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In only one season, Myles Rice galvanized the Washington State men’s basketball program with both his character and play.
He has inspired the Cougars by overcoming Hodgkin's Lymphoma. He has led Washington State to its first NCAA tournament appearance since 2008 by securing a resume worthy of winning the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year award. And he has invoked confidence in the Cougars’ potential by praying for a Final Four berth.
Rice hardly views his job as finished, though. First, Rice hopes to back up his optimism with actions by leading Washington State in the Pac-12 tournament, with its first game taking place on Thursday against either Stanford or Cal in Las Vegas. Secondly, Rice has no plans to declare himself eligible for the NBA Draft even if he performs strongly in both the Pac-12 and NCAA tournaments.
“As of right now, I have no thought process with leaving or doing anything after this year,” Rice told Sportskeeda. “I just want to come back and play again in college ball and keep ironing my craft and making sure that I can be the best player that I possibly can.”
Safe to say then that Rice will definitively stay with Washington State for his sophomore season?
“100 percent,” Rice said.
Rice spoke to Sportskeeda on other topics, too. That included how he overcame his cancer as well as how his parents, coach Kyle Smith, and teammates supported him. Rice explained how he has felt inspired by how USC freshman Bronny James recovered from a cardiac arrest and how Iowa senior Caitlin Clark has shattered numerous records. And Rice shared which NBA players have influenced his game as well
Editor’s note: The following one-on-one conversation has been edited and condensed.
How do you put into context what this season means to you with the team making the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2008, winning Pac-12 Freshman of the Year, and overcoming cancer?
Rice: “It just goes back not just to myself, but all of the work that the coaching staff puts in and that my teammates put in. Everybody is a part of this process. We all buy in together to help one another. That way, we’re able to be in a positive headspace and mindspace to go out there and do what we need to do for every game, every day. It’s not just about the game of basketball, but overall life. Being together on and off the court helps us. That’s how I sum all of that together.”
How about you personally with you putting in the work? What are the things you did that you thought were helpful with your game and overcoming the adversity you faced with your health?
Rice: “Just putting in countless hours with my trainer and my dad. Just making sure that all my shot mechanics stay the same and my IQ for the game is always increasing. I had to get back in shape during this past offseason because it had been a minute since I ran up and down. But just staying true to the process and not worrying about the end result.
"It’s more so about being in love with everything that’s been going on within the journey, and not just too much focus on the end goal.”
When you first heard about your health scare, what do you remember how you processed it at the time?
Rice: “A lot of things start racing through your head. But my parents kept me in a good headspace. They told me this is something that we have to get through. That’s what we did. Without them and the grace of God to give me the energy and will to go out there and just be a lightbulb not only for my teammates, but for the whole Pullman community and everybody that was supporting me.
"When you hear cancer, you automatically think about the best and the worst and just having family members that have been on both sides of the spectrum with surviving it and not surviving it."
It’s something that you never really sit back and get a chance to think about until you have time. But I’m super grateful that I was able to do that.”
You gave a shout-out to your parents. Can you give a peek behind the curtain on what things they did to help you get through all of this?
Rice: “They were just being themselves and being loving parents as they normally would be with their relationship with their son and making sure he is okay and staying in a positive headspace and attacking this thing with a great mindset. With the power of God and the power of love, we’ll be able to get through anything. They were always there supporting me and helping me every step of the way.”
What about Coach Smith and your teammates? What did they do to help you through all of this?
Rice: “They would say that I was being strong for them. But they were actually being strong for me. They were able to treat me as if I was still normal and not going through what I was going through and still showing me love. They were keeping me involved at practice.
"Coach Smith supported me and has been behind me since day one ever since he recruited me. Having him and the rest of the coaching staff behind me through this tough time was nothing I could ever imagine or really ask for. "
But they stuck with me no matter what. I appreciate Coach so much for that.”
Coach Smith just won Pac-12 Coach of the Year. How have you seen him manage you and the group to ensure the success you’ve had this season?
Rice: “Just banding together and believing in one another. We’re being present and not looking too far ahead to the future. We’re keeping the main thing the main thing.
"We all have a story where we can have that chip on our shoulder. But it makes it even better when all of us can band together and make those small chips into one big chip so we can play with that tenacity and edge. "
Those are some of the things that he preaches to us no matter what through the good times and the bad times. That’s how I think that’s how we got to where we are today.”
