Gonzaga wing Steele Venters ‘can’t wait’ to get back on the court after missing last season to injury
DETROIT – With 33 minutes left on the pregame clock at Little Caesars Arena, Steele Venters made a quick pit stop before joining his teammates in the locker room for a few final words before tipoff against Purdue in the Sweet 16.
As he walked off the court, Venters, with a basketball in hand, spotted up from the left corner. With a slight bend in his knees, Venters raised the ball up to his eyes and released a 3-pointer, watching the ball sink through the net as he high-fived a few teammates jogging off the court.
It was more of a Bittersweet 16 for the Venters, who, for the second time in four years, was able to take in all the sights and the sounds of March Madness without being able to experience the best part of the tournament his coach at Gonzaga commonly calls “the greatest sporting event in the world.”
“I want to be on the court more than anything,” Venters said from Gonzaga’s locker room after the Bulldogs’ season ended with an 80-68 loss to the Boilermakers. “It sucks sitting on the sideline when I can come in and impact the game. It’s good to see the guys fight and we had a great season.”
Venters was on Eastern Washington’s bench when the Eagles nearly stunned Kansas in a first-round NCAA Tournament game in 2021, but as a lightly used reserve playing 9.5 minutes per game for Shantay Legans, he never got on the floor in a 93-84 loss.
The EWU transfer planned on drilling big shots for Mark Few and Gonzaga at this year’s tournament, but a preseason ACL injury – suffered two days before the team’s opener against Yale – delayed his debut at least another year.
“It was tough,” Venters said of missing out on high-stake NCAA Tournament games. “I want to be in it so bad.”
Since one misstep in a practice last November led to a season-ending knee injury, Venters has taken a few-thousand steps in the right direction to get back on the court for Gonzaga in a meaningful capacity.
From the locker room in Detroit last week, Venters was asked when he expects he’ll be able to participate in full-contact, high-speed 5-on-5 games without any limitations or restrictions.
With the man in charge of his rehabilitation standing nearby, Venters turned the question over to head athletic trainer Josh Therrien.
“When will I be able to play 5-on-5?” Venters asked.
“End of summer,” Therrien replied.
In a separate conversation with The Spokesman-Review, Therrien indicated Venters would ramp up his activity level in the coming weeks, beginning with straight-ahead running and treadmill work before cautiously proceeding with lateral drills and change of direction.
“Start with ball screen stuff and breakdowns,” Therrien said. “This summer will be a little different with coach (Few) being gone with USA stuff. But yeah, he’s right on track to be a key contributor next year, for sure.”
For the past few months, Venters’ routine consisted off stationary shooting and more recently he’s been able to mix in drills shooting off the dribble. On an ideal day, when Gonzaga isn’t traveling, Venters likes to get up anywhere from 300 to 400 shots at the Volkar Athletic Complex.
“He’s been great, he’s handled this stuff like a pro,” Therrien said. “He’s an older guy, obviously. … Obviously new guy, but part of the team and staying engaged. He and I talked early on about trying to almost make this a season where’s kind of a coach a little bit. Picking up offense and doing everything he can from a mental side to take reps and understand that part of it. But yeah, he’s been great with that stuff.”
One year removed from averaging 15.3 points and 2.8 rebounds in Cheney, Venters has been encouraged watching a handful of former Big Sky Conference rivals find success at new destinations, giving the former EWU standout confidence he can do the same at Gonzaga.
Former Northern Colorado guard Dalton Knecht, a consensus All-America first-team guard at Tennessee this season, was in a locker room just down the hall from Gonzaga’s at Little Caesars Arena last week. Knecht, who averaged 21.9 points per game in the SEC, may have been the next-best choice for Big Sky MVP honors after the 2022-23 season, but that award went to Venters after the wing lead EWU to a regular-season conference title.
“It’s exciting to see all the guys out of the Big Sky,” Venters said. “You’ve got (West Virginia guard) Raequon Battle, all the guys out at Utah State. But yeah, Dalton Knecht has been explosive this year. It’s been fun to watch.”
Venters was penciled into a starting role before his ACL injury, but it’s unclear how he’ll factor into Gonzaga’s lineup/rotation in 2024-25. The Bulldogs are expecting to return Ben Gregg and Dusty Stromer, the players who started at the “3” spot last season, and bring in Pepperdine transfer Michael Ajayi, an All-WCC first-team wing who averaged 17.2 points per game and 9.9 rebounds.
Regardless of how he fits in, Venters sees endless possibilities for a group that could return every rotational piece other than fifth-year senior Anton Watson.
“I can’t wait,” he said. “Obviously, we’re going to lose Anton, which is a huge piece. Big glue guy. But just seeing all the guys come together has been really fun to watch. It sucks missing it and not being out there.”