Before the start of the season, Stanford men’s basketball center Maxime Raynaud spoke to members of the media about how practice has been going and what he hopes to accomplish during his senior year.
VIDEO: Stanford C Maxime Raynaud looks to bring senior leadership
Practice has been going pretty well for him. He thinks the guys are playing hard and really trying to create an identity around defense and toughness. It’s been going well.
With a new head coach in Kyle Smith, Raynaud feels like all their principles are changing. They’re still emphasizing the same things in rebounding, defending, and taking care of the ball, but where it’s going to be different is their help defense and offensively, playing with a little more freedom. Not having as many plays as last year. Just playing around the concepts.
What Raynaud has most been working on is his face up and midrange game. Midrange from the elbow and short corner. And then also, continuing to be sound around the rim and from three-point range. That’s what he was doing well last year, so just trying to add another layer to his game.
On “Nerd Ball”, the system that Kyle Smith runs, Raynaud said it’s just a really objective way of telling you how you did. That’s what he really likes about the staff. They have film/stat sessions that he finds to be really helpful. Just casting aside emotions and objectively looking at what you need to do to improve. Because they take so many stats, it just flattens out and you know exactly what you need to do. He likes how objective it is. Being a STEM guy, he loves it.
When asked about the differences between Kyle Smith and former head coach Jerod Haase, Raynaud commented that it can take some time for a new staff to get their bearings around Stanford. He could tell that it takes some time to get used to all of it both in terms of campus norms and the academic side. But he thinks there are a lot of similarities in terms of how much they care about their players and how much they want to win. That’s what he feels really matters at the end of the day.
A big thing Raynaud wants to accomplish this season is become the best leader he can be. He just wants to bring as much energy and leadership as possible and then let the rest take care of itself. He doesn’t care about preseason accolades. He just wants his team to be good.
On his time spent with the French national team and practicing against guys like Victor Wembanyama and Rudy Gobert, Raynaud said those guys have helped him grow his game a lot. He said being professionals, they don’t miss, they don’t turn the ball over, and they play extremely hard. He said their work ethic is off the charts. He thinks those are things that elevates your standard naturally. He recognizes he can’t expect as much from a college freshman as an NBA veteran, but he tries to elevate what he can control. He said playing against them has made him better.
Regarding the ACC, Raynaud said coming from France, they aren’t as familiar with the different conferences, but North Carolina and Duke he is well aware of. He’s looking forward to playing Duke because of their teammate Jaylen Blakes who came from there. Raynaud is also looking forward to playing NC State because former teammate Michael O’Connell is now there and also Virginia because one of their managers is from there. So those are three programs he’s excited to face this season.
Raynaud has been impressed with all the transfers on the team. Oziyah Sellers has impressed him with his shooting, Chisom Okpara has impressed him with his passing, and then Jaylen Blakes with his defense. Those guys have stood out the most. Off the court, Cole Kastner has been a leader. Even though he previously played lacrosse, he brings national championship experience in that sport and knows how to work hard. His work ethic and personality has been a huge plus.
Takeaways: The biggest thing I take from this interview is that Raynaud is excited about being the feature player on this Stanford team. He’s embraced his leadership role and is looking forward to the responsibilities that come with that.
Secondly, his comments on “Nerd Ball” were very positive and in line with what others have said. He loves the feedback and the focus on statistics to help you become the best you can be. He’s a mathematics major, so he obviously is extremely receptive to that.
Finally, it was cool to learn more about how his experience with the French national team has helped him improve as a player. He has a good relationship with Gobert and Wembanyama. Getting the chance to play with them and develop a relationship has helped Raynaud grow a lot and improve his game. That’s the kind of opportunity that few college players get.
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