1. NC State basketball player Johnny Thomas was at the Alexander YMCA yesterday volunteering with the youth and teaching some basketball skills to the kids in the after school program. He looked healthy and was walking around with no noticeable limp. It's great to see a young man who is willing to give back, and without any publicity involved. It was only by luck that I walked by the gym before my workout to see Thomas playing with the kids.
2. Former NC State and current NBDL player Gavin Grant was at Reynolds this past weekend, helping out with the TOC. The surprise is that Gavin was on crutches and had both knees wrapped up pretty good. When asked what happened Gavin told us that he had recently had surgery on both knees. This is not good news with NBA Summer Workouts and Summer Leagues ready to start up.
3. The coaching staff will be taking a well deserved golf vacation this weekend. After putting in the work to bring in the #11 overall class, and already about to get back out on the recruiting trail in July, this is a much needed weekend for some R&R for the coaches. Have fun fellas!
4. As you know, Wolfpack Hoops will be in Long Beach, CA this weekend covering the Pangos All-American Camp thanks to you and your support. We are so proud to be a part of this fanbase and know for a fact that any school would be hard pressed to match the passion and the lengths NC State fans will go for their basketball (and football) program.
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25 Responses to "WOLFPACK HOOPS: QUICK HITS"I hope Thomas can get back to 100%. I think he can really help this us win and you always need guys like this to be a winning team. Great athelete and an even better guy. I'm thinking we can open up one of those needed 2010 scholly's by giving him an acedemic scholly. Kid has a ridiculous GPA apparently.
Thanks for the updates. Great to hear about JT and I am definitely hoping he can get back to full strength and reach his full potential.
WPH, clearly you guys are busy getting ready for Pangos and covering 2010 guys, but I was wondering when we might get some updates on the 2011 guys (Bello, Hood, Ross, etc,). I ws just browsing the profiles for those guys and it drew my interest. Thanks again for all the hard work and I hope you enjoy your trip.
^We will have a couple other video's coming out from the TOC including: LaQuinton Ross, Demarco Cox, Deville Smith, Tashawn Mabry, and maybe a short clip of Rodney Hood. We'll get as much info on who the Pack is pursuing in '11.
JT was a high flyer in HS. I hope he can return to form after so many knee issues. If he can, he will be more than a role player, he could be really special. Good luck Johnny!
Sid and Co., take a break! Hit 'em straight. You deserve it! Thanks for working so hard for NC State, guys.
Go Pack!
How does it work switching a player from an athletic scholarship to an academic scholarship? I have no doubt JT has earned it, but I have a hard time seeing how the NCAA would let it fly. It seems too prone to abuse ex. star player gets a 4.0 in an easier major, gets switched to an academic scholarship to make room for next star player who gets a 4.0 in same major etc.
WPH, yall seem to be pretty well connected and knowledgeable; any chance you could enlighten me on how it works?
Would you please address the Mykal Parker scholarship situation. Is the staff waiting to evaluate in person before offering? Thanks.
^ I think they're waiting to see how scholarship situation shakes out. As of now we only have 1 scholly available. I also konw the staff hasn't seen all that much of Parker. Many thought he'd surely end up at Virginia, so a lot of teams backed off innitially.
MontanaWolf,
To be honest, we're not exactly sure the details on how that works. We'll try to find that out and let you know.
MontanaWolf,
I am pretty sure that moving a player to an academic scholarship is actually against the rules. The only way will get any additional scholarships is if either someone leaves early, someone transfers out, or if we have a medical hardship.
Looks like the guys over at Pack Pride are a little pissed that you guys are going to Pangos. They're really trying to downplay the tournament and say that Ryan, Luke and Mychal might not be there and that it's getting blown out of proportion. Whats the chances the guys won't be there? that would suck.
^ not sure why they'd downplay it. There is going to be some monster talent out there. Scout's #1 player Harrison Barnes will be in the house.
And the fact that the camp's last two "Most Outstanding Players" were Brandon Jennings and John Wall should tell you something.
