Bennett, Varem take positions
PULLMAN – On a team in which one of his primary post players is a 6-foot-10 freshman who wouldn’t tip the scales at 200 pounds unless holding a sack of groceries, Washington State University coach Dick Bennett needs beef in the low post wherever he can find it.
Bennett thought he had that player in Jeff Varem, who despite his shorter stature – generously listed as 6-6 – weighs in at 240. But the senior, who has been on the court for just more than a year after transferring to WSU, doesn’t always see eye to eye with Bennett on that.
“Up to this point it has been a struggle,” Bennett admitted Tuesday. “He and I have different opinions as to who he is. He likes to be a guard. I think he’s a power player. So he’s proving to me that he’s not a power player and I’m proving to him that he’s not a guard. So we’re at a little bit of an impasse there.”
Varem maintains that he and Bennett are on the same page. But ask him what his best spot is on the floor and he won’t point to the paint.
“I’m a guard. I always played the guard spot,” Varem said. “The difference is, I got big and I got stronger, and I can try to take advantage of smaller people. I think of myself as a guard.”
Varem showed flashes of excellent play in 20 games from his first year in a Cougars uniform, and again has teased the WSU staff in spurts. Against Georgia Southern this year, Varem pulled down a career-best 14 rebounds. Against BYU he played superb defense that helped key a narrow win. But in other games, Bennett has been frustrated by the disconnect between what he’d like to see and what he ends up seeing.
It’s especially problematic for the coach because the Cougars lack not only strength in the post but also finishers. Varem, it would appear, has the capability to provide both.
“Jeff has the capacity to make us a better team and we don’t have a lot of players who are like that,” Bennett said. “We have a lot of guys who play roles and Jeff can be an impact player, but I don’t want him to be an impact player for both teams.
“When I put him inside strictly, he balks at it. He doesn’t play his game. So I’m not going to get into a wrestling match with him over that. We’ll try to use him where he can best play, and if he’s not functioning well on the perimeter then we’ll just sub.”
To try and reach some common ground, Bennett suggested he may move Varem outside more often, but put him in position to challenge the basket. That way, the Cougars can get the scoring underneath they so desperately need as the Pacific-10 Conference schedule looms while also allowing Varem some freedom along the perimeter.
Both Bennett and Varem expressed optimism that things will get better as the season progresses. But as this is the senior’s final year at WSU, time is quickly running short.
“It’s like loosening a rusty bolt,” Bennett said. “You’ve got to apply a little oil and then sometimes you skin your knuckles. Sometimes you get it going until the next rust spot. And it’s coming, but it’s a slow process. I wish I had him for four years.”
Bennett then took a moment to collect his thoughts.
“Let me put it this way: Sometimes I wish I had him for four years.”