Ty Charles' status, other news and notes from SFA basketball

William R. Johnson Coliseum was silent. It was the morning after a road loss to Sam Houston State back in February as I sat alongside Stephen F. Austin assistant coach Wade Mason. The white noise of fans and cool air in the building made for a sleepy atmosphere as the former Tulane guard explained everything from basketball philosophy to his experience growing up on the streets of New Orleans.

"You know, we're in the race," he said, referring to the battle for the Southland Conference title. "In my mind, that puts us three years ahead of where we should be."

Expectations were high when head coach Kyle Keller was hired the previous April. Armed with veteran talent and an exceptional staff, his predecessor, Brad Underwood, had turned SFA from a feel-good story to league bully in just three years. When Keller made his official coaching debut at Kentucky, expectations had only swelled. Few recognized exactly how raw his team was. Talented, for the most part, but as green as the pine trees scattered across campus.

By the time I sat down with Coach Mason, the SFA fan base was a bit dejected. A tough loss in a hostile environment to a team the Lumberjacks had virtually owned for the better part of a decade was demoralizing for most. Still, there wasn't a hint of anxiety on Mason's face. "It's a process," he said. "We're ahead of schedule."

The season would end with a missed opportunity to claim the title when SFA was upset by Northwestern State at home in the final week. But a year more experienced, reloaded with fresh talent, and entering the fall semester as the heavy Southland Conference favorites, the Lumberjacks are looking to regain their seat on the national stage.

A year early in most cases, perhaps, if you were to ask Wade Mason. Just on schedule, though, with the recruiting pedigree of Keller's staff. As June turns to July, here is the latest from William R. Johnson Coliseum:

Ty Charles will be spending the summer rehabbing -

The player many call the Lumberjacks' emotional leader has battled the injury bug almost constantly since he broke onto the scene as a freshman. Now entering his senior year, after a campaign that saw recurring shoulder issues, a broken hand, and a turned ankle, Charles will be spending the summer and much of the fall rehabbing from surgery, sources have told The Sawmill.

The shoulder, which has caused issues since that freshman year, was monitored closely after the season and definitive recovery was in doubt. Charles elected to have the surgery, one that will cost him the majority of offseason workouts, but one that will hopefully put to bed the nagging problems that have often limited the otherwise potentially dominant small forward.

Sources expect Charles to be practice-ready by mid October. That would give him a few weeks to work into team drills and become accustomed to playing with newcomers before SFA opens the season at Longwood on November 11th.

Offense is going to change significantly in 2017-18 -

After a few months to review the product a year ago, SFA will be altering their offensive scheme. Basic principles will likely remain, but the emphasis on post-to-post scoring, using a high-low set, will no longer be the basic package. It will likely be mixed in with other looks, but according head coach Kyle Keller, the current roster has strengths that would go untapped if that again becomes the focus.

"I think with our current team, that would not maximize our best players," Keller told The Sawmill.

Read between the lines: post-to-post was seen as the best option on a slower team that lacked play from a true point guard. The 2017-18 version of this team has freshman Cameron Mack, the probable starter (at least by mid-season), John Comeaux, and a more experienced Aaron Augustin.

Speed and shooting is the big emphasis for this new team. It's amazing what adding a few player-makers can do.

Led by TJ Holyfield, the team is "light years" ahead of where they were this time last year -

Keller is not shy about the progress he has seen from the team this offseason. "They're faster, smarter," and "better," he says. Of the newcomers, only Comeaux is already on campus, but the growth from the returning players has been exceptional.

TJ Holyfield appears to lead that group. "Our best player," Keller says. "A real dude." Others in the program have described him as the hardest working, the team leader, dominant.

Ivan Canete, who shot lights out in the early portion of the season before going cold late, has retooled his shot this offseason and appears to be back on track. Kevon Harris, who is anticipated to to play a bigger role this season as a sophomore, has high expectations from the staff.

There is obviously a long way to go until meaningful games are played. As this team hits the mid-way point of the summer, though, it is obvious, even without the new blood expected to arrive soon, that they have taken a few steps forward.

The schedule is beginning to take form -

To be clear, nothing has been formally announced. That said, here is a random *wink* list of DI schools that have basketball programs:

Longwood, Missouri, LSU, Mississippi State, Florida A&M, North Dakota State, Louisiana-Monroe, Louisiana Tech, Rice.

The 2017-18 roster is almost certainly set -

I don't like being wrong and, when I am, I typically wait until the last second possible to admit it. So here goes: when I declared as Fact that at least one more 2017-18 contributor would join this team before the season, it was a bit premature. The Lumberjacks had their eyes set on completing this team with a graduate transfer, and for a multitude of reasons, will likely not head down that path this year.

For starters, scholarship counts were an issue. Early in the spring, it was possible to make difficult changes to make room for an addition. As the summer has now arrived and players are making plans, other movement is very much unlikely.

Technically, graduate transfers have up until the second week of class to enroll. This program has no intention of waiting that long with a full scholarship count.

The current roster was always good enough to win, even if improvement could have been made with a true center. That current roster will almost definitely be the roster when this team tips off in four months.

Keller's staff continues to do what they do best: recruit -

Yesterday made the tenth 2018 visit of this offseason for high school recruits. With three spots open, and up to four summer signings likely, the staff of Keller, Mason, Jeremy Cox, and Desmond Haymon are hot on the trail of several talented future pieces.

Each one of the players behind those ten visits will be profiled on the site over the next two weeks - so make sure you visit frequently.

Don't leave any questions unanswered -

Have any questions for our staff? Be sure to hit us up on Twitter at @SFASawmill:

And finally:

Us too, Cecily. Us too.