St. John's University Athletics
QUOTES: 2024 St. John’s Men’s Basketball Media Day
St. John’s Men’s Basketball Head Coach Rick Pitino and players spoke with the media on Tuesday inside Carnesecca Arena
Head Coach Rick Pitino:
Opening statement…
“Well, obviously Thursday is a big day for us to see where we're at [against Rutgers]. We're playing a top 25 team, and what we wanted to do is raise a lot of money for Dick Vitale's Cancer Research for children. There's no better place than to play a sold-out place on the road to get ready for a season because Rutgers has a very distinct and strong home-court advantage. Going on the road right away tells you about your team. It tells you who's mentally tough, who's physically tough, and who's ready for the likes of Baylor, Tennessee, Fordham, Georgia and teams like that as you segue into the BIG EAST. We're very excited about it and looking forward to see what we have.”
On naming Zuby Ejiofor and Kadary Richmond team captains…
“This was the players’ vote and it was near unanimous. Zuby was unanimous, and Kadary was near unanimous. … [Richmond] practices hard all the time, he's a good leader and he's really a terrific guy. I love coaching him. Zuby is a high-octane and brings it every single day. The players see that he's always in a great mood so I think they were two excellent choices. I think the coaches would have voted them as well.”
On the starting lineup heading into the season…
“The team that we start against Rutgers won't necessarily be the team we start against Fordham, but I think probably with this basketball team, more than any team I've coached, with the exception of 1996 Kentucky, I think you'll see multiple starting lineups. I think you'll always see Kadary [Richmond] starting. I think you'll always see Zuby [Ejiofor] starting, more than likely you'll always see [Simeon Wilcher] starting, but that's it. Then the rest of it, flip a coin. To me, with this basketball team, who plays the most minutes will be the most valuable.”
St. John’s guard Simeon Wilcher:
On missing out on the NCAA Tournament last season….
“It motivates our group immensely because not a lot of us have had the chance to play in a March Madness. To be a few games short or a game short, whatever it was that kept the committee from putting us in there, we know how that feels and we just don’t want to feel that again. We all want to [play in the NCAA Tournament] because that's the best part, it's what we all dreamt of and we all grew up watching. I think this year we have the team to do it.”
On his role with the team…
“It is something I’ve dreamed of since I started playing basketball at the age of seven. Just being blessed to have the opportunity to play for Coach Pitino and being here in this moment. I’m extremely grateful.”
On where his game has improved since last year…
“I feel like the game has slowed down a lot for me. For my body, coming into last year I was a little underweight but going into this year I feel like I’m a good size and I’m going to be able to do a lot of things to help our team win. That’s all I care about.”
St. John’s center Vince Iwuchukwu
Why he chose St. John’s…
“The biggest thing was the vision that Coach Pitino had for his team. From that, there was the decision that had to be made for me and my parents. When I came on my visit here and I heard about what he was building here, it was a no-brainer for me. He’s a great coach, he’s got a really good pedigree and he’s really honest. He was really honest about my game when I came on my visit and for me, that really stood out. I think it was the best decision for me.”
What Coach Pitino stresses to him in practice…
“His biggest thing is just to be a high-energy and high-motor guy. That’s what our team needs. We already have some great bigs in Zuby [Ejiofor], Ruben [Prey] and Khaman [Maker], so just bringing a level of competitiveness that we can all feed off of in every practice and every game. There are going to be lows in the season and lows in a game, so there has to be a guy that can shift the energy. Just being that guy has been a big stress from him to me.”
St. John’s guard Kadary Richmond
On playing with Deivon Smith and Simeon Wilcher…
“They are guys that are able to create their own shot and create for others. They play at a fast pace, have a quick twitch and both are athletic. … We’re all different in our own ways but I think we’ve been meshing well and it’s been great so far.”
On the 2024-25 St. John’s men’s basketball team…
“I think we can do a lot of things. There are different dynamics. We can go with three guards or two guards. We can switch it up and we play at a fast pace. We take care of the ball well, so we can play with anybody in the country.”
St. John’s forward Zuby Ejiofor:
On what the role of being a team captain means to him…
“Just being a leader and speaking up when they need me to. Being a leader not only on the court, but also off the court, setting an example for the rest of my teammates on how we are going to carry this program and how we are going to carry the name “St. John’s” across New York and hopefully bring the fans something to be excited about this year.”
On how it feels to have the support of Coach Pitino going into this season…
“I appreciate that a lot coming from a coach of his status. It’s a lot to embark on and a lot to think about. At the end of the day I am just playing basketball and I know I am going to be having fun with my teammates and this group of guys. It’s going to be a really exciting year for me, my family and the rest of my teammates and we are up for it.”
