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'I'm built for it': Pop Isaacs at forefront of Texas Tech basketball makeover
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- 'I'm built for it': Pop Isaacs at forefront of Texas Tech basketball makeover
Nothing could have prepared Pop Isaacs for his first year in the world of college basketball.
A tumultuous freshman season, full of highs and lows, came to a screeching halt in early March. Texas Tech 's season came to an end in dramatic but expected fashion.
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First, it was a first-round exit in the Big 12 Tournament. Then it was the dismissal of head coach Mark Adams. After that, Isaacs sat back and watched as one teammate after another decided not to stick around through the changeover, even before Grant McCasland's arrival.
Like those teammates, Isaacs had a decision to make. Should he stay or should he go? There's no manual, no 101 introductory course that could help him answer that question, provide the clarity of an uncertain situation.
Ten days after McCasland's formal introduction, Isaacs heard what he needed to hear from his new coach. With one tweet, Isaacs firmly planted his flag in the Lubbock soil, providing the Red Raider faithful another reason to root for the hard-nosed guard.
"This is not normal," Isaacs said, "like having the transition from your freshman year to sophomore year, going through what we went through our freshman year. It's obviously not nothing, but, I mean, I think I'm built for it."
Pop Isaacs affirmed his commitment to the Texas Tech basketball team after Grant McCasland was announced as the new head coach.
A solid freshman campaign would have given Isaacs a good exit strategy. The Las Vegas native tied for second on the team in scoring (13.6 points per game) and shot 37.8% from 3-point range and converted 89.6% of his free throws. Teams are always looking for shooters.
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McCasland, though, wasn't just looking to keep a shooter in town. He saw much more than that in Isaacs.
"It's too early to tell exactly how this all is going to look as we get closer to the season," McCasland said, "but one thing I love about Pop is he wants to win and he wants to win at Texas Tech. That says a lot about him as a person."
Both player and coach know that Isaacs isn't perfect. Growth will need to come for Isaacs to assume the role as Tech's leader in some form or fashion. But McCasland's words haven't fallen on deaf ears.
"The fact he has that trust in me, and sees that in me and has that belief in me, it's really cool," Isaacs said. "It's kind of a player's dream in a way to have their coach see that in them. I know he's gonna push me hard and coach me hard every day. That's part of the reason why I chose to come back."
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Looking at his options in the spring, talking with family, Isaacs decided that the grass isn't always greener on the other side. What was best for his now-former teammates wasn't what was best for Isaacs. Staying at Texas Tech, sticking out the transition period, was the answer all along.
While retaining the talented shooter was important, Isaacs has also played a crucial role as recruiter.
Texas Tech's guard Pop Isaacs (2), left, shoots the ball against Kansas during the Big 12 basketball game, Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2023, at United Supermarkets Arena.
Darrion Williams became the first to announce he'd be transferring to Texas Tech. The 6-foot-6 forward had a stellar freshman campaign at Nevada, earning the Mountain West's freshman of the year award. Williams went looking for a new home of his own, and Isaacs was right there to tell him Lubbock was waiting for him.
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Williams moved to Las Vegas midway through high school, spending his final two years at powerhouse Bishop Gorman. That pitted Williams and Isaacs in the same classification. The two wound up playing each other in the playoffs their senior year — Williams' team ending Isaacs' high school career as the result.
The pair were also teammates on the Vegas Elite AAU team. It only made sense for the Sin City boys to reunite in the Lubbock.
"That's gonna help," Isaacs said, "knowing that we've played together, we know how each other likes to play and know that it really worked well for us, especially when it's time for the season to start."
Though many of the faces around Isaacs will be new in his second year, he fully expects the Red Raiders to have the same kind of qualities as previous Tech teams.
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"It's gonna be a tough, hard-nosed brand," Isaacs said. "I think Coach McCasland has that. That's just who he is. He's a tough, hard-nosed guy. All his teams are going to play really hard. And I think you're gonna see us out there having a lot of fun."
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: 'I'm built for it': Pop Isaacs at forefront of Texas Tech basketball makeover
