Just realized that is premium and I don't really see why sooo
Yes, Issac "Mackey" McBride is excited to arrive on campus.
"Yes sir, very excited," McBride quickly corrects.
The three-star combo guard and one of the early-signing members of KU basketball's 2019 class is the No. 131-ranked player in the 247Sports Composite and the No. 22-ranked combo guard nationally. He was discovered by KU assistant Kurtis Townsend in a similar fashion to how Townsend found Frank Mason, but he's more than just a good story.
McBride chose Kansas for a reason. He wants to get better.
A lot better.
The first steps of that improvement will begin this summer. In a recent phone call with Phog.net, McBride talked about the things he's looking forward to upon arriving on campus. Unsurprisingly, there were quite a few things he mentioned.
“Pretty much the summer workouts, individuals and even with the team, but just trying to get better because the ultimate goal of why I decided to come to Kansas was to develop myself and try to be even better than I am right now at every aspect of the game," McBride said. "And also getting acclimated to campus and what’s around it, and knowing the people around there, getting to know them a little better.”
McBride, a 6-1, 170-pound combo guard, has spoken to Phog.net about his basketball philosophies and how they have been shaped by analytics — at least his mentality of attacking and making sure he's taking the shots that get his team the most value. He thinks through the game like a point guard — or perhaps a coach — even when the coaches aren't asking him to.
“I watched a lot [of KU last year] and was trying to see what I could do and work on to make an impact early on," McBride said. "I tried to look at specific sets, but coach told me not to worry about trying to look at plays and stuff because it changes every year. Offensively, they’ll try to put in new stuff. But I watched a lot of it."
He was looking for the details, but he still was a fan at heart.
"It was kind of hard because even though I wasn’t there, I would get nervous," McBride said. "But I just tried to watch and open my mind up and explore all the stuff that was in front of me on the floor.”
So then, McBride might not be a top-100 ranked recruit, but he absolutely possesses the mentality of a Day 1 contributor.
In fact, one of the Day 1 contributors from last season, Devon Dotson, has already been in his ear a little bit. The two have discussed topics off the court, and McBride has also linked up with Christian Braun, among others either on or joining the team, on social media.
Through all his conversations with players and staff members, he's found things to take away. But he also recognizes there are going to be things he can't quite prepare for.
"They just told me to come ready to work," McBride said of the staff. "I don’t think any of the freshmen know exactly what’s going to happen, but you just come with the mindset and mentality that every day I’m going to try to become better at everything in life, whether it’s on the court or what we’re doing in our classes. That’s the type of mentality they tell us to come with. Just try and get better and work hard every day.”
And yes, McBride is embracing that advice, both on and off the court.
"I feel like as much as I’ll have time around Coach Townsend, Coach Self and Coach Howard and Coach Q and all the coaches on the staff," McBride said, "I feel like I’ll learn a lot more about the game."