St. John’s forward Brady Dunlap
On what Coach Pitino has wanted him to improve going into this season…
“Last year was just my strength – in terms of defense when they could bump me off my line pretty easily. I tried to really focus on that. I came into this year at 200-something pounds and I have lost that a little bit, getting back into shape. I have tried to gain weight and just get stronger.”
On what the coaching staff is looking from him this year…
“They know if I am out there on the floor for X amount of minutes that I am going to score. I think they are all supper confident in my scoring ability. It is more so everything else. Defensively, I am getting a lot better. It is more so offensive rebounds, defensive rebounds, assists – just trying to become a more complete player. They have been harping to me if I become more of a complete player I have a bright future in this sport.”
St. John’s guard Deivon Smith
On how comfortable he is playing in the backcourt with Simeon Wilcher and Kadary Richmond…
“I have a lot of confidence in myself, Sim and Kadary so if I have the ball or either one of them has it I feel comfortable that any one of us is going to make a good play. We have great energy and chemistry and feed off each other. We play super-fast so I think we will keep the defense on their heels a lot.”
On the player development sessions…
“The player development sessions in the morning have helped a lot just on my jump shot and confidence shooting. And then leading into practice, us playing game-like style and getting up and learning everything that’s going to help us.”
St. John’s guard/forward Aaron Scott
On what he worked on this offseason…
“I put a lot of extra time on my shot here because I know my role here is to shoot threes and knock down open threes. So, I did put in a lot of work on my three-pointer and it has gotten way better. We have individual sessions here where we work on nothing but shooting threes and I feel like I have gotten way better shooting.”
On working with Coach Pitino and this St. John’s team every day…
“We go hard every day. There are no seconds, no minutes, no days off. We just go hard every day. We are a very physical team – we are not a soft team I played against St. John’s last year and I could see that playing against them – a very physical, very defensive-minded team and they like to push the pace. That is what it has been like here.”
St. John’s forward Ruben Prey
On choosing St. John’s…
“This is the best program for me to develop as a player and a person. We’ve got legendary coach Rick Pitino, so that also made me want to come. I think I learn something from Coach every day. I can’t tell you something really specific, but every day I learn something new from coach. I think that’s really important because even though it’s just some small details, when you start adding them up, it makes a difference.”
Opening statement…
“Well, obviously Thursday is a big day for us to see where we're at [against Rutgers]. We're playing a top 25 team, and what we wanted to do is raise a lot of money for Dick Vitale's Cancer Research for children. There's no better place than to play a sold-out place on the road to get ready for a season because Rutgers has a very distinct and strong home-court advantage. Going on the road right away tells you about your team. It tells you who's mentally tough, who's physically tough, and who's ready for the likes of Baylor, Tennessee, Fordham, Georgia and teams like that as you segue into the BIG EAST. We're very excited about it and looking forward to see what we have.”
On naming Zuby Ejiofor and Kadary Richmond team captains…
“This was the players’ vote and it was near unanimous. Zuby was unanimous, and Kadary was near unanimous. … [Richmond] practices hard all the time, he's a good leader and he's really a terrific guy. I love coaching him. Zuby is a high-octane and brings it every single day. The players see that he's always in a great mood so I think they were two excellent choices. I think the coaches would have voted them as well.”
On the starting lineup heading into the season…
“The team that we start against Rutgers won't necessarily be the team we start against Fordham, but I think probably with this basketball team, more than any team I've coached, with the exception of 1996 Kentucky, I think you'll see multiple starting lineups. I think you'll always see Kadary [Richmond] starting. I think you'll always see Zuby [Ejiofor] starting, more than likely you'll always see [Simeon Wilcher] starting, but that's it. Then the rest of it, flip a coin. To me, with this basketball team, who plays the most minutes will be the most valuable.”
St. John’s guard Simeon Wilcher:
On missing out on the NCAA Tournament last season….
“It motivates our group immensely because not a lot of us have had the chance to play in a March Madness. To be a few games short or a game short, whatever it was that kept the committee from putting us in there, we know how that feels and we just don’t want to feel that again. We all want to [play in the NCAA Tournament] because that's the best part, it's what we all dreamt of and we all grew up watching. I think this year we have the team to do it.”
On his role with the team…
“It is something I’ve dreamed of since I started playing basketball at the age of seven. Just being blessed to have the opportunity to play for Coach Pitino and being here in this moment. I’m extremely grateful.”
