NCAA Basketball: Buffalo star Ronaldo Segu has proven that fit is crucial

Buffalo has taken it step-by-step with Segu

Nowadays, it seems like many high school prospects are worried about the wrong thing, which typically comes back to haunt them later on. A player’s dream of playing for a school like Kentucky should only turn into reality if that school is the perfect fit for them. If it isn’t, well, they will quickly discover that they should have taken more time to evaluate each school that was in the mix for them.

In other words, college basketball is less about trying to play at the highest level and more about finding a school that you believe you can succeed at. Unlike many players, Ronaldo Segu wasn’t focused on choosing a school based on their reputation or their big name, but rather on their ability to help mold him into an elite basketball player.

He didn’t want to put himself in a situation where he would feel pressured to be a high impact player right away (or run the risk of moving down in the rotation and seeing less playing time moving forward), which is why he chose a school that would take things slow with him until he was ready to become a more impactful player.

Step 1 for Segu was being able to enter ball games for a limited amount of time, show that he could be a relentless on-ball defender and attentive off-ball defender, and not be afraid to let it fly when he had opportunities to shoot.

His overall production from his freshman season was nothing to write home about (he averaged 2.1 points, 1.0 assists, and shot 39.7% from the field while playing just 8.7 minutes per game), but because he played his role perfectly and Buffalo lost a few of their veteran guards to graduation in 2019, Jim Whitesell (who was an associate head coach at Buffalo that took over head coaching duties in 2019 after Nate Oats left for Alabama) felt like it was time to give Segu a bigger role in year 2.

As a sophomore, Segu was asked to contribute a little more on the offensive end to help take some pressure off upperclassmen such as Davonta Jordan, Jayvon Graves, and Antwain Johnson, and let’s just say that Segu didn’t have much of a problem giving Whitesell the type of production he needed from him. In 22.6 minutes per game, the 6-foot guard averaged 8.1 points, handed out 2.0 assists, and shot 38.9% from the field, which resulted in him being named the MAC 6th Man of the Year. One major plus in Segu’s game is his natural ability to flow into every move he makes, which is a strength that Whitesell believed he needed to utilize in Segu’s second season of college basketball.

For example, if Segu comes off a ball screen and sees a mismatch that he wants to exploit, he can execute his ridiculously effective hesitation move that many defenders struggle to defend. If his hesitation move (which includes a deadly sidestep with exquisite footwork) doesn’t get the job done like it usually does, Segu can stay poised and snatch the ball back between his legs before taking another dribble or two, smoothly spinning off of his defender, and shooting a relaxed pull-up jumper.

I think that because Segu has so much confidence in his handle, he has the ability to dance on his defenders on the perimeter and control how fast he wants his body to move when he is in attack mode, which is the main reason why each of his side-to-side moves looks so fluid, and it doesn’t look like he is preparing to throw up head-scratching shot after head-scratching shot.

In year 3, Segu was able to build on the success he had the previous season and excel in a starting role for Jim Whitesell. It was evident that Whitesell had no doubt that Segu had gotten to the point where he was ready to take his playmaking to the next level and be a double-figure scorer for the Bulls. Once again, Segu did not disappoint, as he put up 13.3 points per game on 41.6% shooting from the field and 39.8% shooting from three, while also dishing out 4.3 assists in 33.1 minutes per game.

His big-time play helped the Bulls reach the MAC Championship game before falling to Ohio 84-69. It seems like gradually removing the training wheels has allowed Buffalo to transform Segu into a guard that is now a dangerous threat on the offensive end, who should be able to use his offensive creativity and fluidity to have a monstrous senior season.