‘Butler way’ eases loss of Holtmann to OSU

NEW YORK — All Tyler Wideman really wanted to do was dance.

It was early June, and the Butler forward had endured a drive through the mountains for former teammate Tyler Lewis’ wedding in North Carolina with his phone in “do not disturb” mode. Upon his arrival, Wideman discovered that his phone had been “lit up” with texts, missed phone calls and a voicemail from Chris Holtmann.

It could only mean one thing: Holtmann had taken the Ohio State job. It was a move the senior-to-be said he fully understood and supported, but it was one that lingered throughout the wedding.

“Since it was a basketball wedding in a way, they knew about the Butler stuff so they were going to ask me questions,” Wideman said Wednesday at Big East media day at Madison Square Garden.

Four months have passed since that weekend, and the Bulldogs were picked to finish eighth in the Big East by the coaches under first-year coach LaVall Jordan. After six years as a Michigan assistant and one as coach at Milwaukee, Jordan became the latest Butler alumnus to coach the program.

He picked Holtmann’s brain while on the summer recruiting trail to get a feel for his roster, which has six returning lettermen, including three starters. The Bulldogs had the benefit of a summer trip to Spain to work on acclimating to one another, which helped them get over the uncertainty of the coaching change.

“It was kind of difficult,” sophomore guard Kamar Baldwin said. “It all came fast. Listening (during the search), you’d hear rumors, not know what’s going on, but we adapted to the change well. It didn’t take long for us.”

Jordan said he’s ready to get things underway.

“To lead a program that you were part of as a player, that you have so much invested in, that you’ve kept up with for so long from a distance … (it’s special),” he said. “We believe that. We preach that. We live that. It’s a big responsibility, but we are thrilled to be at Butler.”

He’ll have some help as well. Former Ohio State coach Thad Matta, whose firing in June prompted the coaching carousel to spin, was recently at practice, a situation Jordan said he hopes to see continue. Matta, himself a former Butler player and coach, has relocated to the Indianapolis area and his oldest daughter is a freshman there.

“I think every coach that’s come through here keeps a connection, which I don’t know if that’s the case everywhere in the country,” Jordan said. “There’s a feeling at Butler that it’s a family and everybody truly cares about the best for Butler.”

Baldwin and Wideman said they have kept in occasional communication with Holtmann and his assistant coaches, all of whom moved with him to Ohio State. This season’s team hopes to be a little bit faster than those Holtmann oversaw, Jordan said, but will otherwise share the same gritty characteristics the program prides itself on.

“Butler’s unique because it’s not really about my imprint,” Jordan said. “It’s about the ‘Butler way’ and being consistent in what we do. There’s some tweaks maybe offensively or terminology, but in terms of who we are and what we do and our style of play, to a degree, it’s Butler. I grew up in it and was nurtured in it and believe in it and carried it with me to other destinations.”