Bruce Weber has been clear about Demetri McCamey and his inability to become a pillar of consistency and hard work. On Friday night, the Illinois coach made it pretty clear what he thinks of his sophomore’s work ethic when he benched McCamey for the start of the season-opening win against Eastern Washington.

This was not a full-fledged flogging. McCamey ended up playing 29 minutes, tied for the most on the team. And even when he made some horrendous decisions, which led to five turnovers, he remained on the court.

But Weber was clear after the game about the reasons behind the move.

“He’s our best player, at least potentially, but all I’ve talked about all year is hard work and heart and hustle,” Weber said. “If Demetri can’t do that, it’s very tough to justify to other guys that I expect it out of them but he doesn’t have to do it. He has to guard and has to play both ends.

“Not only that, if he wants to be a great player he has to do all those things. I don’t know if it’s a lesson, but more than anything, hey, if you can’t do that on a daily basis, how can I justify putting you in front of the other guys?”

Those who watched McCamey throughout his freshman season know that he showed flashes of greatness, such as in the Big Ten Tournament when he was named to the all-tournament team. He played a lot last season, making 17 starts and averaging 27.3 minutes.

But he didn’t make the Big Ten all-freshman team because he lacked consistency to beat out better candidates. And Weber doesn’t want to go through a long stretch of that inconsistency this season, if it can be avoided. So, the point has to be made now.

Part of the point is about how McCamey runs the team. Weber is tired of him getting caught in the air and making bad decisions. And he wants him to push the offense. Jeff Jordan was given 15 minutes Friday night and was effective. Weber hopes McCamey noticed.

“I have to challenge Demetri,” he said. “I want him to be the point guard, but if he’s not going to push it we’ll have Chester or Jeffrey push it. Then he can just, hopefully, run down the court. I don’t know, we’ll have to see.”

Then Weber made the comparison to another group of guards.

“I expect him, just like Dee, Deron and Luther, to be the hardest worker on a daily basis,” he said, “and if he does that it makes it a lot easier on me and will help the team in the long run.”