Kansas State University Athletics
SE: Making the Leap from JUCO to the Big 12, Rudi Williams is Betting on Himself
Jul 27, 2020 | Men's Basketball, Sports Extra
By: Austin Siegel
From the Twitter DMs to his new head coach noticing that he really, like really, doesn't enjoy wearing a shirt, Rudi Williams did not have the most conventional recruitment to Kansas State.
That's just fine with the newest member of the K-State backcourt, whose career has never taken much of a traditional path anyway.
But focusing too much on his international roots or JUCO career in Oklahoma can obscure what brought Rueadale "Rudi" Williams to Manhattan in the first place: the kid from Canada can ball.
"I could tell that Coach Weber valued toughness," Williams said. "I wanted to play high major basketball and felt like I was good enough. The Big 12 is arguably one of the best conferences in the country and I knew that if I wanted to be the best, then I've got play against the best."
That connection with the K-State coaching staff is what helped seal the deal for Willliams, despite signing with the Wildcats during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.
His recruitment took place without a visit to Manhattan, with Weber and his staff relying on video to scout and evaluate one of the top JUCO players in the country.
Williams said it was assistant head coach Chris Lowery who first reached out on Twitter to find out if his recruitment was still open during the spring signing period. By that time, Williams had already picked up offers from several mid-majors in the fall before hearing from the Wildcats.
"It was a lot of texting and calling, a lot of Zoom calls and FaceTime," Williams said. "The coaching staff built a great relationship with me. They were real with me and told me exactly what it was going to be like, that I could come here right away and be an impact player."
Even though Weber and his staff didn't have the opportunity to watch Williams play in-person, the numbers behind his two-year run at NE Oklahoma A&M speak for themselves.
Williams led the JUCO ranks in assists (267) as a sophomore and averaged 17.1 points per game during his time with the Golden Norse. Six triple-doubles over his career helped lead NEO to a pair of conference championships and a postseason appearance in 2019.
As the attention from D1 schools increased after his impressive sophomore campaign – K-State had to fend off Washington State for his signature – Williams said it was the interest Weber and his staff took in him on a personal level that helped seal the deal.
"He valued if I was a good person. He asked me questions as they were trying to get to know me, like my personal hobbies," Williams said. "They wanted to focus on the other things first, before they worried about the basketball part. They can fix that, they can coach that because the staff here is second-to-none, so they were focused on the other things."
It was a welcome change for Williams, after a high school career when those high-major offers weren't on the table. It did nothing to dim the confidence of a player who knew he wanted to play D1 college basketball and viewed JUCO as the best route to earn a spot at the next level.
Especially as a Canadian, one of two on the Wildcats this season along with Kaosi Ezeagu, Williams said that he had to work a little harder to earn the attention of college scouts, despite the improved resources and scouting services available to Canadian players.
After playing his prep ball at Forest Trail Academy in North Carolina, Williams landed a spot on a well-rounded NE Oklahoma A&M team playing right in the middle of Big 12 country.
"Coming out of high school, I definitely wasn't ready to play at a school at the D1 level. Those two years in Oklahoma really did well in preparing me to play high-major college basketball," Williams said. "You've got to play hard every game, every possession, every night."
That mentality is what Weber and his staff are counting on as they add Williams to a K-State backcourt that is loaded with potential, if not many minutes against Big 12 competition.
With two seasons of JUCO ball under his belt, Williams offers experience that should complement the rest of this seven-man recruiting class.
Perhaps adding to the confidence of the coaching staff in Manhattan? An uptick in scoring for Williams in his second season in Oklahoma, when he was asked to shoulder more of the offense for the Golden Norse. Williams improved his three-point shooting and free-throw percentage on an NEO team that went 25-7.
Stepping into a new role with the Wildcats this season, Williams said he's ready to make an impact on a K-State squad loaded with young talent.
"I know that if I help this team get back to their winning ways, that will benefit me in the long run as well," Williams said. "I'm excited about growing and getting better on and off the court."
And for his part, Weber didn't seem concerned about throwing Williams out there against some of the best that the Big 12 has to offer.
"If you look at our conference, you are going to play against Baylor and the physical guards that they have and the best teams in the country, so you're going to have to deal with that," he said. "I know I teased him about not wearing a shirt, but he is showing off a body that I know can compete in the Big 12."
