Post by elp525 on Jul 8, 2011 4:44:37 GMT -5
07/07/2011
Chip Fontanazza
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
The Mountaineers are full of new players on this year’s team and one of them is developing into a great leader on the court for the young Mountaineers. The only problem is his leadership skills won’t be used on the court until next season. Transfer point guard Juwan Staten is one of the many reasons why the incoming freshmen are having an easier transition to the next level.
Staten came from the University of Dayton and played significant minutes for the Flyers in his only season. He has to sit out this season because of NCAA transfer rules, but during the Pittsburgh Basketball Club Summer League Staten has proven to a great influence on the entire freshman class.
“Juwan is a great guy,” said freshman forward Aaron Brown. “On and off the court he’s giving us advice [because] he’s played at this level. For him to come in and give us little hints and pick us up is great.”
Staten has always considered himself a leader on the court because he plays the point guard position. But last season at Dayton, Staten was in the same situation as many of the freshman and the one thing that helped him adjust to the Division I level is by playing games.
“It helped me out a lot because last year I was a newcomer,” explained Staten. “I played in a lot of minutes so I had to learn on the go and I had to learn it fast. I’m able to help them out a little bit and the summer league helps out a lot because they’re not getting thrown right into the game. They actually get to play against some other college players before they actually step on the court for a real game.”
“The game is a little bit faster,” continued Staten. “They have to make faster moves and I’m just constantly letting them know what types of moves to make and what kind of things to be looking for when they play on the court.”
Even returning forward Kevin Noreen has been impressed with what Staten has been able to do on the court.
“He’s been great,” said Noreen. “He knows how to play basketball, obviously, his track record at Dayton speaks for itself. I think coming into next year he should be a starter for us right away. He’s that good, he has that type of talent.”
And that one year off will be different than any other year of basketball for Staten because he has played organized basketball almost every year of his life and sitting out a year will be a different experience, but it’s something Staten says does have its benefits.
“I’m going to be able to sit out and kind of learn the system a little bit, see what Big East basketball is all about and work on my weaknesses,” said Staten.
“It’s going to be tough, especially with the way I’ve been playing,” continued Staten. “Since I was little I never really had to miss any games so having to miss a whole year is going to be tough, but I take this and look at the positives.”
Chip Fontanazza
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
The Mountaineers are full of new players on this year’s team and one of them is developing into a great leader on the court for the young Mountaineers. The only problem is his leadership skills won’t be used on the court until next season. Transfer point guard Juwan Staten is one of the many reasons why the incoming freshmen are having an easier transition to the next level.
Staten came from the University of Dayton and played significant minutes for the Flyers in his only season. He has to sit out this season because of NCAA transfer rules, but during the Pittsburgh Basketball Club Summer League Staten has proven to a great influence on the entire freshman class.
“Juwan is a great guy,” said freshman forward Aaron Brown. “On and off the court he’s giving us advice [because] he’s played at this level. For him to come in and give us little hints and pick us up is great.”
Staten has always considered himself a leader on the court because he plays the point guard position. But last season at Dayton, Staten was in the same situation as many of the freshman and the one thing that helped him adjust to the Division I level is by playing games.
“It helped me out a lot because last year I was a newcomer,” explained Staten. “I played in a lot of minutes so I had to learn on the go and I had to learn it fast. I’m able to help them out a little bit and the summer league helps out a lot because they’re not getting thrown right into the game. They actually get to play against some other college players before they actually step on the court for a real game.”
“The game is a little bit faster,” continued Staten. “They have to make faster moves and I’m just constantly letting them know what types of moves to make and what kind of things to be looking for when they play on the court.”
Even returning forward Kevin Noreen has been impressed with what Staten has been able to do on the court.
“He’s been great,” said Noreen. “He knows how to play basketball, obviously, his track record at Dayton speaks for itself. I think coming into next year he should be a starter for us right away. He’s that good, he has that type of talent.”
And that one year off will be different than any other year of basketball for Staten because he has played organized basketball almost every year of his life and sitting out a year will be a different experience, but it’s something Staten says does have its benefits.
“I’m going to be able to sit out and kind of learn the system a little bit, see what Big East basketball is all about and work on my weaknesses,” said Staten.
“It’s going to be tough, especially with the way I’ve been playing,” continued Staten. “Since I was little I never really had to miss any games so having to miss a whole year is going to be tough, but I take this and look at the positives.”