Also if you take a look at the Media List you can tell that this tournament is a big deal.
Telep and Daniels from Scout. Jerry Myers from Rivals. The guys from Prep Stars, BallisLIfe Slam Magazine and ESPN Rise are all expected to be there....along with the guys from Wolfpack Hoops!
We spoke with Ryan's mom this morning. He'll be there. Spoke to Parker's guy and said Mychal will be there no doubt. Sill waiting on a text back from Cothron, but last week he assured me he was going.
The Pack Pride people are not pissed at all about the Pangos trip. They are downplaying the fact however that a lot of people are assuming that both Cothron and Parker are "ours" just because we funded WPH's trip there. Will it help with their recruitment for us? Absolutely, but by no means are they delivered to State just because WPH is in attendance.
Well they're certainly not getting that impression from WPH. We are all hopeful that a Wolfpack presence at Pangos makes a good impression on Parker and Cothron, but that's as far as it goes. WPH has promised us nothing out of the trip except good video and some interviews, which will be much more than we would have gotten otherwise I guarantee you.
I'm not worried what anybody says about the pungo trip, the big time talent will be there and we will have the best video crew in attendance!!!! I cant wait to hear/see how the 3some play together!!! Remember guys that other sites, although they may cover the same school, are still trying to make a buck and no doubt WPH has shaken up alot of blogs/websites.
On Johnny Thomas, If he is healthy it will make state a totally different team giving us size, reb, def, and athleticism. He showed flashes last year of tough def and the athleticism that could stretch the floor and be the wingman on the fast break. Ive said all summer long if he is healthy he is the starter for us on day one. He really reminds me of an unpolished Gerald Henderson esp if he adds a mid range jumper. He is one of the most upstanding citizens on the team and I'm proud to have him apart of our squad, healthy knee or not!!
Who the hell is PackPride anyway? HA HA so sad ! GO WOLFPACK HOOPS ..... When you go to the tournament and cover those guys for us please try not to lose any sleep over PackPride's feelings being hurt because they are not getting the love and support that we have given you guys! We all bleed NC State red baby !!!!
As far as switching a athletic scholarship to a acedemic scholarship; a lot of Kentucky fans were asking the same question a month ago and as I recall it goes a little something like this:
Freshmen are not eligible at all
All others must meet a series of very difficult circumstances including a minimum 3.3GPA, show significant advancement in a " acedemically credible" major; complete an essay that is judged on its acedemic merrits. Simply put it is possible, however, it is a difficult process. Also most acedemic scholarships are partial, so the athlete will need to receive grants and loans to suppliment the balance. They are classified as a student walk-on. I think Johnny and Josh Davis could both be candidates next year. Josh is an extremely bright young man.
Why do State fans always have to try and divide their fanbase, when there are plenty of others who are willing to do it. Geez, just be excited you're getting extra coverage on three exciting prospects, and leave the bashing of our own out of it.
By the way WPH. Fly safe i know your in route to Cali as we speak!!!
I agree with Wolfpacker96. These other Pack sites or STILL Pack sites! There's plenty of room on board the USS Wolfpack for everyone. Some fans have different tastes. Some like their information in different formats. And, some like whatever they can Hoover up. We are all on the same team. If anyone's getting their feathers ruffled about a new site popping up it's because that means that they have to split readership. That's capitalism in a free market, baby. Nobody will corner a market forever. Let's all be adults and focus on what's really important, bringing the fanbase together under the Wolfpack Flag.
^
100% agree
I know this isnt an open forum but im curious what everyone thinks about our PG situation next year?? who will start for us?? who made the most improvements last year javi or julius??? since there is no real new news today i figured this could sustain my need for WPH!! haha
Leader,
Good topic. A lot is being made of Ryan coming in the year after next, but honestly, he will have to learn a lot before he takes over the team.
I think that he will be learning a lot from Julius Mays. I know people think that Javi has improved a lot, and he has. But, Mays is a solid decision maker, a leader on the floor and he calmly hits the pressure shots. Sid even admitted after his game winner and the ACC Tourney game, that Julius does these things in practice every day. Plus, there's the little tid bit about Julius showing DeShawn Painter around on his visit.
