Editor’s Note: The Mississippi State women’s basketball team welcomes five freshmen to a program that is poised to capitalize on its trip last season to the quarterfinals of the Women’s National Invitation Tournament. Today, The Dispatch will introduce you to LaKaris Salter. Next week, The Dispatch will introduce you to the final freshman, Victoria Vivians.
STARKVILLE — When you grow up running with players who enjoy passing the basketball, it’s only natural for you to learn the the value of sharing.
Usually the pass-first, shoot second mentality is found in point guards. After all, they are the floor generals who have the ball in their hands the most and are responsible for finding the right player at the right time.
But don’t be surprised if LaKaris Salter plays the role of facilitator or distributor more than you would expect her to be as a power forward. That’s because the Mississippi State freshman has a knack for finding open teammates.
“As a young player, you always look up to those who were in front of you,” Salter said. “Seeing them pass the ball and make it easy for the other players, you want to do the same thing for your teammates, especially when it is your time to lead. I can say I truly did follow with their passing skills. I worked on it day and night in practice.”
Salter is part of a five-player freshman class that is primed to make its impact at MSU. Salter, Blair Schaefer, Morgan William, Kayla Nevitt, and Victoria Vivians are the latest additions to a program that is coming off a 22-14 season and an appearance in the quarterfinals of the Women’s National Invitation Tournament.
Salter hopes to be an inside-outside presence that will help take pressure off veterans like center Martha Alwal and Breanna Richardson and newcomers like Vivians who also figure to play in the frontcourt. If Salter can add scoring punch like she did in high school, when she averaged 18 points and 11 rebounds as a senior, MSU should have a good chance to return to the NCAA tournament for the first time since the 2009-10 season, when the program reached the Sweet 16 for the first time.
Salter was rated the No. 89 player nationally and the No. 18 player at forward by ESPN/HoopGurlz and the No. 90 player nationally and No. 20 player at her position by Dan Olson’s Collegiate Girls Basketball Report following a junior season in which she helped lead Florida A&M Developmental Research School to its second consecutive Class 2A state title.
Salter takes pride in the fact that as a “big,” or post player, she is more adept at passing the basketball. She said she always has loved that aspect of her game and that she isn’t a typical post player. She said she make you pay from the outside if you leave her open. She said she also can find an open post player or guard if defenders don’t respect her ability to pass the basketball.
“I can do anything. I can be anywhere,” Salter said. “I am the type of player who has been underestimated a lot. It has been a pleasure because I help my teammates out a lot.”
Salter, who has a physical presence that is similar to former Texas A&M standout Danielle Adams, said her size is the reason she has been underestimated. Instead of letting those thoughts get her down, Salter said she has used them as motivation to prove people wrong.
Salter didn’t have to prove she could play to MSU coach Vic Schaefer. He said the 6-foot-1 Salter has a feel for the game that should fit in well with players who are accustomed to taking game-winning shots. He said Salter is just as apt to take that shot as she is to make the pass to set up a teammate for an open look.
“LaKaris’ skill set is really, really good,” Schaefer said. “If you spend any time watching her, she has great hands. She has a great shot and she can stretch you. She has a beautiful shot. She has a physical presence because of her size, which is her advantage.”
Schaefer said Salter and the other freshmen will face the challenge of getting in shape. He said they will have to adjust from being in shape to play in high school or with their Amateur Athletic Union teams compared to what they will be expected to do next month when MSU begins practice.
With Vivians projected to be a wing player and with Alwal and redshirt freshman center Chinwe Okorie expected to see a lot of minutes on the blocks, Schafer said Salter’s “unique” skill set should create opportunities for her to add dimensions to MSU’s attack that could give opponents problems.
“If you play her as a five, you’re going to make a big come out and guard her because she can make shots,” Schaefer said. “If you play her at four (power forward), you can still post her and there are not a lot of fours who can handle her down low. She is an interesting matchup problem offensively.
“Defensively, she has to learn the importance of playing defense. I think once she gets in it and (starts to think), ‘Hey, coach Schaefer seems to really be talking about defense, so maybe I need to (do something about it).’ … Once she gets that piece of the puzzle, I think her skill set offensively really is a matchup problem for a lot of people.”
Salter is eager to put her skills to use in a variety of ways. She envisions there will be college coaches who will doubt she can make the transition, just like there were high school coaches who wondered whether Salter could play with the best players. Those misconceptions have fueled Salter to develop her game and to become a multi-talented player who at one time dreamed of being a point guard.
“I always used to want to be a point guard and dribble the ball up and down the court,” Salter said. “When I started growing and developing my size, I noticed I wasn’t going to be (a point guard), but I could always shoot and I could always pass. When I got to that mature stage and I realized I could use this as a weapon, I started stepping out and shooting and working with coaches on my shot and working with the guards. I wanted to be that person who could provide that inside-outside presence because I was always taught that the game started on the inside and it made its way to the outside.
“With that being said, I have always been the type of person who wants to stretch the defense so I can make it that way for my teammates.”
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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