WATCH: Head coach Chris Jans talks Tolu Smith, Rams Davis and maintaining momentum
Mississippi State head coach Chris Jans held his weekly press conference on Monday morning to discuss his Bulldogs' program.
Q: What is Tolu Smith‘s next step when it pertains to returning to the court?
Jans: He has a scan scheduled for Thursday so the day after our next game he will have a scan. At that point I will know a lot more in terms of when he will transition back to practice. But I think in the next couple of days he will be doing some 5 on 0 things for us in the halfcourt, for sure, then maybe even in the full court. But he still won’t be allowed to have any contact or anything like that. But he’s been shooting on his own and getting some free throws in, some jump shots and stuff around the basket, just 1 on 0. So we’re hoping, fingers crossed, that we get a good update on Thursday and I will know more then.
Q: How do you think Tolu has attacked his rehab and responded to his rehab?
Jans: Unfortunately for his sake, he has a lot of experience in this matter. SO he knows what it takes and most of us in this room know him fairly well. He’s been around and everybody talks about his work ethic. It is the same from what I’ve seen going through this injury situation with him.
The first 48 hours, that was rough. He was pretty down. It took a big toil on him mentally and the surgery, etc. But ever since then he’s had an unbelievable mindset. There’s a couple of times, like game day, he gets a little down because he is ready to play. He can feel the energy and the vibe. You work, work, work and then on game day you can’t go out there and perform. Those are the only days I’ve seen where it bothers him. But other than that, he is a model student-athlete in terms of his appointments and rehab, and his willingness to come in over and over daily and work with our trainer, who has done an excellent job with all of our players.
