Two seasons ago, Richard Pitino was asked late during Amir Coffey's freshman year with the Gophers if he ever saw his budding star playing point guard.
Pitino didn't answer with a simple: yes or no. He used coach's speak about Coffey already facilitating in their offense and it was just "semantics" about what position he played. That seemed like a way of saying he didn't know.

Things have changed since.
Coffey, now a 6-foot-8 junior guard, is older and wiser within the Gophers system. He's the team's best passer. He's also entering a situation this season where Pitino lacks point guard depth after losing three-year starter Nate Mason to graduation.
So that's why if you checked out the box score of Saturday's scrimmage win against Creighton, Coffey was the starting point guard. He finished with 14 points, four assists, four rebounds and three turnovers in 25 minutes.
Will Coffey be the U's point guard in the season opener Nov. 6 against Nebraska Omaha? Maybe or maybe not, but one thing seems clearer by the day: He'll have the ball a lot more this year.
"Amir, if he wants to be an NBA player, now it comes down to his skill level, where he can dribble, pass, shoot and make decisions," Pitino said. "He can do that. I believe he'll play in the NBA at some point. I love his mentality right now. He's competing. He has that look of a guy who wants to take the next step as a basketball player."
From all accounts of practice, Coffey's making strides as a floor leader and primary ball handler. Bringing the ball up under pressure and orchestrating the offense are things he'll need to pick up with more opportunities in actual game action.