With No Xavier Pinson, LSU Basketball to Rely on Pair of Youngsters in Backcourt

Gaines, Williams to assume the lead ball handling duties against Florida

Will Wade and LSU know they dodged a serious issue after senior guard Xavier Pinson went down with a knee injury against Tennessee. 

After a few hours of sweating bullets, all of the news has come back positive on Pinson's injury, which is officially a grade one MCL sprain. It's also why Wade and the Tigers won't do anything to risk further injury and subsequently will hold Pinson out of Wednesday's game at Florida.

With a "good shot" Pinson could be back in the lineup against Arkansas on Saturday, the Tigers will do whatever is necessary to get Pinson back in the fold as quickly as possible. 

"X is doing great. He was up moving around today, we're gonna hold him out tomorrow, he couldn't play tomorrow," Wade said. "We're not gonna rush him back, I want to make sure he's comfortable in the brace. He's been getting treatment three or four times a day so he's doing everything he can."

With a veteran like Pinson out of the lineup in a hostile environment like Florida, Wade and the Tigers will now be relying on bigger roles for sophomore Eric Gaines and freshman Justice Williams as the primary ball handlers. Gaines has been a primary ball handler when on the floor most of the season but for Williams, who should be a senior in high school right now, Wade is putting a lot of responsibility on his shoulders.

Wade hasn't been afraid to throw Williams into the deep end, giving him his first minutes on the road against Auburn in the SEC opener. With Pinson, Gaines and Brandon Murray commanding much of the attention in the backcourt, Williams hasn't been asked to do as much, something that is likely to change with more responsibilities.

"He plays with great pace," Wade said of Williams. "Very smooth with the ball, doesn't get rattled, is a very good shooter, make some challenge shots. We expect him to step in and play well. We believe in him, he's ready to go and will be much better."

Both Gaines and Williams have spent hours with Wade watching film the last few days, a trend that will continue when the team arrives in Gainesville on Tuesday evening. With plenty of new sets added to better help the Tigers' guards without Pinson, Wade will get a better feel for what the team will be running when the trio sit down again and go over the gameplan.

"We're not changing anything that we do. Those guys are here for a reason, they're really good players, they definitely bring some different strengths to the table," Wade said. "We're gonna play to those strengths and we're gonna go through some of the stuff they don't feel comfortable running, we'll scratch."