USC Coach Tim Floyd, who had nationally known freshman O.J. Mayo join a team with a sophomore center, Taj Gibson, who was ready to take over leadership, said he called his veterans into his office before Mayo arrived on campus.
"I told them, 'Look, O.J. is going to have the spotlight, it's natural, it's the new flavor of the day,' " Floyd said. "But I told them it was going to be up to O.J. what kind of teammate he was going to be. I think these kids now have been around enough to understand that a really good freshman is only going to help."
Washington's Romar, who had Spencer Hawes for one season a year ago, said how coaches deal with a high-profile newcomer doesn't matter as much as the personality of the player.
"You have the phenom with an arrogant attitude, if the coaches are showing favoritism, if the kid comes in always talking about, 'I'll be in the league next year' and 'the league' this and that, if the kid isn't going to school, and I know that happens, it's a problem," Romar said.
"I thought Ben Howland and Kevin Love handled things tremendously well this year. I never felt Love was trying to use this season only to position himself for the NBA. It's human nature for other kids to resent the new kid who walks in and gets all the attention. As far as I can tell, that didn't happen at all. And, then, of course, winning helps a lot."
Love said he and Rose, who became friends on the summer travel basketball circuit, talked about how to win over their older teammates. "You worry about jealousy and fitting in," Love said. "He's a point guard so he had to be a leader. I think it really has worked out. At first I tried to be careful too, about what I said. You have to earn respect."
Howland called the attention Love received this season "off the charts."
Collison said he knew that would be the case. "I was with Kevin in the summer and got to know him and his game," he recalled. "He's got a great personality, plus he's got the game. He was the new guy. People were going to talk about him."
Boeheim, who had the seminal one-year wonder in Carmelo Anthony, who carried Syracuse to a national title as a freshman in 2003, said it is up to the coaching staff to quickly deal with any simmering jealousies. "The good thing about athletics is, you quickly see by performance on the playing field," Boeheim said. "A reputation will be backed up by performance. If it's not, things sort themselves out.
"What I see from Love and Rose are two players who obviously are good enough to play well at the next level but who are thinking like college kids right now. I see two guys who are part of their teams and not above them.
"That's why those teams are in the Final Four."
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diane.pucin@latimes.com
