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Head coach Mark Gottfried sat down and talked to the media about the upcoming season in Charlotte at ACC media day, here is the transcript of what he had to say:

Q. Tony Bennett was just in here, so I’ve got the pack line defense on the brain. Last year there were so many times late in the shot clock where you had jumpers, courageous jumpers against the pack line or Cat Barber driving. The two guys who took the jumpers are now gone. You’ve still got Cat. But the question is who’s going to take the tough shot now against the pack line defense?

COACH GOTTFRIED: Well, I think it’s a great question, and I think when you look at our team, Ralston Turner was a fifth year senior, Trevor Lacey was a fourth year junior. Those two guys had great experience and they both seemed to make very timely shots, big shots, key shots throughout the game, that key possession where you felt we really need to score on this possession down the floor.

I think for us that’s going to be the question. Can we develop some guys that can step up and make some shots. We’ve got a lot of very capable players, they just haven’t done it a lot at our level. So I think for us just trying to figure out as we go through the November and December games and figure out how we’re really going to score and score at key times I think is going to be a big thing for us as we get into ACC play in January.

Q. I know what your answer will be, but would you trade Cat for any of the other very good point guards in this league?

COACH GOTTFRIED: No, no, I love coaching Cat Barber. What I like about Cat is, number one, he’s just a great young guy and he’s very coachable. He wants to learn. And with him we’ve always tried to balance being that quarterback, that kind of cerebral point guard with at the same time just using his blaring, God- given speed and quickness.

I think we even got last year in the middle of the year where it was almost like, Cat, you’ve just got to turn it loose. You’re almost trying to think a little bit too much. You’ve just got to cut it loose and go. I think kind of when he did, his game, I thought, went to another level.

Now he’s a junior. You’ve got a guy now that’s a little bit older. He understands everything that’s going on around him, and I think he can start balancing those two things a lot better and do it really well.

Q. One of the funny dynamics when the players were in here, I asked Cat about is he a vocal leader, and he kind of started to explain that he was, and Beejay was sitting over there going, you’re lying. What’s your impression of his role?

COACH GOTTFRIED: Well, I think Cat is getting better at that. I think he’s one of those guys that when he was in high school, they just kind of played. It’s the old term, I used to say pivot pass, tear ass, first one to 100 wins, and that’s kind of how he played. He just kind of zipped up and down and he never really had to do much else.

So when he got to college it’s a little bit different for him. I think he’s getting a lot better. He’s getting better at using that great speed that he has. His shooting is much better. He’s a much better perimeter shooter. But at the same time, he’s starting to really learn how to get guys in the right places, whether it’s defensively what we’re in or what we’re trying to do offensively, he’s becoming a lot more vocal and stepping up there, as well.

Q. You’ve done a great job with this program, getting them to the NCAA Tournament, winning a few rounds. As far as the ACC is concerned, when you see what Virginia has done in the league and Notre Dame, is this team close to making that sort of — during the conference season step where you’re going to be in the conversation with those two clubs as well as Duke and Carolina?

COACH GOTTFRIED: Well, it’s interesting, I’ve been in the conference now four years. This is my fifth year, and I’ve watched Florida State win the ACC, Virginia, Notre Dame, Miami, teams that aren’t named Duke and North Carolina. And even though Duke and North Carolina are very good, I think it tells you how good our league is top to bottom.

We want to be one of those teams. We’ve lost some key players. We’ve got to replace key guys. But for us we want to be one of those teams that’s in the conversation every year and trying to figure out how to win an ACC championship or have a team that’s good enough to get in the tournament and then advance deep into the tournament.

Our league is as deep as any league in the country. You could be a seventh or eighth — you could finish seventh or eighth in this league and still be a team that could win games in the NCAA Tournament and advance, and I think that speaks of how well and how deep the ACC is.

Q. Beejay Anya has lost weight. Last year he had some sensational bursts of play, the first Duke game comes to mind. Is it automatic that playing with less weight, he’ll be more effective more minutes? If that’s not automatic, what has to happen for him to be more effective longer periods of time?

