Raymond Hoare & Aushay Sanchez
Student Sports Media
Big changes are coming to Butler as new Head Men’s Basketball Coach Kyle Fisher has already established trust between the players and coaches after he took the job on Monday, April 15.
“I want to establish those relationships,” Fisher said. “I really want to get to know the staff, I want to get to know the players and their families, and learn what they want to get out of their time here at Butler and figure out what we can do to make sure they accomplish that. Start building a winning culture, start establishing winning habits and getting this program to a championship level.”
Fisher is determined to strengthen the culture of Butler men’s basketball.
“The tradition of Butler goes back a long time and there’s a good tradition here,” Fisher said. “There are some things that we can build off [of]. There is a good foundation in place, there’s a good level of talent, but there are obviously some things we will do differently. The mentality of this program will be led off by defense and rebounding. We are going to be a tough and physical hard-nosed defensive team and that mentality will carry over to the offensive end where we really want to get the ball inside, whether we throw the ball in the post or we drive the ball in the paint, but we are going to get a lot of good looks, and high percentage shots around the basket, which will open up our perimeter game.”
Despite how last season’s efforts ended up with a 16-14 record overall and 9-11 conference record, it left a bitter taste, but Assistant Coach Cameron Parker is excited for the new changes with Coach Fisher.
“The highs… from last season were… the relationship with the guys, you see them around campus, everyone is a like a big family, they all get along very well… They don’t see each other just as teammates, they see each other as brothers,” Parker said. “I don’t take anything as a loss, if you learn from it, it’s not a loss… It wasn’t the greatest season that we wanted, but with Coach Fisher we will definitely turn that around.”
Adding on, Assistant Coach Daven Vo is ready for the new things that will happen on the court.
“We want to see more consistency on the floor,” Vo said. “There was a handful of games where we should’ve won and we kind of gave it away last year, and this year we want to be more consistent, and want to have an identity on the floor.”
This upcoming season for Butler’s men’s basketball could be heading in the right direction.
“The staff and the players earned the right to be here… I want to get everybody the opportunity to earn that trust and respect,” Fisher said.