As practice nears, Rick Pitino has one big question about his revamped roster.
Who will lead them?
“I think that's my biggest concern,” Danis said Tuesday, the day St. John's officially announced Ed Cull as its new athletic director. [Jenkins] That was very good, but this group is not. [yet].”
St. John's has added a number of experienced transfers, from Kadary Richmond (Seton Hall) to Davon Smith (Utah) and Aaron Scott (North Texas).
But through the summer and early fall workouts, there was no one to fill that role. Four contributors from last year's team return, but Simeon Wilcher and Brady Dunlap are only sophomores.
That leaves juniors RJ Lewis and Zubby Ejiofor.
Ejiofor is expected to be the starting center and has the potential to develop into a leader.
The affable big man is well-liked by Coach Pitino, who frequently praises him as one of his hardest workers.
“Kadderly has a really good personality, he's soft-spoken, but he's strong-willed, so he's not Danis in that respect,” Pitino said. “You never know who's going to come up. I don't see us getting a Danis-type of leadership.”
“Cadderly's going to do it his way. Davon's a very outgoing guy, so he could be a leader. Zubby's outgoing, so he could be a leader. But I think it needs to be done by committee.”
Pitino drew laughter from reporters when asked what he thought about Connecticut considering leaving the Big East and joining the Big 12.
“We're going to fine the University of Connecticut for thinking about withdrawing. It's a big fine,” the Hall of Fame coach joked.
Despite the near withdrawal of two-time defending champions (the Big 12 Conference opted to “pause” talks about adding the Huskies), Pitino believes the Big East is still in a good position amid all the changes in college sports: The league has won four of the last eight national championships and is expected to be a powerhouse again.
“I think the Big East is going to be a lot better this year. I think it's going to be stronger because the lower-tier teams are on the rise,” he said. “I think the middle tier is going to be stronger. Xavier is going to be better, we're going to be better, Georgetown is going to be a lot better, and the top teams, Marquette, Creighton, Connecticut, are going to be strong again. [so is] providence.”
Coach Pitino believes internationally acclaimed forward Reuben Pry will be an “integral piece” to the team this season.
The Portuguese forward is thought to have the potential to excel in the NBA.
He arrived on campus in late August.
“Ruben was sick, but the change, the transformation in just two weeks was amazing,” Pitino said of the 6-foot-10 player with 7-foot-2 arm span.
Prey nearly joined the Johnnies last season but opted to remain overseas and play for Joventut Badalona, the Spanish club he has played for since he was 14 years old.
