Dickey Nutt brings nearly 40 years of coaching experience under his belt heading into his second season as an assistant for the Missouri Tigers, making him one of, if not the most seasoned member of head coach Dennis Gates’ staff.

Nutt sat down with PowerMizzou.com during the team’s media day on Monday to talk about MU's incoming freshmen and transfers and how excited the Tigers are heading into the 2023-24 season.

DN: It's been good. I thought the guys, they've done a good job this summer. We got a lot of skill work in and a lot of development in and I think we really improved.

DN: “Well, we have several. You know, if you look at our freshmen, you look at a guy like Trent Pierce, he's like a 6-(foot)-10 guard that can really shoot the ball, one of our better shooters, just a freshman. Jordan Butler, loads of potential, he's 7-foot. Those two guys have really improved since they have arrived on campus. Jordan Butler has certainly been a force inside and just developing every day, so he's doing a good job. If you look at Anthony Robinson, maybe one of the most explosive freshmen that we've seen in long time. He can do it all, he can get to the basket, he's athletic, he's long, he could be one of our better defenders, he shoots the basketball, and from Tallahassee, Fla. So we're really proud of him.

“Then you look at our transfers. You look at a guy like Caleb Grill that came in from Iowa State, I think you're gonna really enjoy watching his game. He's such a hard-nosed player. He could very well be our leading rebounder. But he's certainly a threat anytime he gets the ball anywhere on the floor. When he steps onto that floor, he's in range. And he has an incredible shooting touch, and so we've really been proud of him. You look at a guy like Connor Vanover, he's 7-foot-5, he had a tremendous year at Oral Roberts last year. He started out at University of Arkansas, even before then California. But here's a guy that brings us some inside presence, whether it be, you know, last year he was the second-leading shot blocker in the country. If they had such a stat as 'alterations,' he's a guy that makes a difference defensively for us because he's just so long. I mean, he can just stand up and nearly touch the rim. But he just poses a lot of problems in there because a guy can't just come in and think they're just gonna have a natural layup because he can alter or block a shot. And then you add on top of that, his offensive skill set is off the chart. He passes the ball very well and he shoots the 3 at 7-foot-5. So I think he's gonna create a hard matchup for people. Then you look at a guy like Tamar Bates from University of Indiana that brings us athleticism, toughness, basketball IQ, a left-hand shooter. He's going to be really good for us. John Tonje is injured at the moment, he hadn't been able to practice for a few weeks, but we look forward to him getting back in there. Who else is there?”

DN: “Yeah, hey, the reigning No. 1 JUCO player in the country. Played for John A. Logan last year, won a national title. We're very proud of him. Here's a guy that's very tough. When you take a look at him, you'll see what I'm talking about because of his body, his physique. He's so strong at what he does. He can get to the basket just about anytime he wants to, he shoots the ball with with very accurate range. So we have a lot of depth and we think that will play into our style. Coach Gates has done a marvelous job of putting this group together in such a short period of time. Anytime you add this many newcomers, it's always kind of a learning phase and kind of a period there that it's not going to look especially great. But boy, he's done a really good job putting this team together and these guys, they love him. You know, Coach Gates is just different. And our players realize that and they know it and they love playing for him. And we're looking forward to a good year.”

DN: “I didn't mention him and I tell you, he's kind of been certainly a big addition to our team and especially the way we play. You know, he comes from a program, Campbell University, and was probably going to be picked Preseason Player of the Year in that conference. He decided to leave and so, we're very fortunate that he chose us. He had several choices and he chose us and we have been very pleased with his play. You're gonna love to watch him play because he has such a high basketball IQ, he can handle that basketball, he's probably the most prolific passer that you'll see in the college game. And not to make him out as Michael Jordan just yet, but he can do a lot of things for us. So look for him to be a huge impact to our program. And so, we're very proud of Jesus.”

DN: “Well, obviously when you lose a first-round pick, and then another pro player like Kobe Brown and D'Moi Hodge, naturally, everybody thinks that you're going to maybe take a step back. But I really feel like we have added some pieces to our program and I think we'll play similar in terms of speed and shooting the basketball. But we'll be somewhat different. I think our depth is even more so this year, and so we're able to play more players. And so, the way we play, you know, if you're playing at an all-breakneck speed, it's tough to play more than three or four minutes at a time because you're gonna be winded the way we play. But I think we'll be fun to watch. I think our fans are going to enjoy watching this basketball team because they do some things a little bit better than we did last year. Every last one of us can really dribble, pass and shoot on the offensive end. Now defensively, we're getting better and I think by the time conference season runs around or our first game, I think we're going to be pretty good defensively. The difference, I think, in our team is that we really emphasized this summer — you know, Coach (Gates) did a great job of evaluating our season last year and trying to find the weaknesses that we had to touch on and recover and be better at. But I think rebounding the basketball is going to be much better in our favor this year. Whether it be offensively or defensively rebounding the basketball, and I think our capability of that is going to be good.”

DN: “We feel good. Obviously, not everybody in the voting polls feels that way. But you know, we don't worry about that. We take it one day at a time. Coach Gates has the blueprint to success and we follow his plan. And we're excited about this group because every last one of them — let me give you an example. You know, every Monday morning, we have early morning meetings and we talk about a variety of things. And one of those is academics. And if you look at the 18 players that we have, every player has four or five classes. And you look at that academic sheet, and you may see one C and maybe one B. And the rest of them are all A's. And that just tells you that our young people are here to get a degree first. They're here to take care of their business in the classroom. You know, Coach Gates, he doesn't expect anything less. So you look at that, and I'm telling you, and I can tell you from experience, that when you have that kind of effort in your classroom and production, nine times out of 10, that carries over to the floor. And that's why we're excited about this group, they are eat up with what they're doing. They want to do well, they want to please. And that's why we're excited about this group of young men, because we feel like our fans are gonna really enjoy watching these guys play.”

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