Freshman guard Landry Shamet was set for a big season in his first year at Wichita State. An early-season injury changed these plans, and him.

“I’ve never been faced with anything like this before,” Shamet said. “That two weeks after surgery was probably the lowest I’ve been.”

Shamet played 59 minutes through three games in November, one of those as a starter, but suffered a stress fracture on his left foot in a Nov. 21 home game against Emporia State.

After his injury, while the Shockers traveled to Florida to compete in the AdvoCare Invitational Tournament, Shamet stayed home to have surgery on his fifth metatarsal in his left foot.

Given the Shockers make the NCAA Tournament, he will not play due to his medical redshirt taken from his season-ending injury. With this medical redshirt, Shamet will still have his four years of eligibility.

In early January, head coach Gregg Marshall told CBS Sports he expected Shamet to return early-to mid-February, but that timetable is looking very different now. It came down to Shamet’s choice, whether he wanted to suit up for games late in the season or choose to save a redshirt season.

Shamet, hailing from Kansas City, Missouri, could’ve been a vital asset to the Shockers’ squad this season. Even though there would be minutes available for him, Shamet said his decision to not return was based on two reasons: he was not physically ready to help the Shockers, and was not necessarily needed to make the most out of senior guards Ron Baker and Fred VanVleet’s seasons.

He made a wise decision because he would likely be swapping a whole season for roughly six or seven regular season games and the MVC Tournament.

Even though Shamet has been out of his walking boot since mid-January, he said he didn’t feel he should come back unless he was 100 percent ready for practice and games.

The word “patience” has been Shamet’s chosen word for the backbone of this season. The word “patience” is his word to drive his goals.

“Patience” comes from California rapper Big Sean’s song of the same name. Shamet says it was very fitting.

“[Big Sean] talks about patience and how it’s not just the ability to wait, but how you act while you’re waiting.”

Shamet can be seen tweeting lyrics from Big Sean’s song on his Twitter account. As he surrounds himself in this mindset that even though it’s tough to watch a team not able to compete at full strength, it will be worth it next year.

Shocker fans can get excited as they expect to see Shamet come back for his redshirt freshman season next fall as he battles adversity, and prepares to compete at the highest level he can.