I'm not taking anything away from Javi. He is quicker and his shot has improved. He is tough. But, he is also a little hot-headed. That works against a PG at crucial times in ballgames.
Some have speculated that Julius would move to shooting guard. I don't know about that switch. Similarly, some have speculated that Lorenzo Brown might run the point. I ask, why shuffle these guys around? Mays is gaining priceless experience at PG during his Freshman and Sophomore years. Let him run the point with Lorenzo Brown and CJ WIlliams at the 2. That gives you a lot of flexibility at both positions, and just like Julius has, Lo Brown is going to have a learning curve, too.
There is a lot of pressure on these guys to come in and contribute right away, but realistically, they need to be acclimated to the waters of the ACC before being thrown to the sharks.
This league is not 'And-1.' Streetball is cool and all, but it is not a strategic game. It's an all-star, no defense, show. Even Ryan Harrow is going to have to make the simple pass periodically, to insure that it gets where it needs to be, and that will only come with experience.
My prediction for 2009/2010: Javi may start at the beginning of the year but he will split time with Mays. As the year progresses, I believe that Julius will win that battle and will be our starter by tournament time.
My prediction for 2010/2011: Javi will take a backseat to Mays and Harrow. Ryan will learn under Julius, but it will be like the old adage about the student becoming the professor. Talent wins out once the Student learns enough to teach. I don't know if Ryan will be second on the depth chart all year, but he will push Mays for the starting job in his Sophomore year. Go Pack!
I agree I believe julius is the man who looks to be taking the job esp the way he ended last season and the leadership qualitys he is taking. Javi has made great strides but as you pointed out PPack he is often hot-headed when things go south and you DEF dont want that in your floor leader.
Its interesting to me nobody is talking at all about degand... is it assured he is the 3rd man lookin in?? He looked great at times last year (home vs wake forest) and other times he looked hurt and lost. Javi and julius have been improving and learning and im not sure you want to take a step back by throwing Lo Brown in the fire, esp him being a true 2 guard. I would love to see Julius push the ball alittle more but maybe thats javi's game not his....
Isn't saying "the leadership role he's taking" mostly hearsay for Julius Mays? Are we going off of a statement from a recruit that he showed him around campus? And his improvement - he had that one game where he dropped 18 points - but does little improvement from a very low starting point (no pun intended) justify him running pg next year? Zo Brown is a top 30 recruit, the #7 pg in his class, and can only go up. A natural 2 guard getting more experience handling the ball for a year is not a bad thing. Really, was anyone satisfied with our pg play last year? What realistic measures have we seen that would suggest that these guards (javi, mays, degand) will actually produce while not turning the ball over? I love these guys, but they are just not legit acc guards.
^ Ill admit, Javi and Mays arent goin to be the best point gaurds in the conference, but there has been a considerable amount of improvement in each of there games and theres absolutely no reason why we shouldnt give J Mays a chance to show what he can can at the point alongside Javi, who by the end of the season was our best outside threat and undoubably showed an improved amount of maturity which should only get better as he continues to mature and get comfortable with the offense this off season. While i am absolutely excited for the arrival of Zo, i dont think we should put him as our PG, especially off the bat. Zo is a natural 2 gaurd and we should keep him were he feels most comfortable, especially his freshman year. And no matter what his performance shows, the next year, the gaurd postition will most likely be going to Harrow, and i doubt Lowe or any other state fan would rather see them share time at point than be on the court at the same time. Which means Zo would have to go back to the 2. So theres no reason to put Zo in a spot he's less than 100% comfortable at for just one year and then make him adjust to a new role the next. Plus, as good as Zo may be, it doesnt make him immune to freshman mistakes and problems adjusting to the ACC. I think were just fine with Javi and Mays running the point and i beleive with those 2 becoming more mature along with the other returning players and the arrival of Zo, Painter, Howell, and Wood, we should have a good shot of making the tourney this year
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