What did it mean to you to win Pac-12 Freshman of the Year?
Rice: “It’s a testament to my work and everything that I put in this season. I would like to go out and say that individual awards don’t really mean anything.
"It is nice to have a little recognition for the work you put in leading up to the season. "
But the main accomplishments that the team and I want to accomplish are to win championships and get team-oriented goals. That’s the next step for us.”
I was reading some interviews that you’re praying for a Final Four appearance….
Rice: (interrupts). “Oh, 100%. What basketball player wouldn’t want that?”
What have you envisioned about reaching that goal?
Rice: “It’s all about a game of matchups. Sometimes teams can get a lucky draw. Sometimes, teams can get an unlucky draw. But for us, it doesn’t really matter. We’re going to go out there and play our game no matter what and be that team that bands together through the good times and the bad times, no matter what. I feel like that is what has got us to where we are now. Just taking it one game at a time, everybody is going to be out there to play their hardest because it’s win or go home from here on out. That’s what we’re going to do.
"We got a target on our backs. But just know that we’re still coming for people."
We have faith in one another and a belief in one another. God puts us in a position to represent his name and go out there and play the game that we love each and every day. We just continue to do that day by day. At Washington State, we’re no longer the little brother or a team that people try to count out. We’re going to take it day-by-day and still handle business like we’ve always done."
You’ve played well this season. But from a numbers standpoint, your shots haven’t fallen from 3 in the past few games (a combined 0-for-12 in the past five contests). What’s your overall read on that, and what do you need to do to get back on track?
Rice: “Just believing in your work. You’re going to have games that you’re shooting really well. You’re going to have games where you don’t shoot it really well. You just trust in the work and everything that you put in. My dad is always giving me little pointers on different shot mechanics by tweaking my shot here and there to make it as good as possible. But you’re going to have moments where you’re hitting shots and not hitting shots. But the most important thing is you can’t let your confidence go down. It’s just about having faith and belief in that the shots you were hitting before are going to still hit even when you’re missing.”
What’s been the key to having that resilient attitude about things?
Rice: “I think it goes back to everything I went through this past year. I know that I can get through that and there is nothing mentally, physically, or even emotionally that I can’t get through.
"I’ve already been through way worse. So this is nothing. This is something small that you went through in recent times. "
That’s been my mindset through everything.”
I understand you’re your own man and each circumstance is different. But what inspiration do you take from Bronny [James] with overcoming his own health scare and from Caitlin Clark with breaking records and the impact she’s made on the women’s game?
Rice: “I think those are great stories. Obviously, Caitlin Clark is doing her thing at Iowa and Bronny is doing his thing at USC. Coming back from what he did, it’s always great to see things like that happen. It’s always great to see people work so hard for everything they want to accomplish and then see those things be accomplished. It’s great to see. I’m glad I’m able to be an inspiration for people and that they can be as well.”
I understand you’re focused on the Pac-12 and NCAA tournaments. But looking at your own trajectory as a player, what’s your thought process with weighing whether you’ll return next season or declare yourself eligible for the NBA draft?
Rice: “There is a lot of offseason talk. But the plan is to make my game as sharp and crisp as I can until it’s time for me to leave. But as of right now, I have no thought process about leaving or doing anything after this year. I just want to come back and play again in college ball and keep ironing my craft and making sure that I can be the best player that I possibly can.”
Growing up, which NBA players inspired you and influenced your game?
Rice: “This is a tough question. I watch LeBron [James] a lot. LeBron is my favorite player. I take his overall approach to the game by treating every game as if it’s your last. But as far as players that I really love to watch for their skillset most recently has been SGA (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander), CJ McCollum, and a little bit of Bones Hyland as well.”
What do you take away from all of those players?
Rice: “I like CJ’s maturity and his ability to get to his spots and get his shots. Overall, I love SGA’s mid-range game and his consistency. To see how he was when he first came into the league and where he is now, it’s cool seeing him be consistent with everything that he works on. And Bones Hyland has that flair to him that some players might like to have. I like to see how he brings the park out to the NBA game in some ways. I like to mix and match all those types of players.”
So safe to say you’re definitely back for your sophomore season?
Rice: “100 percent.”
Mark Medina is an NBA insider for Sportskeeda. Follow him on X, Instagram, Facebook and Threads.