On where his game has improved since last year…
“I feel like the game has slowed down a lot for me. For my body, coming into last year I was a little underweight but going into this year I feel like I’m a good size and I’m going to be able to do a lot of things to help our team win. That’s all I care about.”
St. John’s center Vince Iwuchukwu
Why he chose St. John’s…
“The biggest thing was the vision that Coach Pitino had for his team. From that, there was the decision that had to be made for me and my parents. When I came on my visit here and I heard about what he was building here, it was a no-brainer for me. He’s a great coach, he’s got a really good pedigree and he’s really honest. He was really honest about my game when I came on my visit and for me, that really stood out. I think it was the best decision for me.”
What Coach Pitino stresses to him in practice…
“His biggest thing is just to be a high-energy and high-motor guy. That’s what our team needs. We already have some great bigs in Zuby [Ejiofor], Ruben [Prey] and Khaman [Maker], so just bringing a level of competitiveness that we can all feed off of in every practice and every game. There are going to be lows in the season and lows in a game, so there has to be a guy that can shift the energy. Just being that guy has been a big stress from him to me.”
St. John’s guard Kadary Richmond
On playing with Deivon Smith and Simeon Wilcher…
“They are guys that are able to create their own shot and create for others. They play at a fast pace, have a quick twitch and both are athletic. … We’re all different in our own ways but I think we’ve been meshing well and it’s been great so far.”
On the 2024-25 St. John’s men’s basketball team…
“I think we can do a lot of things. There are different dynamics. We can go with three guards or two guards. We can switch it up and we play at a fast pace. We take care of the ball well, so we can play with anybody in the country.”
St. John’s forward Zuby Ejiofor:
On what the role of being a team captain means to him…
“Just being a leader and speaking up when they need me to. Being a leader not only on the court, but also off the court, setting an example for the rest of my teammates on how we are going to carry this program and how we are going to carry the name “St. John’s” across New York and hopefully bring the fans something to be excited about this year.”
On how it feels to have the support of Coach Pitino going into this season…
“I appreciate that a lot coming from a coach of his status. It’s a lot to embark on and a lot to think about. At the end of the day I am just playing basketball and I know I am going to be having fun with my teammates and this group of guys. It’s going to be a really exciting year for me, my family and the rest of my teammates and we are up for it.”
St. John’s forward Brady Dunlap
On what Coach Pitino has wanted him to improve going into this season…
“Last year was just my strength – in terms of defense when they could bump me off my line pretty easily. I tried to really focus on that. I came into this year at 200-something pounds and I have lost that a little bit, getting back into shape. I have tried to gain weight and just get stronger.”
On what the coaching staff is looking from him this year…
“They know if I am out there on the floor for X amount of minutes that I am going to score. I think they are all supper confident in my scoring ability. It is more so everything else. Defensively, I am getting a lot better. It is more so offensive rebounds, defensive rebounds, assists – just trying to become a more complete player. They have been harping to me if I become more of a complete player I have a bright future in this sport.”
St. John’s guard Deivon Smith
On how comfortable he is playing in the backcourt with Simeon Wilcher and Kadary Richmond…
“I have a lot of confidence in myself, Sim and Kadary so if I have the ball or either one of them has it I feel comfortable that any one of us is going to make a good play. We have great energy and chemistry and feed off each other. We play super-fast so I think we will keep the defense on their heels a lot.”
On the player development sessions…
“The player development sessions in the morning have helped a lot just on my jump shot and confidence shooting. And then leading into practice, us playing game-like style and getting up and learning everything that’s going to help us.”
St. John’s guard/forward Aaron Scott
On what he worked on this offseason…
“I put a lot of extra time on my shot here because I know my role here is to shoot threes and knock down open threes. So, I did put in a lot of work on my three-pointer and it has gotten way better. We have individual sessions here where we work on nothing but shooting threes and I feel like I have gotten way better shooting.”
On working with Coach Pitino and this St. John’s team every day…
“We go hard every day. There are no seconds, no minutes, no days off. We just go hard every day. We are a very physical team – we are not a soft team I played against St. John’s last year and I could see that playing against them – a very physical, very defensive-minded team and they like to push the pace. That is what it has been like here.”
St. John’s forward Ruben Prey
On choosing St. John’s…
“This is the best program for me to develop as a player and a person. We’ve got legendary coach Rick Pitino, so that also made me want to come. I think I learn something from Coach every day. I can’t tell you something really specific, but every day I learn something new from coach. I think that’s really important because even though it’s just some small details, when you start adding them up, it makes a difference.”