After decades of demanding high effort and preaching fundamentals every fall, California coach Mike Montgomery still gets a kick out of preparing college players for the rigors of a basketball season.
Even when that means the challenge of relying on only six regulars in his young rotation, as was the case last season. He figures the Golden Bears should have slightly more depth this time around, though it might only be seven or eight guys.
Still, Cal is expected to be among the top teams in the Pac-12 with four starters back.
''I always enjoy putting together the puzzle and trying to figure out how it fits,'' said Montgomery, who coached rival Stanford for 18 years then spent a short stint with the Golden State Warriors before he wound up at Cal.
''As long as I can talk with kids and have some kind of a commonsense basis for what we do, I'm fine. Recruiting gets harder to do that. That's why you have young assistants who can go out and do that.''
Like his son, John. The younger Montgomery was promoted to assistant coach this season after three years as director of basketball operations.
Over the past week, Mike Montgomery has been relying on his assistants even more than usual. He was away from the team for a short recovery period following a surgical procedure Oct. 19.
Assistants Travis DeCuire and Jay John ran the team during his absence. On Monday, Montgomery received a clean bill of health from doctors and was cleared to return to his regular duties.
A couple of key faces will be counted upon to carry the leadership load for Cal on and off the court.
Returning leading scorer Jorge Gutierrez and fifth-year forward Harper Kamp will anchor a group that went 18-15 last season and reached the second round of the National Invitation Tournament - along with reigning conference Freshman of the Year Allen Crabbe.
''We have more experience and depth,'' Gutierrez said.
Gutierrez scored 14.6 points per game as a junior, inspiring his teammates with hustle plays on both ends of the floor. Kamp has something to prove in his final season. The 6-foot-8, 245-pound forward is healthy after returning last season following a year spent rehabbing his surgically repaired knee.
''The key is Harper as far as big guys,'' Montgomery said, noting he will have to closely monitor Kamp's workload. ''He's such a smart player and really ties the whole thing together, so we're really hoping that knee allows him to have a productive year, for his sake as well as our sake. He's worked so hard. It just doesn't seem fair for him not to be able to be productive and people to see how good he is.''
Kamp averaged 14.2 points last season, so he, Gutierrez and Crabbe give Cal three capable scoring threats. The 6-6 Crabbe scored 13.4 points and grabbed 5.3 rebounds last season, making key adjustments along the way as opponents began putting more emphasis on stopping him. His 62 3-pointers set a school freshman record and he shot 40 percent from long range.
''Crabbe's still a sophomore but Allen has made great strides,'' Montgomery said. ''He's much more aggressive, he's much stronger, he's much more confident in himself.''
Junior guard Brandon Smith also returns and could take on a key role after surprising everybody last season with his poise and improvement.
Montgomery enters his fourth season with the Bears, who in his first year won 22 games and placed third in the Pac-10 - five spots higher than they were picked to finish. Cal shared the conference title in his second season, the first for the program in 50 years.
Montgomery knows how to get the most out of his guys - his first year providing quite the example.
''You've got guys that are veterans and should know how to lead. That should help everybody else. Last year we had to start two freshmen and that was really problematic. That won't be the case this year.''
His current group toured Scandinavia for 10 days in August. Montgomery said that helped put the Bears ahead as they began fall practices this month - both in terms of players getting to know each other and learning the system.
''The trip to Europe was great for us,'' Gutierrez said. ''We bonded and became more of a family.''
In the new Pac-12 structure, one trip the Bears won't be making: to the Arizona desert.
''Which is too bad. I always liked going to Arizona,'' Montgomery said.
During his successful Stanford days, Montgomery led the Cardinal to the second round of the NCAA tournament for 10 straight seasons before leaving for the NBA. He's now doing everything to build a consistent winner in Berkeley.
His young players will be tested right away.
''When things start going bad, what happens to some of these guys? Do they panic without the experience of knowing how to win?'' Montgomery said. ''That's why I say I don't know if I have nine (players), but I have more than I had.''
