Ty Orton is so busy these days that preparing his house in McCook, Neb., for the real estate market is a few notches down on his list of priorities.
At the top of the list is Orton's obligation to rebuild the Dickinson State men's basketball program.
When Orton was hired March 24, the foundation for improvement was put in place.
On Monday, the new head coach will lay the first bricks when he signs his initial batch of recruits.
"I'm taking my time and making sure I pick the right type of kid," Orton said.
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He plans to sign three players to national letters of intent Monday and add more players who have verbally committed in the coming weeks.
Orton would not name the players who plan to sign this week. He did, however, say that several players are scheduled for campus visits next weekend.
Currently, only five players from last season's team have had their scholarships renewed and plan to return.
Nigel Sims and Ryan Bogner are the only returning players who started last season. Ryan Ernst, Drew Erhardt and Tommie Posey are the other players likely to return. Other players with eligibility remaining did not have their scholarships renewed.
"I was really impressed with how they handled themselves on the floor," Orton said of the five returning players.
Orton said he has been in contact with more than 50 recruits - both high school and junior college - from North Dakota, Montana, Wyoming and Colorado since he took the job.
Still, he made it clear that he's in no hurry to sign a player he knows little about.
"I'm not really rushing in to find kids so fast," Orton said. "You really want to make sure that they're a strong fit."
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By signing the first group of players Orton hopes more are motivated to commit, including some Dickinson area athletes who he has been in contact with since accepting the position.
"It starts to put the puzzle pieces together and we start to figure out that these are the kids who are going to represent us," Orton said.
