Fleming ready to begin freshman journey
Isaac Fleming has already come a long way to play with the University of Hawai’i basketball team, but his journey as a NCAA Division I player is just beginning.
Fleming’s home state is Delaware – nearly 5,000 miles away from Hawai’i – and he made two trips to Honolulu this summer. He first flew out to Honolulu in July to attend summer classes and start training on the UH campus. He then returned home for a two-week break between semesters, and made it back to Honolulu last week.
“I have to get on three different planes,” Fleming said. “I have to go (from Honolulu) to Seattle, then from Seattle to Atlanta, then Atlanta to Philly. Then when I get to Philly, I drive 40 minutes to get back home in Delaware … it’s a struggle, but hopefully it pays off in the end.”
Fleming, a 6-foot-4 freshman guard, was able to train with some of the other UH newcomers earlier this summer, and he said the experience has already helped. Individual workouts started this week, and Fleming said he knew what to expect.
“If I were to stay home during the summer, even though I worked out and everything, and I was to come back and do this, I would be in shape but not like this,” he said. “This is constant – full-court running. Being here in the summer just helped me get in shape.”
Fleming was able to play in a few games during the Hawai’i College Basketball Summer League, though he missed the playoffs while on his return trip home. His team, Clark Hatch Fitness, lost in the semifinals of the playoffs. Fleming injured his shoulder during an earlier summer game, but he said it is no longer a problem.
Although this is just the first week of classes and workouts for this semester, Fleming said he already likes the mix of players on the 2014-15 UH team.
“Everybody’s competitive, I like that,” he said. “We don’t have a lot of crybabies, a lot of selfish people. I can tell we’re just one family, and we’re going to be a Cinderella story this year.”
bigdaddy…looking forward to Isaac having an impact year for UH MBB…know that all the guys, no matter what 3 people may say, are going to have a good year. The team grinding, getting to know one another, with ONE GOAL, BWC tournament title, and NCAA invite. Or even a top 35 finish in national rankings or higher.
Glad to have Isaac Fleming, Legit, ..playing for UH MBB!
shout out to Delaware!
🙂
GO Rainbow Warriors!
TWO freshmen, who had great senior years, Isaac in prep school, and Sammis HS senior year where he blew up in the March 2014 AAU showcase, and 20 schools offered him, as well as up till the time that Isaac was finishing school, teams were still trying to recruit him. Sammis and Isaac Fleming , both legit. Grinders. And No Cry baby’s, selfish…You watch Sammis and Fleming’s YouTube, videos, they love to pass and get guys running, bring up the ball coast to coast, or in half court, good passers. Young guys Who are ONE OHANA and TEAM guys, the are not quitters, are winners. Same with Roderick Bobbitt, coming back to 100% , hopefully cleared for full contact practices by Oct 1 2014 xray, team guy, just wants to help team win BWC,
Shoots, only A FEW MBB people, observers, say team going to tank, MBB program going to explode in Gib’s face., death sanctions, all type of poo poo, .. I guess Isaac Legit Fleming is right , the Cry Babys are the 3 who cast negative, CRYYYY BABIES.. and these young guys, and returnees, I know what they are saying, just know it, … sheeeeesh… those people, 3 of them, they don’t know.. we know, Gib knows, AD knows, and legal knows… UH MBB will be corrected or whatever and playing for BWC, and NIT / NCAA’s, why else would Bobbitt, Fleming and Sammis be so positive for upcoming season? Same with Aaron Valdes , Stefan Jovanovich, Garrett Nevels, Quincy Smith, Dyrbe Enos, Zach Buscher, Negus Webster-Chan,…. Stefan Jankovich, Mike Thomas, Brandon Jawato, Niko Filopovich, Brocke Stepteau? And same thing when Fotu comes back, nothing less than the Best, they going rock, and hit that NIT or NCAA tournament and win games, play for a national title… shooooots… why the heck not, right UH MBB fans, not those 3 , but the hundreds who do read our posts? The POSITIVE ONES…. TEAM , they are playing for the Greatest season, in perhaps 13 years. wish them the best, .. Grind guys, and Legit, Go Git IT!
🙂
Go Rainbow Warriors!
🙂
I Used to Tell Our Workers IF You’ve Got Time to Complain,
YOU Don’t Have Enough Work
Our Philosophy was Give Each Guy 300%
WAY More than they could ever Imagine Doing
Then they Discover they CAN DO So Much More than they Imagined
WE DON’T Know The Limits of Our Capabilities
We ONLY Know The Limits WE Put Upon Ourselves
-JUST Like UH’s Admin/ HI’s Legislature’s Small-Minded Planning…
SSC Took a Man of VISION (OR it would’ve been Less Than Half its Current Size
Which WILL Still Be TOO Small When The Visionary WORKERS Hit Their Stride Long Enough)
And woulda been Less Than Even Today’s Current Attendance
NOTHING GREAT was Ever Achieved by The Naysayers
As Dr. Wayne Dyer would Note: YOU Gotta Believe it to See It
AND there IS Substance ON This Team…
Creating Its Own Momentum
Isaac and Sammis sound and look like mature true freshmen. Really hoping they contribute and blossom over the next four years. When’s the last time UH had a four-year senior?
Fotu and Jawato are the only guys who have a chance to be a four year senior. The truth is Gib has run off most freshman after a couple of years in the program. Mainly transfers have stuck it out since they don’t have any years left to burn by transferring again. So far all the HS recruits have been busts in my opinion except for Fotu. However, the transfers from JC and other D1 schools have been good.
