St. John's University Athletics
Harkless Continues Quest For The NBA
4/25/2012 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
QUEENS, N.Y. - After only one season at St. John's, Moe Harkless went from being the best high school basketball player in New York City to one of the top college basketball players in the nation. Under head coach Steve Lavin and his coaching staff, the Queens native's professional potential skyrocketed and now awaits his name to be called on June 28th in the NBA Draft.
The speculation and pressure that come with being a potential first round NBA draft pick may affect some young basketball players, especially at 18 years old, but not Harkless.
"I try not to worry about things like that," said Harkless referring to draft day distractions. "I'm just out here working hard and trying to get prepared for the next level."
After a freshman season in which Harkless was named BIG EAST Rookie of the Year and an All-BIG EAST honorable mention selection, he is fine tuning his game, along with Syracuse's Fab Melo, Cincinnati's Yancy Gates and UAB's Cameron Moore, at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., where NBA stars such as Vince Carter, Chauncey Billups and Luol Deng have also prepared for the draft.
"I've been really focusing on my jump shot and my ball handling," said Harkless. "I've also been working on strength and conditioning and just cleaning up the little things leading up to draft day."
Harkless left an impressive mark during his one year in Queens. His 15.5 points per game were the second-most in the BIG EAST among freshman, trailing only teammate D'Angelo Harrison, and the sixth-most among rookies nationally. Not only did he challenge George Johnson's school record for rebounds by a freshman in a season, but he was the conference's top rebounding freshman, averaging 8.6 boards per game.
Even after all of the personal accolades and achievements, Harkless still credits the coaching staff for his development in making the jump to the professional level.
"Coach Lavin and the entire coaching staff have been really supportive and they've helped me out a lot," said Harkless. "Coach Mike Dunlap and coach Rico Hines are two coaches who have NBA experience and they worked really hard to help me get better. Everyone was a huge help."
Draft experts have projected Harkless to be picked in the first round and as high as the 13th overall pick. When chosen, Harkless will be the 14th player who has played under Lavin to be selected in the NBA Draft.
A pivotal performer in Lavin's first season at the helm was the versatile swingman D.J. Kennedy. Kennedy, who was recently called up from the NBA Developmental League's Erie Bayhawks by the Cleveland Cavaliers for the remainder of the 2012 season, looks to play against, or possibly play with, Harkless next year.
"I'm really happy for D.J. getting called up and having a chance to compete on a NBA roster," said Harkless. "I'll be excited to join him and potentially some other Johnnies in the league."
While training at IMG Academy, Harkless has been working out with St. John's alum Anthony Mason Jr. Mason Jr., who scored 1,059 points in his career at St. John's and last played for the Sioux Falls Skyforce of the NBA Developmental League, is training to continue his professional playing career overseas in Turkey.
"It's been a lot of fun working with him," Harkless said. "He's a funny guy and has been in the NBA for a while now so he has been a big help getting me through the process."
Because of Lavin's stellar track record of coaching NBA talent and his staff's NBA experience, the kid from Jamaica, Queens, took the short ride to St. John's and soon he will be representing the University at professional basketball's highest level.
"This is a really important time in my life," said Harkless. "I know why I'm down here in Florida and that's to work on my game and get better."
