KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Khamari McGriff didn’t have a towel over his head at the end of Kansas State’s loss to BYU in the first round of the Big 12 Conference men’s basketball tournament because he was emotional.
Playing on commissioner Brett Yormark’s latest venture into the technology sphere for the conference, McGriff said the towel was a byproduct of the migraine he sustained after competing on the ASB GlassFloor LED court that was introduced last week.
“Early in the second half I started feeling that orb,” the Kansas State forward said, “just a blind spot and my head just started pounding after that.”
McGriff isn’t the only one who’s had issues with the court, which has been a hot topic in the T-Mobile Center starting with last week’s women’s tournament. Yormark spent much of his pre-tournament press conference Tuesday being asked about the court and responding defensively, asking the quizzical media what they thought of the court before answering.
“You’re never going to get 100% buy-in, OK, but I’ve received a lot of positive feedback,” Yormark said. “It’s interesting, whenever we innovate, we really encourage all key stakeholders, student-athletes, coaches, whoever, to give us their feedback.”
Kansas women’s basketball coach Brandon Schneider said last week since he didn’t play on the court, he shouldn’t be the one providing feedback on the surface itself. S’Mya Nichols, meanwhile, said the court played with the Jayhawks’ heads a bit in their loss to Colorado, citing several players dealing with various injuries and then playing on a surface they’re not accustomed to.
“It’s cool that it’s historic and we’re the first to play on it,” Nichols said. “I think it made us a bit timid.”
The court is being used for United States competition for the first time but has been utilized overseas for years. This is the first run with the Big 12, and for many players, they hope it’ll be the last.
“It’s just an eyesore,” Kansas State’s Taj Manning said. “It’s constantly changing and stuff, flashing different lights. Nobody wants to play on it. Just normal hardwood.”
Players who were asked about the court after their respective games — be at the postgame press conference or by USA TODAY reporters in the locker room — each had the same word to describe it.
“It’s a little slippery,” Cincinnati guard Day Day Thomas said, “but it’s basketball. We just out there playing. We ain’t worrying about that, just going out there, compete, trying to win games.”
Most players asked about the court noted the slickness of the court, which took some getting used to during Tuesday’s first round games. Players could be found slipping on the floor routinely during games, though that’s not uncommon for a traditional basketball court, either.
“It was a little weird at the beginning,” Arizona State forward Andrija Grbovic said, “but we need to get used to it because everybody needs to play on it. Once you got used to it, it felt fine and everything.”
However, players aren’t the only ones who Yormark says he’s sought feedback from.
“… I can tell you one thing, every official last week came up to me and said, Brett, this is going to help me if we ever play on this court again,” Yormark said. “It’s going to help me prolong my career because it’s providing them some shock absorption for their knees.”
Whether it’s true every official had that comment or not, at least one player known for high-flying dunks did have a similar experience on the floor.
“I wouldn’t say it feels the same, like with the grip and everything,” Baylor‘s Cameron Carr said, “it has a little give to it. It feels good to jump on. Doesn’t hurt your legs as much, but it’s a little slippery, honestly.”
McGriff may be an outlier to the negative effects of playing on the court. Players interviewed by USAT all said why it took some time to get used to the lights — most notable after made shots during game action — it wasn’t enough to distract them.
“I didn’t notice that because I was focused on the game,” Grbovic said, “so I didn’t look too much at all the lights on the court and everything.”
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Do players hate the Big 12 Tournament’s new LED court as much as fans do?