Daimion Collins wanted to play but knew he had to wait his turn.....and he did. (Jeff Houchin Photo)
Daimion Collins never gave up in his quest to make a difference on the court this season. The Kentucky forward simply waited for his turn for a breakthrough in the Southeastern Conference and it came in the form of a big outing in the Wildcats’ 66-55 win at Alabama last Saturday night. Collins scored 10 points and grabbed six points in nine minutes off the bench.
“My whole mindset was, you just stay ready for my opportunity, to work and keep grinding every day,” he said Monday, ahead of Tuesday’s conference showdown at South Carolina.
Collins admitted waiting wasn’t always easy, but understood the circumstances of playing on a team stocked with veterans.
“I think that would be tough for any basketball player because, you know, every basketball player wants to get out there and play,” he said. “But you know, a team like ours, we have a whole lot of good players and you know, so you just got to stay with yourself. Think of the positive, you know, just keep working.”
Most of his teammates in the post, Collins has benefited from competing against Oscar Tshiebwe in practice and has to use his speed to make things happen under the basket.
“Oscar is real big and strong,” Collins said. “Going against him helps me more and more. My advantage is that I’m tall and I can jump. I have to use my quickness.”
Kentucky assistant coach Jai Lucas said Collins “wasn’t promised anything” when he arrived on campus and knew Collins could help in a variety of ways while on the floor this season.
“The thought process was that he would be somebody that would kind of fill the void that we didn’t have, which is an elite shot-blocker, lob threat, and rim runner,” Lucas said. “We knew part of the reason he came here and his family sending him here was the development piece (and we’re) just continuing to do that.”
During the toughest of times when played sparingly or didn’t even reach the scorer’s table against Auburn on Jan. 22 and a week later at Kansas on Jan. 29, Collins relied on his teammates and parents to provide guidance and support.
“Everybody played a big part in just telling me to just keep going and stay ready,” he said. “But, I think my parents played the biggest part — talking to them every night (and) stuff like that. They would just help me get my head on straight.”
In the win over the Crimson Tide, Lucas said his biggest contribution was from the free-throw line, where he connected on six free throws in six attempts.
“That’s a hard thing to do on the road as a freshman who hasn’t played,” he said. “I’m sure he’s getting bombarded with people from the outside saying he’s not doing this or blaming the coaches.
“But being able to block all that, go in the game and execute. It’s easier to miss a free throw and build in an excuse, ‘I haven’t played so that’s why I missed those free throws.’ It’s harder to have that mental toughness and be like, ‘I’m making these free throws and helping my team win.’ That’s what he was able to do.”
Gametracker: Kentucky at South Carolina, 7 p.m., Tuesday. TV/Radio: ESPN, UK Radio Network.
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Keith Taylor is sports editor for Kentucky Today. Reach him at Keith.taylor@kentuckytodaycom and via twitter at keithtaylor21.
