Baylor’s Mark Vital discusses Twitter slight from ESPN analyst, said it motivated him

After Texas Tech upset Texas last week, the hero of the Red Raiders’ win, guard Mac McClung, had to end an on-camera postgame interview with ESPN early.

“I respect you a lot Fran [Fraschilla], you the man,” McClung said, before rushing to celebrate with his teammates.

It wasn’t the last time that week that the topic of respect and Fran Fraschilla would make its way to the front lines. This time, though, it was in a whole different context. And Fraschilla made an a pointed comment about Vital that initiated a little back and forth.

“It’s painful for me to say this, but this is not the same Mark Vital of last season,” Fraschilla tweeted Saturday. “Is he in shape? Would love to see that fire again.”

Fraschilla told The Dallas Morning News that he has a really good relationship with Vital that goes back years. Certainly, his job at ESPN is to analyze, opine and tells it like he sees it. But as Vital would later note, after the Bears beat Kansas 77-69 at home on Monday night, there’s more going on behind the scenes personally than someone like Fraschilla might have known.

And Vital seemed to not appreciate Fraschilla’s comments, responding to his tweet with a post himself that called it “Fake News.” On Monday night, after Vital had 10 rebounds against the Jayhawks, he didn’t hold back.

“First of all, I think I need to test Fran Fraschilla,” Vital said. “You know, I don’t know if he’s sick. I don’t know what’s going on but we got COVID what’s going on. I never lost it.”

Statistically, Vital has a valid case to make that he never lost it. He’s averaging one fewer point and one fewer rebound a game, though he’s playing slightly fewer minutes, too, on a team that may be the best in the country.

He’s blocking shots on 4.7% of his defensive possessions, up from 2.6% last season. And he’s grabbing defensive rebounds on 19.2% of his possessions, up from 14.9% last season.

“People who can say anything about anybody,” said Baylor guard Jared Butler, who had 30 points. “It’s just an opinion. It’s just words. Mark Vital is a great asset to our team. He brings energy, brings life. It doesn’t matter what anybody says.”

Vital’s got a significantly improved free-throw percentage, though he is getting to the line less often. And while there’s some fluctuation in certain areas, he’s at the very least on par with the player he’s always been in his four years with the Bears.

And the former All-Big 12 defensive team player came through against the Jayhawks, as Baylor remained perfect on the season. By defeating Kansas, the Bears now have a 2 1/2-game lead over the longtime kings of the conference, with a fast track to the league title and a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

“It’s actually motivation, every time someone tweets something about me,” Vital said. “Like I said, I see everything. I like, I mean, there’s just something for me to work on. I needed that motivation.”

Vital is a big part of the start, and will be a vital part to wherever this team goes. There was some sort of personal issue the 6-5 senior was going through, he said, which might have contributed to the drop in play Fraschilla noted.

“I was going through a time right now,” Vital said, “that, you know, my teammates and everything had to help me with. And that’s what helped me a lot.”

Vital didn’t expand on what he was going through personally. But he did say, in some sense, he liked the tweets. He liked being the villain. And he liked the extra motivation that comes with people doubting him. Even head coach Scott Drew remarked that Vital had “some extra juice in him [Monday].”

After Vital’s postgame comments Monday, Fraschilla posted another comment about Vital. This time it was a picture of the two of them together at Ferrell Center, arms around each other’s backs. Vital had a sweatshirt that said “Glue Guy” on it — perfectly representing the type of player he is for Baylor, whether or not he’s playing his best basketball.

And Fraschilla, seeming to indicate the end of any argument, posted a message with his photo:

“Just the start.”

“Say what you want to say,” Vital said before the encounter. “At the end of the day. I’m one of the best defenders in the country. I got great teammates that motivate me, great coaches that take care of me. ... That motivated me, and that’s given me a lot of fuel. So you’re just adding to the fire.”

+++

Find more Baylor coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.