To be pono about it, Davis Rozitis did spend four years here and graduate under Coach Gib. This Coach has only been here 4 years and is the only coach in UH’s history to actually go after frosh in order to Build a Program.
Coach Nash had the unenviable task of trying to put together a last minute team After the Spring Recruitment Period. He stuck with those kids and our record is what it is.
Coach Gib has tried to build on that first year recruitment class on and off the floor. He has not been shy about letting his players know what their future would look like playing for him.
ESPN reports that nearly 600 Dl players transferred out last year and it is growing nationally Considering that you only have a little over 350 Dl bball programs and the fact that Hawaii is 2500 miles from the mainland…well, let’s just say that we are exceptional.
Does anyone here really wish that he stuck with that first class of frosh? Only time will tell, but within the next few years, I expect that we will see more and more full term players walk away with their diplomas into the real world.
Hawaii is exceptional and we are all very lucky for it.
GO BOWZ
Backbeat – Hana Hou…
Mike Thomas will be here 4 years.
I looked it up on UH site and from what I can tell Hiram Thompson was the last 4 year senior even though he had that break in between for his church mission. Before Hiram, the last one was Bobby Nash. That means only two guys in like the last 10 years! I suppose you could count Rozitis, but I was thinking more about guys who come in freshman and graduate senior.
So yes, UH is a special place. Very few local kids to pick from and those are who would stay for 4 years and also hard place to get mainland kids to commit for 4 years. BACKBEAT is right about the high transfer rate in men’s hoops. It’s not always a coach running off the kids because a lot of times its the kids running away!
Here’s hoping we start the streak of 4 year seniors with Fotu, Mike Thomas, Jawato and now Isaac and Sammis!
Wasn’t Alika Smith a 4 year player?
Why is every picture of Fleming we get of him dribbling left and palming? We should show pics of him going strong right. JMO
We cannot forget Brandon Jawato, who is a RS Jr. this year. So actually in UH for going on 4th year. He is on track to graduate this May 2015! So , he would be considered a 4 year UH athlete who completed, his degree before the possible 5th year of senior MBB eligibility. He would be the first of Gib’s Freshmen recruits to graduate in FOUR YEARS.. That is amazing, The young guy is a great role mode., knows where he is at, and cherishes the education first and foremost. He will be a great, possible BB coach, somewhere if he chooses, he mentioned, he would love to give back to Hawaii, he loves it here, and teach / coach in the Islands. I tell you, no matter what BB wise, Jawato is a first class Student Athlete.
Brandon Jawato, really THE FIRST recruited freshman by Gib to finish getting a degree in 4 years!
FANTASTIC.
Mike Thomas, great student, he is going for it, no transfer, and no dropping out, he is here first and foremost for education, then the BB .. another one in 2 more years to grad and get degree. Hopefully Sammis, and Isaac Fleming. As BACKBEAT, and it is not a secret or failing of Gib and his program, fact of life, every spring, there are freshmen, and sophs, and some Jrs going on senior to be who transfer…just life NCAA BB DI.. ask ANY HC in NCAA DI ball, and it happens to their programs, whether low or mid major to P5 schools.. for UH to have guys doing well in school, and on track to graduate, and be competitive, flirting with another back to back 20 win season, and legit shot at NIT or NCAA . post season. BACKBEAT and Chuck Chees, we are blessed. Ain’t easy to do it 2500 miles from West Coast, however Gib is somehow trying his best.. I give him credit, especially making sure the guys, even if they transfer, do well in school, and keep GPA, and APR good and be on track to make use of an expensive education. Of course, every HC will sit down with guys, to see where they are at, BB wise in program and academic wise, since it is yearly review and evaluation. It actually is a good rate, now, better than before, the UH MBB team and academics.. definitely!!
It IS O.K. to GO With Your Strength…
UNTIL They Prove they CAN Stop You…
(Consider: Christian Versus Fotu’s many Variations in attack)
THEN You Better Be Ready to go with the Opposte Alignment…
Left-Handers are Famed for Going All Night…
Before the Coach realizes/Enforces
‘He’s Left-Handed”
Although i expect them to be “Prepared” from Jump Ball in D-1…
and Clearly Better-Prepared, Coached-Up on the opposition in Conference
where they see each other two to three times a season
STILL Counter-Intuitive, Those Left-Handers
gib
All i can tell u is stop him from using his left and watch the right go to work that called a (Fool Gold)
eagle
thanks for the post
Bigdaddy. Once again you seem to like to add things into my comments that simply aren’t there. I simply asked a question about why are those the only pics they show. Didnt comment about what he could or couldn’t do. That will obviously only be proven on the court.
Don’t See Anything ADDED or Inferred…
Just Relevant Response
Right IS Also Strong…
While we ‘shouldn’t’ put too much on Freshmen…
i DO think Isaac and Sammis could be a pretty Dynamic Duo together for four/five years…
Big D… Thanks for Reminding US that Many are Watching…
gibnogood
Respecthgame dont take ur nonsense to another topic i’m not biting.
Enos,Jawato,Nevels deserve much respect.
Fleming & Samies newbies they gotta earn their role.
Bigdaddy. Why aren’t following the rules? Everyone has made it clear they want the personal attacks to stop. Ordering me to take my “nonsense” elsewhere is personal. Telling me to respect the game is quite funny. I promise I have at least as much love for, respect for and knowledge of the game as you do. Very obvious statement that the veterans deserve respect and new players have to earn their roles. I agree with you. There we have a new foundation to work from…..:). I will copy this to the other thread as well since it is the most current. I learned that trick from Runbow as well.