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MORGANTOWN -- Catching up with things on new coach Darian DeVries' West Virginia basketball team:
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It's expected that much of the scoring load will be placed upon the coach's son, Tucker DeVries, a 6-foot-7 swingman who is one of the nation's premier scorers.
However, when DeVries was announced as Josh Eilert's replacement and held his introductory press conference, the younger DeVries showed up with his shooting arm in a sling as a result of off-season surgery.
"That's coming along good," Coach DeVries reported. "He's participating in all the 5-on-0 stuff and the non-contact drills. I hope by the middle of July, toward the end of July he'll be fully cleared, but there's no sense trying to rush him back."
DeVries was the Larry Bird Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year last season and the MVC Tournament Most Outstanding Player for the second straight year.
He averaged 21.6 points a game for the season and was the only Division 1 player to average at least 20 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 1.5 steals per game. He is also one of only five players to have scored 1,800 points since the 2021-22 season.
"He might be ready for the Italian trip," DeVries said. "He'll work his way back and he'll be in a good spot by the first of the school year."
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Speaking of the Italian trip -- yes, the one that had to be canceled last season after the Bob Huggins situation -- that is rapidly approaching and will give the team its first chance to spend meaningful time together both on and off the court.
"Even though the games don't mean anything, it's about getting guys some playing time and time together on the court," DeVries said. "You learn like, where do we sit (on the bench); things like that which don't matter but it's the process of molding together."
The Mountaineers will depart from Morgantown on Wednesday, July 31, for Italy. WVU will be in Portofino from Aug. 1-3, in Florence from Aug. 4-6, and in Rome from Aug. 7-9. The Mountaineers will return to Morgantown on Saturday, Aug. 10.
"You learn like, where do we sit … things like that which don't matter but it's the process of molding together. Then, have your team spend 10 days in an environment where it's just them. They get to do things out together and hang out together and see the sights. It's great timing for us," DeVries said.
Maybe they can bring some pepperoni rolls with them to trade for meatballs and lasagna.
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DeVries isn't about to let the shadow of Bob Huggins put him under pressure trying to replace the Hall of Fame coach.
"I can't be Coach Huggins," DeVries said. "I don't want to be Coach Huggins. He's his own man and did an unbelievable job. I just have to be me and lead the program the best way I can and make people proud."
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It turned out that the only player from last year's team with eligibility left who opted to return was sophomore Ofri Naveh from Israel.
"I had conversations with the guys and I told them they didn't choose to come here with me," DeVries explained. "I hadn't recruited them here. I told them there would be no hard feelings if they wanted to explore other opportunities."
It wasn't just a one-way street, though.
"I told them I also had to make sure you are the right fit for us," DeVries said. "I had a follow-up meeting a week and a half later. Some had left through the portal before that, which I was fine with. They should go where they think is the right fit for them and I would help them with that."
Naveh, though, is solid in his commitment to West Virginia.
"Ofri was someone who really wanted to be here. By all accounts, he was a good teammate. He wants to improve and get better," DeVries of the decision to keep him with the team.
Naveh recently returned to Morgantown after returning to his troubled homeland to play for the national basketball team in Israel.