By Marissa Essenburg | Sports Writer
It’s called the Sandlot Effect — based, of course, on the 1993 cinematic masterpiece.
If you’ve seen the film, you know that within minutes of the boys meeting Smalls, he’s not just part of their crew, he’s family. Boys who love the game and enjoy it together welcome him with this effortless joy — a we-don’t-care-where-you-came-from, you’re-one-of-us-now mentality.
In ways both different and similar, that’s this Baylor men’s basketball team. A roster of new faces who share a love for the game and found instant chemistry because of it. When they stepped into the gym over the summer, it didn’t feel like strangers learning one another. It felt like a group forming a bond, building a team rooted in togetherness.
Free of egos. Free of pride. Just a group of guys who love basketball, love the university they play for and love one another.
And yes, that chemistry has played a pivotal role in the Bears’ 6-1 start. But more than that, it’s who they are. Their strength goes beyond size, scoring or athleticism — it’s the bond they share, the kind of connection that’s becoming harder to find in men’s college hoops.
“I feel like this has been said all around college basketball — Baylor University and athletics — we’ve got no egos on this team,” senior forward Dan Skillings Jr. said. “No one thinks they’re better than each other. No one thinks they’re over each other. We’re all on the same level playing field. We all want the same thing, and it’s to win.”
Fresh off a 2-1 finish at the Players Era Tournament in Las Vegas — with wins over San Diego State and Creighton and a loss to No. 14 St. John’s — the Bears’ biggest takeaway wasn’t the results. It was what happened before their final game, something Skillings said has never happened in his four years of college basketball: a players-only meeting.
No coaches. No media. Just a meeting called by and for the players.
“Vegas was an amazing opportunity for us to grow as a team,” Skillings said. “We got together and just talked about how we want to be better as a team, because at the end of the day, it’s us on the court. The coaches can prepare us as best as they can, but hearing from each other — it’s a different viewpoint.”
Skillings said the conversation shifted something deeper within the group.
“I feel like all of us see each other as a player and as a person, and we see how we all feel on the floor,” he said. “That last game before we came back home, I feel like we played for each other.”
“That players meeting is going to help us in the long run this season — just how positive we are with each other and how now we really get each other fully,” Skillings said. “We’re playing for each other, not just the coaches or the universe.”
For Baylor, that clarity isn’t something they’re hoping to find in January or March. It’s already there. And head coach Scott Drew said that connection shows up in everything this group does.
“We’ve been really blessed with a good group of men,” Drew said. “They care about each other, they care about Baylor. They love wearing the jersey, competing and practicing hard day in and day out. They’re a joy to come to work with every day.”
Across the board, the Bears have shown one thing clearly: they trust each other and live out a culture of JOY. In a sport where rosters flip every offseason — a rhythm Baylor knows well — this team has built something steady in the chaos.
“We have a lot of fun off the court, but when we get in between those lines, we take it very seriously,” Skillings said. “When adversity hits, I feel like all of us look at one another. There’s no one guy we all just look to; we look to each other.”
Down to a seven-man rotation after injuries swept through the roster once again, Baylor has leaned even harder on its belief. Instead of feeling thin, it has leaned on the confidence of a group that understands who they are and what each player brings.
With fewer bodies available, the Bears haven’t funneled things through one or two scorers. From bursts to stops to steadying the offense, everyone has stepped up, something Drew calls the beauty of this roster.
“With our team, we’ve got seven guys capable of scoring double figures,” Drew said. “We’ve got a lot of versatility, and our depth in these seven has been a strength for us rather than just having one or two guys.”
No matter who’s available, the Bears play with the same mindset: we’ll do it together.
As the calendar turns toward the heart of non-conference play and into Big 12 competition, that connection becomes the anchor. The rotation may be thin, but the bond is thick — stitched together by trust, joy and belief.