COACH GOTTFRIED: Well, I think with Beejay, if you take 40 or 50 pounds off your body, and I joke around with him, I said, you’ve been playing with a third grader on your back, and now, you know, you can move quicker and jump higher and get from one side of the floor to the other quicker and block a shot a little bit better. And just by the mere physical part of your body, he’s going to be better.

He’s also older. He’s been in college a few years and he knows he’s got to take that big step forward as a player. But there’s no doubt in my personal opinion that being lighter, being a little bit more agile, his stamina is better, he can get up-and-down the floor for longer periods of time than he did before, those things have to help him. They’re going to help him become a much better player.

Q. Your team has a lot of personality, a lot of guys with big personalities and they talked about how you allowed them to showcase those personalities. Do you have a guy on your team that has the competitive fire in his belly that you would like the other guys to also emulate?

COACH GOTTFRIED: I think we have a group of guys that they’re all pretty competitive. If I had to say somebody stands out, it would be the twins. I think Cody and Caleb Martin every day, they have kind of that chip on their shoulder, that edge. They want to challenge everybody every day in practice. If somebody has gone on for a fast break, they’re flying from behind trying to block it. They’re diving on the floor. They play at a level where I think everybody else who’s pretty competitive anyway. I think it kind of raises the game of everybody as far as how competitive they are.

Q. Going back to Cat, you want Cat to be Cat, but his freshman year he was on the gas a little bit too much, trying to prove himself. Last year he settled down a little bit. Where do you find that fine line, managing what he can do and what he wants to do?

COACH GOTTFRIED: Well, I think with Cat, a lot of things have happened. I think, number one, he’s improved himself as a perimeter shooter. And I think with him, that’s kind of changed the game for him because he doesn’t have to just use his speed and try to blow by people all the time. He can jump up and I think make a three-point shot a lot better than he has been able to in the past.

He’s learned how to be that quarterback. He’s a little bit older. He’s got a little more maturity. But I’ve told him many times, I don’t ever want him to sacrifice trying to be such the quarterback that he’s not using all that he has with his speed and quickness. He’s got a gear that a lot of people don’t have. There are times he’s dribbling the ball up the floor, and I think he’s going as fast as he can and the next thing you know he’s got one more burst of speed left in there, and he shifts it into another gear.

So he’s got something that a lot of people don’t have, and that’s the biggest thing I want him to use as far as getting the ball up and down the floor for our team.

Q. How do you assess this team’s prospects defensively? You have a fair amount of depth. Can that help you apply more pressure?

COACH GOTTFRIED: I think in general, a lot of people would say I’m more of an offensive-minded guy than a defensive-minded guy, which is okay. I think this is probably our best-built defensive team. We’ve got quickness, we’ve got some size and length all over the floor, and then we’ve got a guy in Beejay that can block a shot, that can protect the basket a little bit and keep you from scoring. So hopefully this is going to be a really good defensive team.

Q. What kind of a sophomore leap do you anticipate out of Malik? And is it so simple as sliding Terry into Trevor’s vacancy, or is that oversimplifying things?

COACH GOTTFRIED: Well, I think with Malik, I think he’s going to have a really good sophomore year. He’s worked really hard this summer. He’s had a really nice preseason as far as practices go. Last year, like a lot of freshmen, sometimes they can’t really score consistently night in, night out. You’re good enough to get 14 points at Miami and then come back and get 2 the next night. I think what you’re going to see is a more consistent guy that can get 10, 12, 14 points night in, night out. He’s learning how to do it. He’s a lot more comfortable with the ball. You know, he’s not in such a hurry.

Sometimes freshmen, they’re just in such a hurry all the time. They catch the ball and they’re going 100 miles an hour, and I think that’s the case with Malik. He’s a much more confident, relaxed kind of player.

I think as far as with Trevor, trying to replace Trevor, I think Terry has a chance to step in there. He’s much different than Trevor, and I like the fact that Terry has Big 12 experience. He’s played at Iowa State, at Kansas. The guy has been in some really big time games and he’s been a pretty good player in that league. We need him. We need Caleb. We’ve got a couple freshmen, our guy Maverick Rowan has a chance to really give us some scoring as far as a perimeter player goes.

But it’s hard when you have a potential fifth-year senior like Trevor Lacey that you’re just going to replace him with a guy. That’s hard to do. He was a really key player for us a year ago.

