Basketball season came to an official beginning today as Xavier had its first practice of the year. Notable through his absent was talented but enigmatic senior forward Zach Freemantle. Information beyond this is extremely sparse, but it's hard to interpret this as a good sign for Xavier or Freemantle.
There were rumblings around the team last spring that Freemantle and head coach Travis Steele had reached the end of their ability to coexist before the season had run down, but ultimately Steele's departure settled that issue. Freemantle had the opportunity to seek minutes elsewhere - doubtless he would have been in high demand - but instead decided to stay put and play under Sean Miller.