ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y. — His tip-off time came at approximately 10 p.m., after the last fan had departed and the locker room emptied from the actual game that had taken place just an hour earlier.
Having to sit a year due to NCAA transfer rules, Bobby Planutis was forced to watch from the sideline as St. Bonaventure embarked upon one of the most redemptive campaigns in program history last winter.
And so, the 6-foot-8 forward staged his “games” in other ways.
Planutis was almost always in the Reilly Center after Bona home games, shooting, typically by himself, into the wee hours of the night. Practice was his version of the 2018-19 season. He’s relished the summer pickup contests that might otherwise be viewed as mundane.
This is how he’s dealt with a now 17-month hiatus between Division I games, the approach he’s taken to remain positive — to stay sharp — during a sometimes-challenging transition.
“I’ve played my whole life, and to get to practice and not be able to play …,” he said.
“But when I came in, Coach (Mark Schmidt) was saying, ‘you’ve got to treat practices like your games, so that’s what I was doing. My games were 3-4 times a week. (Working) on my game and my body in the weight room, that was my main focus. They said, ‘really, just try to focus on yourself for that year.’”
To this point, there have only been glimpses into the kind of player the Bonnies are getting in Planutis.
But those have been encouraging.
The Hazleton, Pa., native shot an impressive 49 percent from 3-point range (33-of-67) as a freshman at Mount St. Mary’s in 2017-18. Though it’s largely been in half-speed pickup games, he’s demonstrated not only a sound stroke, but the ability to pass, put the ball on the floor and take defenders off the dribble. He’s excited fans with the occasional head-turning acrobatic dunk on Twitter.
In those ways, he’s as intriguing as any of the (current) six newcomers on the Bona roster.
Adding to the allure is his year. Planutis is part of an already stellar sophomore class that includes Kyle Lofton, Dominick Welch and Osun Osunniyi and also welcomes junior college transfer Jaren English, a group that has Bona followers salivating over the prospects for this winter and beyond.
His hope is to be one of the pieces the program needs to continue making a regular run at the Atlantic 10 title.
“I just see myself doing whatever role Coach expects from me,” he said. “I think everybody knows that I can shoot the ball pretty well, so I would imagine that would be one of my roles. And then, being a forward, just being able to rebound and defend and just help the team out in whatever way I can.”
Does he figure to see more time at small or power forward?
“I’m not really sure,” Planutis admitted. “I don’t even look at it as that, labeling myself as a 3 or a 4. I just try to go out there and help the team win — whether that’s shooting 3s, posting up, rebounding. I feel like I can do a little bit of everything, so really wherever you put me, I feel like I can succeed.”
Bona, inarguably, has been blessed with an abundance of talent in recent years, players as gifted as Jaylen Adams and unique as Osunniyi.
It has another playmaking point guard in Lofton, a budding sharp-shooter in Welch and a standout defensive player in its 6-foot-9 center. It hasn’t had a guy quite like Planutis, however … at least on paper.
And that only adds to the intrigue.
Here’s a 6-foot-8 faceup player who can shoot, create for others and could wind up being one of this team’s better ball-handlers. Making the jump from the low-major Northeast Conference, Planutis still has prove himself at the A-10 level, but the potential seems to be there.
And if his skill translates, he could bring a component even some of the strong Bona teams of the last five years haven’t had.
“I can be a mix of things,” he said, “because I think I can handle the ball pretty well, and fans and people watching the game will be surprised how I can actually handle it and move. I think (my game) will be more of everything than just one specific thing, or just standing in the corner shooting 3s.”
Until he can finally do it for real on Nov. 5 against Ohio, Planutis will continue to find his competitive fix where he can.
Next week, the former Brighton Academy (Maine) prep star will follow in the footsteps of a handful of Bonnies before him and take part in a Global Sports Academy European exhibition tour.
It will be his first real action since playing in the Northeast Conference Tournament in February of 2018.
“I’m happy to just be playing a real game,” he said. “Other than playing pickup, I haven’t played a game in a year-and-a-half. I don’t know if there will be a crowd, but it’s definitely different when you’re playing a game with a crowd … where there’s a referee and a scoreboard and a winner.”
Even in his warm-up gear on the bench, Planutis was a big part of last year’s team, spending that time preparing for his debut campaign while supporting a group that came oh-so-close to another berth in the NCAA Tournament.
All of those shots he put up after the RC had officially cleared out on game night?
They were for this: the opportunity to play alongside the up-and-coming core that remains.
“I think it’s going to be real fun, because I didn’t get to play with those guys that much (last year) … I was always practicing against them,” he said. “But once the season ended and we started playing pick up … those guys are real fun to play with.
“I think we’re going to have a good group, and we’re going to be fun to watch.”
(J.P. Butler, Bradford Publishing group sports editor, can be reached at jbutler@oleantimesherald.com)
