I think we can all agree that last year, Keeshawn Barthelemy's first season following his redshirt year with the Buffs in 2019-2020 left some things to be desired.
Perhaps in a nutshell it could be said that Barthelemy's performance over the year didn't exactly warrant confidence absolute in his ability to steer the ship for the Buffs in the immediate aftermath of losing McKinley Wright IV.
Barthelemy played in 30 games for Colorado last year, averaging 11.4 minutes per appearance. He shot 35% (42-of-119) from the floor and posted a lukewarm 30% (17-of-56) make rate from long range.
His assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.91 certainly was encouraging and in his limited minutes, he averaged 3.7 points per game.
Overall, there wasn't much Barthelemy could have done coming off the bench behind Wright IV that would have constituted the belief that he could step in seamlessly after the departure of a four-year starter at point guard.
That was what Tad Boyle alluded to recently in talking about Barthelemy's performance last season.
“I’m really pleased with Keeshawn," Boyle said. "I think he’s playing very well and playing like a veteran. He’s talking more — my message to Keeshawn after the season was ‘look, you were in a tough spot,’ because the minutes he got were sporadic. We wanted McKinley Wright on the floor as much as possible and Keeshawn had to sacrifice for that and he did. I’m really proud of him for that."
Boyle also pointed out a handful of impactful performances Barthelemy delivered in the postseason.
For starters, against USC in the Pac-12 Tournament semifinals, a scary scene at the T-Mobile arena ensued when Wright IV caught a nasty elbow to the side of the head early on from Southern Cal's Chevez Goodwin, forcing him to leave the game and initiating valid concerns about a potential concussion.
Barthelemy steadied the ship in Wright IV's absence, however, scoring eight points (including back-to-back three-pointers) for CU in just over four minutes.
All in all, Wright IV was absent for six-plus minutes in the first half, recovering from the blow to the head. When he returned, subbing in for Barthelemy, the latter had helped Colorado maintain an early 11-point lead over the Trojans.
Barthemely also impressed Boyle with his performance against Florida State in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, in which he contributed seven points.
"He stepped in in Las Vegas (vs. USC in the Pac-12 Tournament) when McKinley went down with a possible concussion," Boyle said. "He came back in the game and gave us great minutes. I thought he gave us great minutes against Florida State in the NCAA Tournament."
With graduate transfer Mason Faulkner sidelined through at least August as he recovers from ankle surgery, much of the load at point guard will likely fall on Barthelemy's shoulders, as the Buffaloes get ready for some summer exhibitions in Costa Rica this August.
Not that that is a bad thing, of course. A trial by fire in that manner may well be good for Barthelemy in the long run, further nurturing him to be able to handle that kind of responsibility.
For Boyle, Barthelemy has proved himself in terms of ability. What remains is Barthelemy demonstrating that he can be impactful for the Buffs on a minute-by-minute basis.
"We know how talented Keeshawn is, now it’s a matter of ‘OK, McKinley’s gone, it’s your time now to become a more consistent player with your minutes,'" Boyle said. "Your minutes hopefully will go up and with that comes a challenge of being ready.”
.....
Have heard a lot of positives about Barthelemy just in a few days at the gym when Boyle opened up practice to the media. Many of those positives start with Barthelemy himself, who knows he has to step up and be better this year. Boyle has a good point; last year was a tough draw for Barthelemy, who essentially was always in a pinch-hitting role, coming off the bench for limited minutes. I think he displayed enough to warrant optimism about where his development will continue to lead him, while stopping short of suggesting that he's going to be unstoppable this year.
It's going to be tough to place guys on a pedestal next to Wright IV to compare. I think as more time goes on Wright IV will be further recognized as a once-in-a-generational talent than he already is.
But at any rate, this year will be big for Barthelemy to show he's continuing to develop. His minutes will likely be going up significantly. He needs to handle himself well.
Perhaps in a nutshell it could be said that Barthelemy's performance over the year didn't exactly warrant confidence absolute in his ability to steer the ship for the Buffs in the immediate aftermath of losing McKinley Wright IV.
Barthelemy played in 30 games for Colorado last year, averaging 11.4 minutes per appearance. He shot 35% (42-of-119) from the floor and posted a lukewarm 30% (17-of-56) make rate from long range.
His assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.91 certainly was encouraging and in his limited minutes, he averaged 3.7 points per game.
Overall, there wasn't much Barthelemy could have done coming off the bench behind Wright IV that would have constituted the belief that he could step in seamlessly after the departure of a four-year starter at point guard.
That was what Tad Boyle alluded to recently in talking about Barthelemy's performance last season.
“I’m really pleased with Keeshawn," Boyle said. "I think he’s playing very well and playing like a veteran. He’s talking more — my message to Keeshawn after the season was ‘look, you were in a tough spot,’ because the minutes he got were sporadic. We wanted McKinley Wright on the floor as much as possible and Keeshawn had to sacrifice for that and he did. I’m really proud of him for that."
Boyle also pointed out a handful of impactful performances Barthelemy delivered in the postseason.
For starters, against USC in the Pac-12 Tournament semifinals, a scary scene at the T-Mobile arena ensued when Wright IV caught a nasty elbow to the side of the head early on from Southern Cal's Chevez Goodwin, forcing him to leave the game and initiating valid concerns about a potential concussion.
Barthelemy steadied the ship in Wright IV's absence, however, scoring eight points (including back-to-back three-pointers) for CU in just over four minutes.
All in all, Wright IV was absent for six-plus minutes in the first half, recovering from the blow to the head. When he returned, subbing in for Barthelemy, the latter had helped Colorado maintain an early 11-point lead over the Trojans.
Barthemely also impressed Boyle with his performance against Florida State in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, in which he contributed seven points.
"He stepped in in Las Vegas (vs. USC in the Pac-12 Tournament) when McKinley went down with a possible concussion," Boyle said. "He came back in the game and gave us great minutes. I thought he gave us great minutes against Florida State in the NCAA Tournament."
With graduate transfer Mason Faulkner sidelined through at least August as he recovers from ankle surgery, much of the load at point guard will likely fall on Barthelemy's shoulders, as the Buffaloes get ready for some summer exhibitions in Costa Rica this August.
Not that that is a bad thing, of course. A trial by fire in that manner may well be good for Barthelemy in the long run, further nurturing him to be able to handle that kind of responsibility.
For Boyle, Barthelemy has proved himself in terms of ability. What remains is Barthelemy demonstrating that he can be impactful for the Buffs on a minute-by-minute basis.
"We know how talented Keeshawn is, now it’s a matter of ‘OK, McKinley’s gone, it’s your time now to become a more consistent player with your minutes,'" Boyle said. "Your minutes hopefully will go up and with that comes a challenge of being ready.”
.....
Have heard a lot of positives about Barthelemy just in a few days at the gym when Boyle opened up practice to the media. Many of those positives start with Barthelemy himself, who knows he has to step up and be better this year. Boyle has a good point; last year was a tough draw for Barthelemy, who essentially was always in a pinch-hitting role, coming off the bench for limited minutes. I think he displayed enough to warrant optimism about where his development will continue to lead him, while stopping short of suggesting that he's going to be unstoppable this year.
It's going to be tough to place guys on a pedestal next to Wright IV to compare. I think as more time goes on Wright IV will be further recognized as a once-in-a-generational talent than he already is.
But at any rate, this year will be big for Barthelemy to show he's continuing to develop. His minutes will likely be going up significantly. He needs to handle himself well.
