Talking about the new season
The NC State Wolfpack men’s media day at the ACC Tipoff in Charlotte.
Coach Keatts was noticeably more animated than in past seasons, at one point borrowing the camera from a cameraperson and filming, and generally being very lighthearted. That’s what an ACC Championship and Final Four run will do for you.
He said the team will be heading to Wilmington this weekend for their annual team building beach trip. He also added, they will not be visiting his new piano bar.
Highlights from the entire day including the press conference linked above and multiple ACCN interviews:
Michael O’Connell and Jayden Taylor
- When asked about which of the new players was standing out, both said Dontrez Styles. They said he was a good shooter, rebounder, and defender.
- Marcus Hill is playing well, he is a great defender
- if you’re coming to NC State, non-negotiable is playing hard
Coach Keatts
- Michael, Jayden and Ben are teaching the culture to the new guys while the coaches focus on teaching the system.
- I pride myself in not changing and being the same coach
- He really likes Dontrez Styles because he can guard multiple positions
- When talking about Brandon Huntley-Hatfield, he noted that we have two very good ACC centers, each with three season’s experience.
- Brandon Huntley-Hatfield is an underappreciated player. He is a better 3PT shooter than he has shown.
- He talked about the importance of the early season games. In order to promote a faster start this season, he already has the team playing more 5 on 5 than he has in the past. Normally, the focus would be more on skills at this point.