Interview with St. John’s Podcast host about Drissa Traore

[sbrand]

Sorry this is last minute but I have leading St. John’s podcast host and authority David Berov of the Eye of the Storm podcast to talk about Rick Pitino favorite Drissa Traore.

Check out his podcast

https://linktr.ee/eyeonthestorm?utm_sou ... file_share

Any questions?

[Jdrums#3]

Good job, Scott!

What is his honest projection for Traore in the A10 and does he have the drive to improve as a player ?

Also, does he think he can play some center in the A10 ?

Considering we may need him to play center since we are striking out on bigs so far.

[DeanDome88]

Rick Pitino favorite? Reminds me of when he said he wished he had a dozen guys who played as hard as Bruce Bowen before he got rid of him. I do not have any questions but am looking forward to the podcast.

[NYGFan_Section208]

Rick Pitino favorite? Reminds me of when he said he wished he had a dozen guys who played as hard as Bruce Bowen before he got rid of him. I do not have any questions but am looking forward to the podcast.

In fairness though...is Bruce B gonna really get to shine, if Larry Bird is not walking through that door...?

Go Rick

[reef]

What kind of role does he expect Drissa to have at Rhody since it’s a step down in conferences?

[sbrand]

Here it is

[hrstrat57]

Thx @sbrand looking forward to this one. If we can keep this player 2 years looks like a strong get!

[Jersey77]

Here it is

Thanks Scott, a good listen.

Nice to view something upbeat and not dealing with the NIL ugly discussion.

Also, a nice shoutout regarding Lawrence.

[sbrand]

Thx Guys. He has a chance to help us a lot.

[Billyboy78]

I'll take a kid like this over kids like the Mitchell twins and Brayon Freeman any day. Much easier to root for a guy like this. Get the culture back to where it needs to be.

[adam914]

I'll take a kid like this over kids like the Mitchell twins and Brayon Freeman any day. Much easier to root for a guy like this. Get the culture back to where it needs to be.

Agreed Billy, this is why I keep saying I think Traore will be a bigger addition then it may seem right now, and not because I expect him to put up huge numbers.

[PeterRamTime]

I'll take a kid like this over kids like the Mitchell twins and Brayon Freeman any day. Much easier to root for a guy like this. Get the culture back to where it needs to be.

That is why Drissa could arguably be as big of a get as Lawrence.

Perhaps our biggest issue was how our team dealt with adversity. It was absurd just how down on themselves they could get. They let the injuries and bad stretches in games and refs effect them way too much. I doubt things would have gotten near as bad if they just had more fight in them.

Now we have a guy that will always be a positive influence and always give maximum effort. That kind of thing rubs off on teammates.

All three newcomers seem to fit that mold. Signs seem to point to a more tough minded team.

[PeterRamTime]

How bout the JLaw shoutout?

Said he heard from other A-10 coaches not happy about us getting him and that they EXPECT him to be a1st team all A10 level difference maker.

I know we have nothing but doom and gloom around here, but it means more coming from a completely objective place.

Now let's land Javonte Brown!

[Jersey77]

How bout the JLaw shoutout?

Said he heard from other A-10 coaches not happy about us getting him and that they EXPECT him to be a1st team all A10 level difference maker.

I know we have nothing but doom and gloom around here, but it means more coming from a completely objective place.

Now let's land Javonte Brown!

I like Lawrence a lot and was very familiar with him, but not ready to say he will be All-A10 this season.
Our conference is loaded with excellent guards.

One thing I really like is that all 3 of our portal players are max-effort and high energy players.

Let's put the last several seasons in our rear-view mirror, because I feel we will see a much more competitive team this year.

[PeterRamTime]

How bout the JLaw shoutout?

Said he heard from other A-10 coaches not happy about us getting him and that they EXPECT him to be a1st team all A10 level difference maker.

I know we have nothing but doom and gloom around here, but it means more coming from a completely objective place.

Now let's land Javonte Brown!

I like Lawrence a lot and was very familiar with him, but not ready to say he will be All-A10 this season.
Our conference is loaded with excellent guards.

One thing I really like is that all 3 of our portal players are max-effort and high energy players.

Let's put the last several seasons in our rear-view mirror, because I feel we will see a much more competitive team this year.

A10 coaches seem to think so...

I'm not sure he would be 1st team by virtue of how much House and Green will be scoring the ball. Either way, he's definitely a really good get.

I agree, I've moved on to next season. Others seem to have some trouble with that, but I think there's plenty of reason to hope for a much more improved team. Can't wait to see who else we add, definitely a little disappointing it's taking this long, but NIL I think stymies the process a little. We may have Javonte Brown in the bag, while they're just stuck sorting out what they put in his bag.

[Jersey77]

How bout the JLaw shoutout?

Said he heard from other A-10 coaches not happy about us getting him and that they EXPECT him to be a1st team all A10 level difference maker.

I know we have nothing but doom and gloom around here, but it means more coming from a completely objective place.

Now let's land Javonte Brown!

I like Lawrence a lot and was very familiar with him, but not ready to say he will be All-A10 this season.
Our conference is loaded with excellent guards.

One thing I really like is that all 3 of our portal players are max-effort and high energy players.

Let's put the last several seasons in our rear-view mirror, because I feel we will see a much more competitive team this year.

A10 coaches seem to think so...

I'm not sure he would be 1st team by virtue of how much House and Green will be scoring the ball. Either way, he's definitely a really good get.

