An Interview With The Coach: Wayne Country Day's Head Coach Terry Jones

Earlier this week we got the chance to talk to the Head Basketball Coach at Wayne Country Day, Terry Jones. We were able to talk to him about his experience coaching Pack recruit Reco McCarter and we are extremely grateful for his time. It encourages me that there are coaches out there like Coach Jones. He views his role as the head coach at Wayne Country Day as an opportunity to truly pour into these young men as people, not just as athletes. He spends time investing in each individual and also takes them on team building trips to the beach, bowling, etc. I can't say enough about Coach Jones. He led Wayne Country Day to a 21-13 record this season and to the quarter-finals of the State Playoffs. Here is how the conversation went down:

WolfpackHoops: Tell us about Reco McCarter.

Coach Jones: Reco is definitely a great ball player. He has been blessed with a lot of natural gifts and abilities. This was my second full season coaching Reco and I have really had the chance to watch him develop as a player. When Reco first came here I wasn't sure what type of player he was going to be. I've watched him develop a great work ethic. This season he really fine tuned certain elements of his game. He began to work on some fundamentals and his improvement resulted in us having a better team. His jump shot really became a lot more polished as the season progressed and his ball handling ability improved a lot as well.

WolfpackHoops: Reco seems like he has raw athletic ability. His length seems like it would make him a really capable defensive player. Tell us about Reco's defensive ability.

Coach Jones: There is no doubting Reco's athletic ability. He is truly a defensive hound. For him to be able to play the way that he does offensively and guard the opposing team's best offensive player night in and night out truly puts him in a category that not many players are able to get to.

WolfpackHoops: Tell us about Reco's leadership abilities.

Coach Jones: When you have a kid of his caliber you want him to be a vocal leader. With that being said, one of the things that we teach here is that before you buy into someone's message, you have to buy into the messenger first. Reco is an unselfish young man who is developing character and integrity. Reco is definitely becoming a vocal leader and no one would disagree with him being in that position. His greatest strength is his intensity and it is contagious.

WolfpackHoops: Talk to us about Reco's recruitment.

Coach Jones: The recruiting process has definitely picked up. His opportunities are becoming greater. He’s getting recruitment on all different levels. Some players like to go to a smaller school and be a take over guy like Curry at Davidson, whereas other players like to go to the big universities where there is a big family environment. When it comes to NC State, Reco likes that it is local, and he is also a family oriented young man. He has had the opportunity to go to a couple ball games and he speaks very highly of the environment and the fans.