Odds and ends

That’s one way to introduce yourself.

It was quite the debut for Stefan Jankovic in the NBA summer league today. In less than 20 minutes off the bench for the Miami Heat, Janks poured in 17 points on 7-for-10 shooting in a 91-71 win over the Los Angeles Clippers. He was tied for second-highest in Heat scoring honors; Justise Winslow led the way with 21.

He did well in his rematch with Diamond Stone of Maryland. Stone had eight points and five rebounds as the LAC starting center. Jankovic grabbed three boards, but was able to showcase his range. He was 2-for-4 from downtown.

Check out the highlights from today's 91-71 blowout victory in out first game of the Orlando Summer League!https://t.co/3lupY3LNAK

— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) July 3, 2016

In this highlight video, you can see Jankovic a few times, although none of the plays are his.

Every outing is crucial for him as he tries to score a free agent contract. More of the above can only help his cause.

He’s back at it at 9 a.m. (HST) Sunday morning against the New York Knicks. Like today’s game, it will be televised on NBA TV.

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If you missed it, former UH interim head coach Benjy Taylor has moved on from his latest position. Southeast Missouri State sent out a press release this week that Taylor has resigned as an assistant coach on the heels of the Redhawks’ 5-24 season.

Taylor cited wanting to be closer to his children (still living in Hawaii) in the release.

It was no doubt a rough time at the Ohio Valley Conference school. The Redhawks were already bad when Taylor arrived there in January; and they were terrible down the stretch, too, dropping their final eight games of the season.

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Farewell to UH director of operations Jamie Smith, who Brexited back to his native land with the expiration of his contract on June 30.

Though he DOBO’d this past season, everyone will remember the Brit for his crowd-building themes and antics over the last few years. He had his share of troubles with work visas and other regulations, but he managed to get stuff done and help create a lively atmosphere where there was none to be found in the UH student section.

Smith plans to take some time to recharge his batteries then could do some world traveling. He intends to pass along a farewell message; once I have it I’ll post it here.

The big question is: Can UH keep its momentum of crowd support behind that basket going with Smith gone? That may be the sole province of the Manoa Maniacs now.

Eran Ganot would like to fill the DOBO position by the end of July, he said.

One strong candidate: Zane Johnson, who served as graduate assistant in 2015-16.

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Not much to report on the final scholarship UH has to award for the coming season. The staff is still in pursuit of a big man to bolster the front line. They have at least one option from overseas.

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The UH hoops newcomers and returnees are trickling back to the islands over the weekend and in the coming days. If you’ve been going to the College Summer League in Manoa, keep your eye out for them. Some may participate; it seems it’s been left up to the players for the second straight year under Ganot.

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If you have time, keep your eye out for a story on former UH center Seth Sundberg in Sunday’s print edition of the Star-Advertiser. It’s a big one.