I agree, I've moved on to next season. Others seem to have some trouble with that, but I think there's plenty of reason to hope for a much more improved team. Can't wait to see who else we add, definitely a little disappointing it's taking this long, but NIL I think stymies the process a little. We may have Javonte Brown in the bag, while they're just stuck sorting out what they put in his bag.

I was feeling good about getting Brown a week ago, but now don't know.

It seems that some of the power conferences are settling on bigs now that haven't really filled up the stat sheets.
There are some really good ones out there, but probably out of our reach.

We may be on some international recruits or under-the-radar players, so we will see.

[steveystuds06]

We are in the mix with at least two players who haven't been discussed here once. I wasn't told the names, but I was told to trust the staff and give it another two weeks.

[Jdrums#3]

We are in the mix with at least two players who haven't been discussed here once. I wasn't told the names, but I was told to trust the staff and give it another two weeks.

Thanks for the intel, Stevey.

Let’s gooooooooo

[PeterRamTime]

I like Lawrence a lot and was very familiar with him, but not ready to say he will be All-A10 this season.
Our conference is loaded with excellent guards.

One thing I really like is that all 3 of our portal players are max-effort and high energy players.

Let's put the last several seasons in our rear-view mirror, because I feel we will see a much more competitive team this year.

A10 coaches seem to think so...

I'm not sure he would be 1st team by virtue of how much House and Green will be scoring the ball. Either way, he's definitely a really good get.

I agree, I've moved on to next season. Others seem to have some trouble with that, but I think there's plenty of reason to hope for a much more improved team. Can't wait to see who else we add, definitely a little disappointing it's taking this long, but NIL I think stymies the process a little. We may have Javonte Brown in the bag, while they're just stuck sorting out what they put in his bag.

I was feeling good about getting Brown a week ago, but now don't know.

It seems that some of the power conferences are settling on bigs now that haven't really filled up the stat sheets.
There are some really good ones out there, but probably out of our reach.

We may be on some international recruits or under-the-radar players, so we will see.

Yeah last year was like a big man Renaissance. From Edey to Clingan and others. Seems like there's more value this offseason on getting 6'10+ bigs. That's why guys like Zapala went to Michigan St and Foumena to Ms St. Desperate to have good size so you don't run into any significant mismatches. If we aren't in on Brown anymore it's probably because some P5 is after him now.

[reef]

I'll take a kid like this over kids like the Mitchell twins and Brayon Freeman any day. Much easier to root for a guy like this. Get the culture back to where it needs to be.

Well said , I feel the same

Great pod , sounds like we got the highest character guy possible and I think he’s definitely a rotation piece 6-8 type guy maybe 15-20 minutes per night

[Jdrums#3]

Scott, another excellent interview. Very much appreciated.

I noticed you were wearing SJU red. Did SJU recruit you out of the podcast portal?

But seriously, the addition of Drissa is looking to be very solid as a rotational piece at the power forward spot and maybe even at the 3 at times.

I really like high character, team oriented players and he certainly appears to fit that bill. He has good height, reach and motor so, it sounds like he will be helpful in us improving on D - which we desperately need to do.

I like the form on his 3 pt shot. But, he will need to work hard on improving his percentage from the line because we can’t afford to shoot from the line as a team like we did last season.

I don’t expect him to start because I think we will start 3 guards. However, I am intrigued with a lineup playing him at the 4 with Fuchs at the 5 and Green at the 3 while playing two guards. Or, if we can land at least one more solid center, seeing a bigger lineup occasionally (depending on matchups) of Drissa at the 3, Fuchs at the 4 and the TBD center at the 5 plus 2 guards, could also be interesting.

Imho, Drissa is an underrated addition that could help us more than expected. Good job by the staff on to on bringing him into the fold.

Great job, Scott! Go Rhody!

[Billyboy78]

We are in the mix with at least two players who haven't been discussed here once. I wasn't told the names, but I was told to trust the staff and give it another two weeks.

I hope one of them is large.

[PeterRamTime]

We are in the mix with at least two players who haven't been discussed here once. I wasn't told the names, but I was told to trust the staff and give it another two weeks.

What if we don't wanna wait no mo?

[steveystuds06]

We are in the mix with at least two players who haven't been discussed here once. I wasn't told the names, but I was told to trust the staff and give it another two weeks.

What if we don't wanna wait no mo?

We had a visit yesterday.

[Billyboy78]

We are in the mix with at least two players who haven't been discussed here once. I wasn't told the names, but I was told to trust the staff and give it another two weeks.

What if we don't wanna wait no mo?

We had a visit yesterday.

No name? Position?

[PeterRamTime]

We are in the mix with at least two players who haven't been discussed here once. I wasn't told the names, but I was told to trust the staff and give it another two weeks.

What if we don't wanna wait no mo?

We had a visit yesterday.

How.....tall was he?

[sbrand]

Jdrums classic observations. I was waiting for someone say did you two call each other before the podcast to plan what you were wearing. Or something like that.

For the record, mine is orange.

[reef]

Loved in the pod when he talked about Lawrence , sounds like he may be special !

[adam914]

Finally got a chance to finish listening to this today. Really nice job on the interview Scott. Agree with others that the added nugget about Lawrence was really interesting to hear. And Drissa sounds like he could be exactly the type of player we need on this roster.

[steveystuds06]

What if we don't wanna wait no mo?

We had a visit yesterday.

How.....tall was he?

I have no idea. I wish I had a name, but all I'm getting told is that we had a visit, we are in the mix with a few players that haven't been discussed here, and to expect some news soon. My guess is something will leak in the next few days.