Sit down with Shaka Smart
Taylor Howsmon - Sports Editor
Issue date: 11/5/09 Section: Sports
Q: One thing that stood out last year was 6-4 to 6-6 guys: Ed Nixon, Brandon Rozzell and Bradford Burgess, etc. What has their development been like?
A: It has been very good. Those guys have been at VCU when a lot of winning has occurred and they have had a significant role in that winning. Now the question is, can they take that next step? And certainly with Eric Maynor moving on, you don't really look for one guy to step in and fill that void, in terms of the leadership he provided. But you look for several guys and certainly those three guys are candidates.
Q: Looking to the front court, where, if you look at what you have returning, looks to be a strong part of this team with Larry coming back-what have you seen from them?
A: Larry has done a great job. He's still learning. Larry is continuing to improve on the offensive end, where he has a huge upside. Is he a finished product? Definitely not, but especially for the future it bodes well for us.
Q: Talk about the new faces. You talked about the freshmen but also with Skeen and Gavin being able to join the team. What leadership have those guys been able to bring after playing at the division one level?
A: Jaime has done a good job. There is definitely no substitute for having played at the ACC level and playing a significant role. He will definitely help our team when he becomes elgible. The key is going to be him getting into good shape and getting an advanced feel of what we're trying to do.
Q: One opportunity you guys have this year that other VCU teams haven't really had is the home schedule, where you have big name programs coming in. What expectations do you have from those games?
A: The first thing is that you have to take one game at a time, so the last thing we need to do is look ahead. But as you look at the schedule as a whole there is some daunting tasks in terms of some of the teams coming in. But our players love challenges and taking on those challenges so I think it'll be a great opportunity for us as you mentioned.
Q: As you look at the CAA, there is a lot of talent returning all over this league. VCU has been the king of this league for a couple of years. How do you guys go into the season knowing that just about anyone can trip you up on any given night?
A: I think that is a testament to the league. I have always had a tremendous amount of respect for this league, but I didn't realize until I got here how talented this league is from top to bottom, both in terms of players and coaches. That is a humbling proposition, but I'm highly competitive and our players are too, that is what we want: to play against really good talent and go up against really good teams. And as you mentioned, we're going to have to be ready to do that night in and night out.
A: It has been very good. Those guys have been at VCU when a lot of winning has occurred and they have had a significant role in that winning. Now the question is, can they take that next step? And certainly with Eric Maynor moving on, you don't really look for one guy to step in and fill that void, in terms of the leadership he provided. But you look for several guys and certainly those three guys are candidates.
Q: Looking to the front court, where, if you look at what you have returning, looks to be a strong part of this team with Larry coming back-what have you seen from them?
A: Larry has done a great job. He's still learning. Larry is continuing to improve on the offensive end, where he has a huge upside. Is he a finished product? Definitely not, but especially for the future it bodes well for us.
Q: Talk about the new faces. You talked about the freshmen but also with Skeen and Gavin being able to join the team. What leadership have those guys been able to bring after playing at the division one level?
A: Jaime has done a good job. There is definitely no substitute for having played at the ACC level and playing a significant role. He will definitely help our team when he becomes elgible. The key is going to be him getting into good shape and getting an advanced feel of what we're trying to do.
Q: One opportunity you guys have this year that other VCU teams haven't really had is the home schedule, where you have big name programs coming in. What expectations do you have from those games?
A: The first thing is that you have to take one game at a time, so the last thing we need to do is look ahead. But as you look at the schedule as a whole there is some daunting tasks in terms of some of the teams coming in. But our players love challenges and taking on those challenges so I think it'll be a great opportunity for us as you mentioned.
Q: As you look at the CAA, there is a lot of talent returning all over this league. VCU has been the king of this league for a couple of years. How do you guys go into the season knowing that just about anyone can trip you up on any given night?
A: I think that is a testament to the league. I have always had a tremendous amount of respect for this league, but I didn't realize until I got here how talented this league is from top to bottom, both in terms of players and coaches. That is a humbling proposition, but I'm highly competitive and our players are too, that is what we want: to play against really good talent and go up against really good teams. And as you mentioned, we're going to have to be ready to do that night in and night out.
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