Tigers Benefit From the Experience of Tasmin Mitchell
Tasmin Mitchell knew he had a good chance to be drafted by an NBA team last June, but without a first-round guarantee or solid indication of his draft position, the LSU forward also understood that his best option was to return to school for his senior season.
“I did great at the draft tryouts, but I didn’t get the feedback I wanted,” Mitchell said. “I probably would’ve been drafted but not in the position I was looking for, so I chose to come back. I talked with my family and coaches and prayed about it, and that was probably the greatest decision I’ve ever made in my life.”
Despite coming off a season in which he emerged as one of the best players in the SEC and helped lead his team to the conference regular season title, Mitchell was labeled by many NBA Draft experts and professional scouts as another example of the dreaded “tweener.” At 6-foot-7 and 240 pounds, the Tigers’ senior is considered undersized for the NBA power forward position but lacking the perimeter skills and quickness to succeed as a small forward.
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Mitchell, who mirrors his game after a pro player with a similar build, former All-Star and current Los Angeles Lakers’ forward Ron Artest, began his quest to prove his critics wrong last summer when he started training in Houston with former NBA player and head coach John Lucas.
“He (Lucas) helped me a lot,” Mitchell said. “I spent an ample amount of time on my perimeter game. I worked on everything ? my ball-handling, my dribbling skills and perimeter shooting. It’s not that I didn’t know it. I just needed to polish up on it because I played power forward last year for the team, and I’ve been working hard on that.”
LSU head coach Trent Johnson, who plans on moving Mitchell back to the three position this season, feels the strides his star player made over the summer were noticeable.
“Tasmin was a very good basketball player at the end of last year,” Johnson said. “He’s a much better player now. He’s very much improved. Obviously, any time you have an opportunity to play like he did this summer against good players in NBA situations, that’s going to make you better. But, where he’s better at is he’s shooting the ball better from the perimeter.
“He now understands coming off of doubles and coming off of stagger screens on the perimeter and puts himself in situations to shoot the ball better. He’s also stronger, believe it or not.”
However, the Tigers’ coach expects even more from Mitchell from a leadership standpoint. As one of only two seniors this season, Mitchell must step up and fill that void left by last year’s seniors, especially with a roster consisting predominantly of underclassmen.
“It will be a big adjustment,” Johnson said. “When he was a freshman, he played out on the perimeter, and there were two, maybe three future pros around him. Obviously, there was some experience there and some guys he could rub off on. Now he’s in a situation where he has to lead by example, but also, when he is vocal, he must be really positive with his teammates.”
Mitchell relishes the opportunity to be the Tigers’ unquestioned leader, and his teammates don’t hesitate to go to the senior for advice.
“Even when he wasn’t here this summer, I would call him anyway just for any suggestions or anything he thought I needed to do,” sophomore forward Storm Warren said. “Basically, I just asked him what were some of the things he had done to get where he’s at because he is in the situation I want to get to. I’m trying to do that and then some, so hopefully, I can be in the same situation.”
Reflecting on his first four seasons, Mitchell acknowledges that he’s been through about as many ups and downs a basketball player can experience in a collegiate career, from a Final Four berth and two SEC championships to a season-ending knee injury and a new coaching staff. However, the senior credits Johnson for bringing stability back to the program and is really looking forward to working with the second-year head coach this season.
And even though expectations aren’t quite as high considering the number of young players on the current roster, Mitchell feels the Tigers could surprise some people.
“The young guys are really responding well to Coach Johnson,” Mitchell said. “They are practicing hard and going hard in the weight room and in the class room. This year, you never know what’s to come, but we’re going to compete, and we’re going to be better than a lot of people think we’re going to be.”