From the Twitter DMs to his new head coach noticing that he really, like really, doesn't enjoy wearing a shirt, Rudi Williams did not have the most conventional recruitment to Kansas State.
That's just fine with the newest member of the K-State backcourt, whose career has never taken much of a traditional path anyway.
But focusing too much on his international roots or JUCO career in Oklahoma can obscure what brought Rueadale "Rudi" Williams to Manhattan in the first place: the kid from Canada can ball.
"I could tell that Coach Weber valued toughness," Williams said. "I wanted to play high major basketball and felt like I was good enough. The Big 12 is arguably one of the best conferences in the country and I knew that if I wanted to be the best, then I've got play against the best."
That connection with the K-State coaching staff is what helped seal the deal for Willliams, despite signing with the Wildcats during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.
His recruitment took place without a visit to Manhattan, with Weber and his staff relying on video to scout and evaluate one of the top JUCO players in the country.
Williams said it was assistant head coach Chris Lowery who first reached out on Twitter to find out if his recruitment was still open during the spring signing period. By that time, Williams had already picked up offers from several mid-majors in the fall before hearing from the Wildcats.
"It was a lot of texting and calling, a lot of Zoom calls and FaceTime," Williams said. "The coaching staff built a great relationship with me. They were real with me and told me exactly what it was going to be like, that I could come here right away and be an impact player."
Even though Weber and his staff didn't have the opportunity to watch Williams play in-person, the numbers behind his two-year run at NE Oklahoma A&M speak for themselves.
Williams led the JUCO ranks in assists (267) as a sophomore and averaged 17.1 points per game during his time with the Golden Norse. Six triple-doubles over his career helped lead NEO to a pair of conference championships and a postseason appearance in 2019.
As the attention from D1 schools increased after his impressive sophomore campaign – K-State had to fend off Washington State for his signature – Williams said it was the interest Weber and his staff took in him on a personal level that helped seal the deal.
"He valued if I was a good person. He asked me questions as they were trying to get to know me, like my personal hobbies," Williams said. "They wanted to focus on the other things first, before they worried about the basketball part. They can fix that, they can coach that because the staff here is second-to-none, so they were focused on the other things."
👋 @Rueadale
— K-State Men's Basketball (@KStateMBB) June 15, 2020
Welcome to the Little 🍎#KStateMBB x Rudi Williams pic.twitter.com/yF6VhTDQJV
It was a welcome change for Williams, after a high school career when those high-major offers weren't on the table. It did nothing to dim the confidence of a player who knew he wanted to play D1 college basketball and viewed JUCO as the best route to earn a spot at the next level.
Especially as a Canadian, one of two on the Wildcats this season along with Kaosi Ezeagu, Williams said that he had to work a little harder to earn the attention of college scouts, despite the improved resources and scouting services available to Canadian players.
After playing his prep ball at Forest Trail Academy in North Carolina, Williams landed a spot on a well-rounded NE Oklahoma A&M team playing right in the middle of Big 12 country.
"Coming out of high school, I definitely wasn't ready to play at a school at the D1 level. Those two years in Oklahoma really did well in preparing me to play high-major college basketball," Williams said. "You've got to play hard every game, every possession, every night."
That mentality is what Weber and his staff are counting on as they add Williams to a K-State backcourt that is loaded with potential, if not many minutes against Big 12 competition.
With two seasons of JUCO ball under his belt, Williams offers experience that should complement the rest of this seven-man recruiting class.
Perhaps adding to the confidence of the coaching staff in Manhattan? An uptick in scoring for Williams in his second season in Oklahoma, when he was asked to shoulder more of the offense for the Golden Norse. Williams improved his three-point shooting and free-throw percentage on an NEO team that went 25-7.
Stepping into a new role with the Wildcats this season, Williams said he's ready to make an impact on a K-State squad loaded with young talent.
"I know that if I help this team get back to their winning ways, that will benefit me in the long run as well," Williams said. "I'm excited about growing and getting better on and off the court."
And for his part, Weber didn't seem concerned about throwing Williams out there against some of the best that the Big 12 has to offer.
"If you look at our conference, you are going to play against Baylor and the physical guards that they have and the best teams in the country, so you're going to have to deal with that," he said. "I know I teased him about not wearing a shirt, but he is showing off a body that I know can compete in the Big 12."
Players Mentioned
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