St. John's University Athletics
QUOTES: BIG EAST Media Day
10/14/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Head Coach Chris Mullin...
On building a coaching staff:
"Acquiring Matt (Abdelmassih) and Barry (Rohrssen) were my first two priorities, because of their experience in college basketball. It was not only for their recruiting [knowledge] but also for their experience holding different roles with other programs. After [Matt and Slice] my focus was on development. Greg (St. Jean) worked with me in Sacramento. I just saw how the guys gravitated towards him, not only personally, but also on the court."
On getting into coaching:
"I've been thinking about coaching for the past few years. For me, the biggest struggle was moving my family. The basketball part was a natural fit. I felt comfortable coming back to New York and St. John's."
On Hall of Fame Coach Lou Carnesecca's influence:
"I tell people all the time, Coach Carnesecca was my coach but he's also much more than that [to me]. I met him when I was 12. I went to his camps as a kid and he's had a tremendous influence on my life. A lot of things I'm trying to do are similar to what he did on and off the court.
On Coach Carnesecca's advice:
"He's given me 40 years of advice. Probably the biggest thing is the way he lives his life. Coach is humble, honest and has a great sense of humor, which I think is important in sports. All the fundamentals that I'm trying to pass on to the team are really from Coach Carnesecca."
On the team's work ethic:
"I've been really happy with the team's work ethic. I think we play really unselfishly. We have to keep working hard over the next month to prepare for the season."
On helping the newcomers adjust to St. John's:
"Each guy is a little different. Some guys will adjust quicker than others, but the biggest thing for me is getting 10 new guys on the same page."
On the type of kids St. John's wants to recruit:
"At St. John's we really want kids who are unselfish. We want players that play up-tempo [basketball] and work hard."
On recruiting college players:
"I hired two great guys who have great experience in the recruiting area. I really let them dictate where I go and what I do. I follow the elite, that's why I hired them. My experience in the NBA has served me well, because we do a lot of recruiting in the NBA. Believe it or not, even when you sign a guy to a $100 million contract you still are recruiting them. I have found a lot more similarities than differences."
On the culture at St. John's:
"I'm trying to establish a culture of hard work, unselfishness, dedication and discipline. The skill development will come. The most important advice I can share now is what worked for me as a player: physical conditioning, mental approach and skill development."
On Durand Johnson:
"Obviously, his experience shows. He has confidence and will probably be one of our leaders. His energy is infectious in practice, he's competitive in the right way, he's a hard worker and he leads by example."
On Federico Mussini and Marcus LoVett playing at the same time:
"I think they're going to be really good together. They play well off each other, both have high basketball IQs and the game comes easy to them. They're natural ball movers and unselfish."
On the confidence of the team:
"Preparation is everything. Results are going to vary, but confidence comes from preparation and being ready."
On the freshmen class:
"They're all doing fine. We've been practicing for a week [now] and they have all had their moments. I'm pleased with all of them. The only downside is they don't have experience, but that is something we'll go through together."
On the shape of the BIG EAST:
"I think it's a great league. The BIG EAST was known originally for its inaugural teams and it didn't change as the rivalries built up. Now we're in a process of reestablishing that [culture]. It's a smaller conference, it's consistent and it just takes a few years to develop those rivalries. With FOX covering the games nationally, I think it will naturally happen again. In my opinion, it's one of the best conferences in the country."
GS Guard Ron Mvouika...
On his role for the team: "Leadership. I'm a veteran, so I'm trying to bring experiences from the previous places that I've been to our team. I want to bring toughness, anger, fire and leadership."
On Marcus LoVett and Federico Mussini:
"They are both incredible. They're really exciting to watch play. If you're a basketball fan you're going to fall in love with both of them."
On what the team can be:
"At the end of the day, if we do what we're supposed to do the results will take care of themselves. We're not worried about any rankings. We're just focused on us. The key word is `preparation' right now and we're preparing ourselves for the season to start. When the season starts, we're going to be ready to go."
On what it was like to meet the team for the first time:
"It was exciting. We have seven different nationalities in one locker room. It's exciting to see different cultures, backgrounds and languages in one room for the same purpose. That's actually one of our strengths."
On playing for Chris Mullin:
"I don't think there are many college coaches that give you the freedom to play. He's been in our shoes before. He's one of the greatest to ever do it, so he understands us better. We're going to play a lot of run-and-gun and freedom, and that's a dream for any player."
GS Guard/Forward Durand Johnson...
On the expectations:
"The only thing we can control is getting better every day and working hard. We have a bunch of underrated guys that really never got the attention and exposure, but at the same time we're hungry in our own separate ways and we're motivated."
On getting back on the court:
"I'm ready. Like you said I haven't played in awhile. I missed two years and I'm ready to go. Just being here [at Madison Square Garden] makes me want to lace them up and go right now. It's going to be a good year."
On sitting out last year:
"I focused on my team and helped them get better [when I was sitting]. I focused on my own game as well; doing extra work, focusing on school and doing what I had to do off the court. It helped me mature and it also allowed me to better myself for this year's team."
On the pressure of playing at St. John's:
"I don't feel like there is any pressure. We come to practice every day and work hard, so I don't feel like it's solely on me. We have a bunch of good guys like Felix and Ron. Our freshmen are not like normal freshmen. They come in everyday with a good mindset. They know the game and they're hungry. So I feel like we're definitely going to be good as a team."
On being a leader:
"I've always had the mindset of a leader. I've never been a follower; I've always wanted to lead. It's been installed in me since day one and that's how it's going to continue to be."
On choosing St. John's to finish career:
"With Coach Mullin coming back and the opportunity that I had to come here, play with new groups of guys in a new situation, I just wanted to show the world what I got."
SR Guard Felix Balamou...
On the style of the coaching staff:
"Obviously [it feels] more like an NBA style. Coach wants us to be accountable, responsible, confident and play the right way."
On the team's expectations:
"We're not worried about expectations. At this point we're just worried about getting ready and competing every day."
On the freshmen class:
"The thing I love about them is that they compete. They want to play hard, they want to help the team, which is really important because it's all about the team."
On the team's goal:
"We're going to compete. Going back to the NCAA Tournament would be really, big but the goal is to go as far as we can."
