Jared Bynum might not seem like your prototypical basketball participant. Standing at simply 5-feet-10 inches, Bynum is likely one of the shortest gamers each time he steps on the hardwood. However that hasn’t prevented the 24-year-old level guard from making his mark on faculty basketball.
“I’ve been doubted my complete life based mostly on my dimension,” Bynum mentioned. “I don’t move the attention check after I stroll within the health club; I’m often the shortest, if not the second shortest participant on the courtroom. However I don’t often take into consideration that an excessive amount of as a result of basketball is concerning the outcomes and the work that you simply put in.”
The most recent member of Stanford males’s basketball has skilled each particular person and crew success throughout the collegiate ranks. After transferring from Saint Joseph’s following his freshman 12 months, Bynum helped the Windfall Friars win the Huge East through the 2021-2022 season whereas successful the convention’s Sixth Man of the 12 months award.
Postseason success adopted, because the Friars reached the Candy Sixteen, the place they barely misplaced to eventual nationwide champions Kansas 66-61. This previous season, Windfall as soon as once more reached the NCAA event as a No. 11 seed. Bynum acknowledges that the crew’s success was partly because of its resilience, and hopes to carry an identical toughness to Stanford.
“I discovered that all through the season, and all through life, there’s going to be ups and downs,” the lead guard from Maryland mentioned. “However on the similar time there’s going to be success too, so I simply method basketball like I method my life: no matter comes my means, I’m going to combat by means of.”
After coming off a disappointing 14-19 season, Stanford males’s basketball is trying to make the NCAA event for the primary time since 2014. Bynum actually is aware of a factor or two about snapping event skids, because the Georgetown Prep product was a part of a core group of gamers who led Windfall to its first NCAA event look in three seasons.
“I’ve been round a number of groups that had success and had down years,” Bynum mentioned. “I’m undoubtedly wanting ahead to coming to a crew like Stanford that has excessive expectations for what they’ll do. I imagine that with the items that they have already got, and with the incoming freshmen as nicely, I really feel like this upcoming 12 months could possibly be a particular 12 months, placing Stanford basketball again in place.”
Bynum will be part of a Cardinal roster full of expertise, as along with the returns of junior ahead Brandon Angel, sophomore heart Maxime Raynaud and fifth-year guard Michael Jones, the Cardinal additionally herald two top-50 recruits in Andrej Stojakovic and Kaanan Carlyle from the highschool ranks. The prospect of taking part in with a promising group of gamers was a part of the explanation the veteran guard in the end selected Stanford.
“The teaching employees expressed to me that they’ve guys that may rating the ball and playmake,” Bynum mentioned. “There are like 5 – 6 guys that may shoot 40% from three. That’s like a degree guard’s dream.”
With the losses of sophomore guard Isa Silva (Lengthy Seaside State) and junior guard Michael O’Connell (NC State) to the switch portal, Bynum will doubtless show invaluable to a crew in want of an skilled level guard and voice within the locker room.
“I really feel like with me coming in and the gamers they have already got, I’ll have the ability to discover a good stability of being a facilitator and likewise having the ability to decide my spots,” Bynum mentioned.