It's become a daily routine for Shaheen Holloway.
His team is usually ignored.
they get fired.
It happened at St. Peter's and it's happening at Seton Hall.
Last year, Seton Hall was picked by the league's coaches to finish ninth in the Big East, finishing fourth and winning the NIT, one of the season's big surprises.
A year later, nothing has changed.
The Pirates are projected to finish in 10th place, ahead of DePaul, their only eternal doormat.
Now, it's worth noting that Seton Hall lost star players Cadary Richmond (St. John's) and Dre Davis (Ole Miss) to the transfer portal.
Al Amir Dawes plays professionally in Greece.
The roster is almost completely new, with the only major returners being Dylan Addae-Usu and Isaiah Coleman.
Seton Hall is hard to predict.
“That's what it is, brother,” Holloway said Wednesday as the Big East held media day at the Garden. “People have time to sit down and pick other people's teams, and it's kind of crazy. They're not worried about anyone else. … You know, even though we are, it's kind of crazy. I don't care either. [picked] First or last? I have no choice.
“It doesn't mean anything. It's preseason. I'm only thinking about my team. You know me, you know my team, but as the year goes on we… We're going to get better. So, I'm not happy with where we are right now, but I think we can get better. I think we have a chance.”
Holloway doesn't want anyone to feel sorry for him after Seton Hall gets hurt in the transfer portal.
That's the way sports are now.
Plus, he seems to like what he has.
He sees depth at point guard, more options than last year's team, and the potential of this group.
Two of the key recruits, Scottie Middleton (Ohio State University) and Gerway Dual (Providence University), were highly regarded as four-star prospects even though they didn't have big freshman seasons at their alma maters. It had been.
“Scotty and 'G' have something to prove to themselves and to everyone else,” Holloway said. “With me, they have a fresh start, a fresh start. I'm interested to see how they take advantage of it.”
Coleman has been encouraged in the past.
He believes there is more talent on this roster than last year's NIT champions, despite the transfers of Richmond and Davis.
Perhaps most importantly, this group is aspirational and will only get more motivated in the future.
“Guys, you're all trying to get in the gym and get better. You guys are hitting me, you guys are trying to get your shots up, you're trying to incorporate this training,” Coleman said. . “People are itching to get to the gym. That's good to know.”
That's part of why Holloway is “interested” in this team, a group of players with shoulder injuries.
Once again, pirates are even a mystery to him.
But there's reason to believe the guy who led undersized St. Peter's to the Elite Eight and had a great performance with the Pirates a year ago will maximize the talent on the roster.
No one expected much from Seton Hall this time last year, but look how it turned out.
