Ben Howland called Malik Newman's move to PG 'seamless'
STARKVILLE – A pair of wooden doors, which only open by an electronic key code, couldn’t entirely hide Mississippi State’s first basketball practice of the season.
Sneakers squeaked against the practice court in the Mize Building and the walls muffled Ben Howland’s coaching instructions on Monday. The noise amplified at the end of practice when the team clapped in unison.
“Guys are working real hard,” said Howland, who is in his first year at Mississippi State. “The enthusiasm is good. They work hard, good attitude, we have a lot to do but I was encouraged by our practice today.”
To the left of the media surrounding Howland, Malik Newman rolled on a black foam cylinder to stretch his thighs and chatted with Craig Sword.
The duo makes up one of the most formidable backcourts in the Southeastern Conference. Newman is a five-start recruit tabbed by many as the top freshman guard in the country. Sword returns for his senior season as a reigning second-team All-SEC performer.
“(Newman) came in here playing like he’s been here the last four years,” Sword said.
Sword hasn’t had a player next to him like Newman since he arrived in Starkville. The Montgomery, Alabama, native has led MSU in scoring all three seasons he's been on campus.
Forward Gavin Ware has provided the most help the last two seasons finishing second on the team. Newman is expected to share the scoring load this year with Sword.
“(Newman) is a one-and-done player,” Howland said. “We’ve said that every press conference I’ve had. Nothing’s changed. I fully expect him to enter the draft this June. That was the mindset when we recruited him and that’s still the mindset.”
Early draft projections list Newman as a lottery pick in the 2016 NBA Draft.
“Right now, I haven’t really put a lot of focus into it," Newman said. "I’m just focused on taking my time during practice and just waiting for the season and hoping that everything should play out the way it should.”
Howland coached a handful of lottery picks during his time at UCLA.
From his experience coaching Russell Westbrook and Kevin Love, among others, MSU’s coach doesn’t see a scenario where Monday wasn’t Newman’s last first practice in Starkville.
“You never know for certain, but I feel pretty certain this is going to work out for Malik,” Howland said. “He’ll be in and out of here in one year.”
As a McDonald’s All-American, Newman averaged 29.7 points per game in his senior season at Callaway High School. He scored the majority of those points from the shooting guard spot on the floor.
He’ll play point guard at Mississippi State.
“I adjusted well. It wasn’t a real big transition for me,” Newman said. “The only thing about it was, I just have a few nicks and nacks to improve on.”
Newman’s shift to point adds flexibility in MSU’s backcourt and prepares him for the next level. NBA scouts project him as a point guard.
Newman averaged 4.2 assists for Callaway last year. He also led the McDonald’s All-American Game with five assists.
“He feels like a point guard to me,” Howland said. “He has a great feel. He’s very unselfish giving the ball up. I think he has a great feel for it. It’s a seamless transition. I feel like he’s been playing point guard his whole life.”
Contact Michael Bonner at mbonner@jackson.gannett.com. Follow @MikeBBonner on Twitter.