Dayton basketball: Jordan Derkack back at practice for Flyers after offseason surgery

In a drill Wednesday at practice, Dayton Flyers players dove for loose balls, one after the other, sliding on the Cronin Center court as coach Anthony Grant watched.

These were safe dives in that the coaches would roll the ball toward halfcourt, and no other players would be around as a player jumped on the ball.

Even guard Jordan Derkack, the Rutgers transfer who missed most of the summer practices after undergoing foot surgery in June, took part in the drill. He was a full participant in the 15 minutes of practice Grant allowed local media to watch.

Derkack’s return is important for a team with 12 scholarship players and eight newcomers. He’s one of the most experienced players, having appeared in 97 games over the past three seasons (two at Merrimack and one at Rutgers).

ExplorePHOTOS: Dayton practices at the Cronin Center

Two players did not participate in the practice. Freshman guard Jaron McKie is sidelined with an unspecified injury. Bryce Heard, a sophomore guard who played at North Carolina State last year, said he has missed the last two weeks of practice with an injury but will return to the court Monday.

Credit: David Jablonski

As of Wednesday, Dayton had 11 days to get ready for its first preseason game at 2 p.m. Oct. 19 against Penn State at UD Arena.

“We always get excited this time of year with the season just a few weeks away,” Grant said. “I think the guys are really excited just to be able to come together and compete and get better, and then obviously, as we get closer to outside competition, that’s always one of the exciting things that you look forward to.”

Even though practices started in late September, the work has been ongoing since the players arrived on campus in early June. The amount of practice time teams get has changed dramatically since Grant’s coaching career began in the 1990s.

“I think it’s probably good and bad because, physically, you need that time away,” Grant said. “We’re able to spend time with the guys in the summer. They’re able to be in the weight room. They’re able to work together on the court. It helps you with team chemistry. It helps you with learning each other, learning our system, us learning them, how to utilize them best, but at the same time, physically, sometimes I wonder if they’d be better off just resting their bodies, to be honest.”