Former four-star recruit Kyle Kuzma was trotting down the baseline during a recent game when, with a sudden burst of athleticism, he glided from the 3-point line to the basket in an instant. He caught a lob and threw down a one-handed slam over a hapless defender.
No cheer went up from a sea of red in the Huntsman Center, and none of Kuzma’s Ute teammates were celebrating from the bench. His big play came and went quietly, unnoticed by Utah faithful.
Kuzma’s first appearance for a Utah team while at the U isn’t playing for the Runnin’ Utes. Rather, the freshman is making his debut in HPER playing in an intramural league.
Hailing from Flint, Mich., Kuzma opted to skip his last year of prep school eligibility and enroll at the U early. He received partial qualifier status from the NCAA, meaning he can attend school but can’t participate in practices or games. Kuzma is a regular at Utah’s pre-practice shootarounds, but once the coaches come onto the court, he moves to the sidelines, only able to watch and wait for his opportunity to play for head coach Larry Krystkowiak next year.
“You can only do so much with drills and stuff, so it’s beneficial for me to get up and down again,” Kuzma said.
The skilled forward turned down offers from schools such as UConn, Memphis and hometown Michigan State to come to Utah. He came to Salt Lake City early to get acclimated to the school, the state and the program. Partial qualifiers such as Kuzma are not a huge rarity in the NCAA, but a consensus Top 150 recruit playing intramural ball may seem out of place to some.
The official University of Utah Intramural Participation Handbook states that “athletic team members who participate (in games or practice) with the intercollegiate team, during or after the first scheduled game of the athletic season, are ineligible to participate in that Intramural sport or any related sport for that academic year.”
In other words, there’s no rule saying Kuzma is ineligible to play intramurals. For the most part, his participation has not only been tolerated, but welcomed by fellow students who participate.
“It’s kind of fun,” said Nick O’Cain, a freshman in exercise and sport science. “I like it. You get to see the future of the program, and you’re playing with him. You’re going to be seeing him on TV next year, and I’m playing on the court with him today. It’s a cool feeling. Intramurals are just a fun time where buddies are playing together. He’s just like everyone else. He’s just coming out here to play for fun with all his buds.”
O’Cain’s thoughts represent the majority of the players who are playing against Kuzma, whose team, Hawt Karl, is dominating the competition. Primarily, it’s his future teammates on Krystkowiak’s club who are most against it.
“It’s not fair,” sophomore Dakarai Tucker said. “It’s not helping him any.”
Princeton Onwas agreed but said it was all just for a good time.
“It’s like a man playing against boys,” Onwas said. “He’s just out there having fun.”
Kuzma said Onwas, Tucker and others on the current Ute roster do give him a hard time about playing intramurals, but it’s all in light-hearted mockery.
To his credit, Kuzma isn’t using the league to put up ridiculous, video game-esque numbers. He’s shown to be a willing passer, and except for some moments when his skill is on obvious display, he isn’t looking to show anyone up.
“The competition isn’t all that great, but I can still work on my basketball IQ,” he said. “I know I can score a lot, but my main focus is working on getting smarter on the court.”
Krystkowiak has no problem with his future player going up against some of his student peers.
“He’s a hopper, and he loves basketball,” Krystkowiak said. “He’s a student here. He’s in the [Huntsman Center] gym on his own shooting at midnight many nights, so I have no problem with him going out competing and getting lathered up and sweating a little bit.”
Kuzma is not the only one who may stand to benefit from participating in intramurals. Boz Echivarre, a senior majoring in exercise and sport science and the intramural sports supervisor, feels the Utah basketball program may see an increase in student fan support because of it.
“Other students get to know him and get to play against him,” Echivarre said. “I think it will make it more likely for them to go to games next year to see him on the big stage.”
Until then, Kuzma will be on the floor in HPER honing his skills.
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