The next Mike Chavez
When Mike Chavez entered a game, it was like letting some half-mythical, wild and angry creature out of a cage. For the other team, it was like the end of the world was coming off the far bench. Chavez would enter the game, then fire the team and the crowd up with his passionate play. As a senior, he was grateful for the minutes he got, most of which came off the bench. He'd hop up, bust his ass off and make big plays to either end an opposing run or start a Griz one. He'd grab rebounds, block shots, drain 3's and throw down put-back dunks.Every team needs a Mike Chavez. Scratch that, every good team needs a Mike Chavez. Someone who goes out there and gives the rest of the team a proverbial punch to the ear when they're dicking around, letting the other team go on a run or not pulling away from a bad team.
Anyway, here are my three candidates for this year's Mike Chavez:
Matt Martin
Yes, he's currently a starter, that doesn't mean he wouldn't be better coming off the bench. Martin already plays with something of a chip on his shoulder, why not make it bigger by bringing him off the bench? He could swagger onto the court, make 2-3 treys and all of a sudden a one point lead is double digits. This may not include reducing his playing time. Tinkle could bring him off the bench a few minutes into the game while still giving him starter-like minutes.
Zach Graves
The explosive combo guard could be the most athletic player the Griz have. He's a slasher. A quick guard who can get to the paint and has the hops to finish. Graves is not a drive a dish guy, as we've seen before. He has gotten very few minutes so far, which doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Here's what I think is going on: Graves' playing time is based on how he's done in practice, which is against team full of bigs. Not quite the type of opponent he'd thrive against. He gets in the paint and it's a sea of four foot long arms. Against some of the smaller, quicker teams we've been playing, that wouldn't happen. I'm surprised he hasn't gotten more minutes considering the size and quickness of our opponents. Imagine a Jeremy Pargo-type player coming off the bench. He's starved for minutes and would fly around on the defensive end while driving hard to the whole on offense. Nothing would get guys pumped and the crowded going like a huge dunk over an opposing forward or center.
Greg Spurgetis
At the beginning of the season, Tinkle said he would look at giving this "practice player" more playing time. That hasn't been the case. So why give Greg this spot? You would never question his effort. Out of all the players on the team, I doubt you'll find another who could come off the bench and give the team as much pure effort. He would follow the gameplan and work his ass off. Out of the times I've seen a Griz basketball player at the regular students gym, either shooting around or working out, just about every time it's been Spurgetis. For the short time I worked as a team manager for the Griz, Spurgetis was almost always the last one out of practice and would always put in extra time working on his shot. It's shown too. The kid can knock down a jumper. More than anything else, he can hustle, and that's something this Griz team hasn't shown a lot of.
There are some significant losses to the team but nowhere near what was lost after the 05-06 season. Ellis and Dlouhy were both starters most games but they weren't quite stars on this team. Cameron Rundles is very ready to take over for Ellis at the 1. Rundles' sophomore season should be devoid of freshman mistakes so his offensive game is leaps and bounds above BE's. Bryan Ellis took a couple game-deciding shots last year that I would've much rather had Cam take. While the Griz can easily make up for the loss of BE on the offensive end, it will be tough to match his leadership and defensive intensity. I know BE tried to pass on all the leadership and knowledge he could but only time will tell how Cam adjusts to a bigger role. He has the personality, swagger and confidence to be the 
Gus Chase and Austin Swift are in similar positions. Both came to UM with high expectations. Chase was one of the top JuCo forwards in the country and Swift was a great 3-4 combo with a ton of versatility. I hate to see Chase go. Whenever he got in, he busted his ass in an attempt to get a bit more playing time. His game wasn't the pretties but he got it done. I think his size created some prejudice amongst the staff. It created this belief that he couldn't score in the post or rebound. From what I saw, he could. He dominated at the practices I went to and made positive contributions when he got in the games. He powered into the paint, made some ugly baskets and got to the line. He struggled defensively at times but he hustled for rebounds and got his fair share. There was great chemistry between him and the young core in Rundles and Graves. He was a fan favorite and always played like his hair was on fire. His lack of playing time and departure is one of the biggest critiques I have for this coaching staff.
ard for veterans like Matt Dlouhy so see Tinks as THE guy instead of just the backup coach. Here's a little analogy: remember the feeling when you walked in for a grade school class one day and instead of seeing your usual teacher you saw some random sub? Sure, there may have been a good lesson plan and this individual may have even been a better teacher but you know you were planning on spending the next eight hours staring out the window.
coaching styles. Krysko was a very very passionate and fiery coach while Tinkle has a much more laid back personality. Many use a "good cop/bad cop" analogy bud I'd rather use a Chicago Cubs manager analogy. Larry Krystkowiak is your Lou Pinella, the total hardass and hothead. He would be all over his players and the officials. Tinkle is your California-style Dusty Baker. Baker once said that when he was a player and his manager flipped over the locker room food table in anger, he'd just pick up a hot dog and eat it. Now before you point to the fact that he ruined my favorite team, remember what Baker did with the strong veteran leadership of Barry Bonds and Jeff Kent. This is where the loss of Criswell and Matthews comes into play.
The next step in the search for a leader would be to look at the team's best players. In my opinion, there's a trio of Griz "stars" including Jordan Hasquet, Andrew Strait and Cameron Rundles. Hasquet and Rundles especially are probably too young to be respected and heard by the upperclassmen. Then from what I've seen of Drew that he's really kind of a quiet guy, kind of like Tim Duncan. Has anyone ever seen him get really fired up during a game?
You know what, I hate Dick Vitale and I'm sorry for any reference to him. I hate Joe Buck too but that's not the point. The point is that Cam Rundles is a stud.
nded by family and familiar friends, to living almost alone on an alien campus filled with strangers. This passage proved to be much more difficult for Chavez. His story is detailed in a recent 