Confidence comes in all ways, in all corners. A bit here. A bit there.
It can be incremental, bolstered by moments that alter the trajectory slightly. Stacked on top of each other, they become something bigger.
That’s where Aztecs basketball player Miles Heide finds himself.
He’s just a little bit bigger, up to 230 pounds on his 6-foot-10 frame. That has positioned him to better bang and hold his ground in the paint.
He’s just a little more emboldened to shoot from long range and expand the court. That is no small thing for a player who was so tall and post-shackled in high school that he did not shoot a real in-game jump shot until his senior season.
He’s just a little older.
Stack, stack, stack.
“Just maturity,” said Heide, a sophomore, when asked about his confidence ticking up. “I understand the game. The game has slowed down and I can see things more often. It doesn’t feel as fast-paced as before, and I understand what’s going on.
“My first regular-season game was (Cal State) Fullerton (last season). It was going so fast for me. It was a sold-out crowd. It’s definitely slowed down. I’ve slowed down when I have the ball.”
A door has opened after the departure of paint monster Jaedon LeDee. It opened, too, for Magoon Gwath, Jared Coleman-Jones and Pharaoh Compton.
Can an infusion of confidence propel Heide forward? Can it help him stand out in the pack?
In a preseason scrimmage against UCLA, Heide completed an and-one dunk with 53 seconds to play in a one-point game the Aztecs won. A snapshot of the type of moments that are possible?
“Afterwards, that was definitely a thought that went through my head,” Heide said. “Hey, keep going.”
Heide was almost always the tallest player on the court in North Bend, Wash., located 30 miles east of Seattle.
That meant he was not pushed to find more in his game. He parked under the hoop and stayed there. That made that first jump shot, well, interesting.
“It was rough,” Heide said.
Eventually, he explored more of the court and found his stroke.
“I took like 12 or 15 3s, not many,” Heide said. “But they said I was like 40 percent, so I’ll take that.”
Though Heide is 0-for-3 from 3-point range this season, it’s an indication that he will not be afraid to shoot it when the opportunity arrives.
Under coach Brian Dutcher, Aztecs players are allowed to stretch their games offensively, as long as they play defense like every possession will decide an NCAA Tournament berth.
“It’s been a big thing for me to constantly get shots up and try to expand the court,” Heide said. “I’m shooting in practice with confidence.”
There’s that word. Confidence.
That might be the single biggest factor in unlocking Heide’s game at the college level. Coleman-Jones, Gwath and Compton are averaging more minutes early, but he has done things that were noticed.
Heide finished with five rebounds during an exhibition against Cal State San Marcos and piled up eight boards, six on the offensive end, in Tuesday’s win over Occidental. Add in the moment against UCLA and there are breadcrumbs.
Heide also has learned from the Aztecs who played before him, with the bruises to show for it. He faced LeDee in practice, picking up lessons on each collision with the Karl Malone Award winner as the nation’s top power forward.
“You can’t really guard him, to be honest,” Heide said. “He can shoot, he’s got a big enough body to bully-ball you. You have to try to slow him down. But it’s been great to see how he approaches the game and working out. He’s in the gym all the time.
“That was a big motivation for me. Don’t stop grinding.”
To that end, Heide put on “10-ish” pounds.
“Just be able to move guys easier in the paint,” he said. “More physicality.”
Heide also soaked up knowledge from former Aztecs player Aguek Arop, now a member of Dutcher’s staff as the director of player development.
An apt title, given his work with Heide.
“We have AG on our staff as a coach and that’s a great help for me,” Heide said. “He’s probably one of the best defenders the program has had. That part is crucial to me.”
One principle Arop has reinforced is something the Aztecs call “6 inches and bang.” You stay breath-smelling close to an offensive player and make to rattle rhythm and knock them off comfortable spots.
It’s the type of work that makes the Aztecs defensive pests of the highest order. It’s the type of work that can get players like Heide minutes.
“Dutcher told us, being a post is probably the hardest thing to do on the defense,” Heide said. “You’ve got to see everything, you’ve got to talk, you’ve got to be help-side.
“AG has helped me with that. I’ve gotten better.”
Stack, stack, stack.
