength for Utah included the team's speed and getting to the rim against the Aggies, which were a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament last year. Several outlets, including ESPN and CBS Sports, reported that Utah "won" the scrimmage.
Twitter: @kylegoon