Last weekend, I flew out to Los Angeles to attend Nike’s Basketball Academy at the Barkar Hanger in Santa Monica.
Among the players in attendance there was Georges Niang, Iowa State’s All-American forward and one of the biggest reasons that the Cyclones are still considered a national title contender and a preseason top five team despite losing head coach Fred Hoiberg.
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That coaching change is what intrigued me. Niang and Hoiberg were obviously close -- Hoiberg recruited Niang, developed him, helped him get into shape ... and then bounced for the NBA -- and I was curious: was Niang bitter? Was he resentful? Did he hold a grudge? And, perhaps more importantly, how did he get along with new head coach Steve Prohm?
I sat with the Massachusetts native during the camp and talk about all of that and more. The results? You can read through them in this column.