Kevin Keatts on Florida State: "They Can Beat Anybody on Any Given Night"
NC State head coach Kevin Keatts met with the media via Zoom Monday morning for the ACC's weekly teleconference.
NOTE: Click on the video in the player above to watch Keatts’ press conference.
On what D.J. Burns has meant to the program…
First of all, he’s a dinosaur when it comes to today’s center. What I mean by that is very rarely do you have guys today who don’t mind playing with their back to the basket. Most of the centers, even in our league aside from a couple of teams, most of these guys are face-up guys or pick-and-pop three guys. There’s nothing wrong with that, but he gives us something that we, and many teams in college basketball, probably haven’t had in a long time: the ability to score with your back to the basket where you can throw the ball inside. He’s a trusted passer; he really finds people. What a tremendous game he had at Wake. He’s had some really good games for us in an NC State uniform, but that’s probably his best one so far.
On the upcoming game versus Florida State and his statement to the Wolfpack before the Georgia Tech game, “Play the team, not the record…”
[Florida State is] good. If anybody in this league were to look at their record and say, “We’re playing against a team that's 7-15,” I think that’s a huge mistake. All you have to do is look at the Clemson game last weekend and them going on the road and winning at Pitt. They’re really good, and it’s unfortunate because obviously they’re going to be penalized for what happened in November and December with a lot of injuries and not having one of their better players for 16 games. This team is as talented as any team that we’re going to play in this league. They can beat anybody on any given night. I’m sitting here watching them yesterday and today. They’re really good. They’re talented, and obviously Leonard [Hamilton] has done a great job for a lot of years.
On if Burns is a scorer or playmaker…
Well, he was a playmaker on Saturday. He’s just an unselfish player that’s gotten better in a lot of ways. One of the things for D.J. is that he’s trying to get in the best shape he could to be able to play. We talked about him scoring, but nobody’s talked about how he played 33 minutes and was very effective in that game. I think he’s both. I think he has the ability to score the basketball with a soft touch. As I was telling the staff this morning, we don’t run a Princeton offense, but it’s almost like we had to run the offense through him with all of the foul trouble that we had. He didn't have a lot of assists, but the one or two he did have were very, very effective. He passes the ball, and he can score the basketball, and very rarely do you see that with someone his size.
On updates on Dusan Mahorcic and Jack Clark…
They both have injuries that are so nagging. Dusan’s injury was very similar to what he had last year, and so anytime you injure the same body part a couple of times, it takes a little longer. Jack’s dealing with a groin [injury]. Both of those guys, at any moment, could be ready, and then obviously it takes a fireman [drill] or a different cut a certain way, and it could set them back. I don’t have a timetable for either one of those guys. You’re going to hear rumors. Someone told me, “Jack’s playing against Wake Forest.” I was like, “Well, that’s not true because I’m the head coach. I would know that.” You’re going to hear that all the way until either of them plays in a game.
On what leads him in searching for graduate transfers, including intangible factors…
Transfers are good because you have the ability now to find guys who completely fit your system. When you’re recruiting a high school guy, you’re hoping and wishing that it translates to this level. With the transfer portal, you’re able to see them play against other Division I teams, even Power Five teams, if they fit in the way you play, and what they can contribute right away. The intangible is that you want guys with a winning mentality. I’ll give you an example: getting Jarkel Joiner. I have three other guys I could use as examples, also, but we really hit a home run with this kid because he’s a great person. He’s very focused. He’s good on and off the court. He’s great for your locker room. As much research as you can find out, and you’re not going to get as much as you’d like, just to find out what type of person they are and who you’re bringing into your locker room goes a long way.
On if it’s hard to get transfers acclimated to the new program…
Our system fits the way Jarkel wanted to play, and it was a perfect storm for him. When we lost Dereon Seabron, with his ability, he came in with the opportunity to start right away in a system where he could play freely, take a lot of shots, and get up and down. If I had to say a point guard he reminds me of, you throw back a couple of years ago to Markell Johnson who could really get after you defensively but had a lot of freedom. [Joiner’s] kind of fit that role from a basketball standpoint.
On the Wolfpack winning its last four one-possession games…
I think we’ve paid a lot of attention to detail late. That’s something we struggled with early. Early on in the season, I would have guys who’d break the huddle, and four guys would know where we’re going, and the fifth guy wouldn’t know, and it was very frustrating because the guy who didn’t know where he was going was the guy that I was running the play for. We’ve talked about staying locked in, staying focused, and understanding that everybody has a job to do. It’s kind of worked out. It hasn’t always worked to a perfect science, but those possessions are so important at the end of the game, and you have to have everybody locked in on the same page.
On how much the players factor into recruiting a transfer…
I think it was huge. When you think about this team, we knew we had [Terquavion Smith] back. We knew we had Ernest [Ross]. We had Greg [Gantt]. We had Breon [Pass], Casey [Morsell], and Ebe [Dowuona]. When we bring guys on campus, we want these guys to interact with those guys also. Transfers are smart. They go out and do their homework, and if you get one guy, it leads to another and understanding how this guy plays. I think it’s so much more important that these guys have a relationship off the court because I think it leads to playing well on the court. With this group, I think one of the things that helped us is that we were able to take a trip to the Bahamas. They didn’t know each other, but being able to get together, hang out, have some fun, and play some basketball brought them together. I think when you go out there and get a transfer, I think it’s important that they feel comfortable because you’re essentially bringing in five or six guys that are independent contractors, and you’ve got to get them all on the same page.
On Burns’ shot volume versus Wake…
I’ve got every post guy’s AAU coach calling me right now. Just so all know, for the record, if anyone says Kevin Keatts is a guards coach, I want everyone to understand that my post guy took 26 shots in a game. I can always say that now. He was amazing. It’s funny because, in today’s time, throwing the ball inside to a guy who gets 26 shots, never takes a three, and never gets in transition means a lot. He was tired the next day. He’s probably going to act like he’s tired today, and I’m going to tell him, “If you’re tired today, you’ll only get five attempts on Wednesday."