Eemeli “E.Y.” Yalaho, WSU’s 6-foot-8 Texas Tech-transfer forward from Finland, has been to Spain, but not London.
His advice for teammates new to Europe?
“Get ready to try new stuff and be excited about it,” Yalaho said.
Emmanuel Ugbo, the 6-foot-8 Boise State transfer from the Netherlands, has been to Spain, but not the two cities that WSU will visit.
Ugbo was sure to advise his teammates to tell their banks they would be traveling so that their cards would not get declined and to keep their phones on airplane mode to avoid coming back to a big bill.
WSU freshman Adrià Rodriguez will explore England with Wazzu before joining the Spanish National B Team for an exhibition tournament as his country prepares for the next FIBA-hosted Eurobasket.
“Even though we’re really close already, we’ve only known each other for six weeks,” guard Parker Gerrits said. “To hang out outside of basketball and tackle something that not a lot of people get to do is pretty exciting.”
Getting to know teammates
As the veteran in the room by virtue of WSU experience, third-year Coug Gerrits has taken the lead in introducing his new teammates to Pullman.
“Most people don’t know about Pullman coming into it, and you gotta show them around town, show them where the good food spots are. That’s almost more important than the basketball aspect,” Gerrits said. “Making those guys feel comfortable and feel like a family aspect as soon as they walk through the door.”
Gerrits said the team watched the F1 movie together and has spent plenty of time getting dinners at local establishments such as Cougar Country and South Fork.
“We mesh really well together, especially off the floor,” Gerrits said. “We’re all sitting together at dinner, we’re all talking, we’re all laughing, our phones are down. So it’s been a lot of fun to just hang out with them and learn about them.”
A promise of player development
Ugbo said he is familiar with Riley’s player development resume and saw how the coaching staff helped guys at Eastern Washington.
While the team watched the NBA draft together, they saw Cedric Coward, an alum of Riley’s program, was selected No. 11 overall.
“I’ve seen the process and the progress for those guys, and I know I can go through the same trajectory,” Ugbo said. “I trust the coaches and I always come in to work hard. So I know I’ll get better eventually.”
Yalaho has done his homework on his new coaches, too.
“I’m very versatile. I can do a lot of different things. I can shoot, pass,” Yalaho said. “(Riley) brings out the strength of players, and I feel like I can fit his style very well.”
Riley said Ugbo and Yalaho fit the versatile, physical mold that he and his staff have coached in the past and wanted to recruit this past spring.
“Everyone’s got a good understanding of basketball. They’re all gym rats,” Riley said. “It’s been crazy just to see the amount of time the guys (have) been in the gym.
“We got guys from all over the world, all over the country, and it’s cool to see that common theme really be able to unite them.”
Taylor can be reached at 208-848-2268, staylor@lmtribune.com, or on X or Instagram @Sam_C_Taylor.