 

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NC State Basketball

The Roster for the NC State Men’s Basketball Team is all but Set Heading into 2024-25

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May 3, 2024

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NC State does have 1 scholarship available, and could still add a player out of the Transfer Portal. With that being said, the roster for the Men’s Basketball team is pretty much set for the 2024-25 season.

Non-graduates had to enter the Transfer Portal by April 30th, and Graduates had to enter by May 1st. Jayden Taylor and Michael O’Connell both made public announcements that they were returning, but the closure of entrance to the Portal means that Breon Pass, Ben Middlebrooks, Dennis Parker Jr. and MJ Rice are all set to return next season.

In a world where the Transfer Portal has all but become free agency in College Basketball, with some players switching schools on an annual basis, it’s encouraging that Kevin Keatts not only recruited a Top-10 Transfer Class, but also recruited a majority of the eligible players to stay. Three players that could transfer entered the Portal (I’m not counting Mohamed Diarra in these numbers, who opted to go pro), while 6 opted to continue running with the Wolfpack.

As a result, below is a breakdown of the roster for the NC State Men’s Basketball team heading into 2024-25, realizing the Wolfpack could still add one player (this team is deep).

1 year of Eligibility 

Guard Michael O’Connell
Guard Marcus Hill
Guard Breon Pass
Guard/Forward Jayden Taylor
Forward/Guard Dontrez Styles
Forward Ben Middlebrooks
Center Brandon Huntley-Hatfield

2 Years of Eligibility

Guard/Forward MJ Rice
Guard Mike James
Guard Jordan Snell (Walk-On)
Guard KJ Keatts (Walk-On)

3 Years of Eligibility 

Guard/Forward Dennis Parker Jr.

4 Years of Eligibility 

Guard Paul McNeil
Guard Trey Parker

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NC State Basketball

NC State’s Men’s Basketball 2024 Transfer Class Ranks in the Top-10 Nationally

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May 2, 2024

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NC State’s Men’s Basketball team has picked up 4 players from the Transfer Portal this offseason, and the class ranks 10th nationally according to ON3, and 15th nationally according to 247Sports.

ON3

247Sports

NC State’s 2024 4-Man Transfer Class

Center Brandon Huntley-Hatfield (Louisville)

Guard/Forward Dontez Styles (Georgetown)

Guard Mike James (Louisville)

Guard Marcus Hill (Bowling Green)

NC State still has a chance to move up in the rankings. East Carolina Power Forward Ezra Ausar just wrapped up an Official Visit to NC State, and things are looking good for the Wolfpack. ON3 ranks Ausar as the #67 overall player in the Portal, and the #15 Power Forward.

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NC State Basketball

WATCH: Andy Katz’s Offseason Convo with NC State’s Kevin Keatts

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May 2, 2024

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Andy Katz is beginning to make his rounds for his Offseason Convo series, and he took the time to meet with NC State Head Coach Kevin Keatts.

In their conversation, Keatts talked about what this run has meant to Raleigh and the Wolfpack fans, how it has helped sell the program the way it deserves to be in recruiting, and even how it helped and hurt in the world of the Transfer Portal.

Check out the conversation below:

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NC State Basketball

Guard Mike O’Connell Announces He Will Play His Final Year of Eligibility at NC State

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4 days ago

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May 1, 2024

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Guard Michael O’Connell announced today that he will be playing his final year of eligibility at NC State next season.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Michael O’Connell (@michaeloc_12)

Today was the final day graduate players could enter the Portal.

This past season, O’Connell averaged 5.7 points, 3.4 rebounds and 3.2 assists for the Wolfpack, starting 22 of the 41 games he played in.

O’Connell took over as NC State’s starting Point Guard on January 30th in a win against Miami.

He only scored in double figures in 9 of his 41 games this season, but 6 of those came in postseason play (5 in the ACC Tournament). O’Connell took things to another level in the ACC Tournament, playing aggressive on the offensive end, looking for his shot, and attacking the rim.

NC State played it’s best basketball of the season when O’Connell was running the show. He ranked 3rd in the ACC in Assist/Turnover Ratio (2.5).

Heading into next season, with a lineup filled with new faces, having the calming presence of a veteran leader like O’Connell is reassuring.

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