Kevin Keatts: "We're Going To Try And Play Faster"
NC State head coach Kevin Keatts sat down with the media to discuss his team at the 2024 ACC Basketball Tipoff. Check out what all he had to say.
NOTE: Click the audio above to listen to the interview.
What's it felt like, more press, more media coming to you guys, especially with this preseason?
You know, I tell you what, I get more pleasure on the scene than the love that our players get. I mean, it's been incredible and well deserved. You know, the thing that's so special about this is that you have a lot of grandparents that will tell you about 74 and tell you about 83 and rightfully so, man, unbelievable championships, great people, great basketball teams. But this team was able to create their own memories. Obviously, winning the ACC the way we did and then obviously going to the Final Four. I think that makes me feel really good about it. You know, we took a number 10 seed, and that number 10 seed, I'll fix it for somebody. That number 10 seed goes on to win five games in five days. I think that's really what makes me happy.
Kevin, with the turnover that you've had, how do you still make sure you fill it off last year's success?
You know, that's a really good question. You know, we've got eight new guys, as we did last year, and this year we've got five returners. I'm leaning on those guys, especially the three guys, Michael, JT, and Ben, who played a lot of minutes. You know, my job is to teach our program. Their job is to, you know, tap down on our culture and who we are and how hard we play and everything else. We've got some talented dudes that we brought in, whether it's the transfer portal or through the high school ranks. But one of the things that this particular group of guys has to learn is how hard we compete at NC State. And I think our returners are really helping us in that area.
Jim Phillips said that the ACC was devalued. I'm hearing your response just now. And you had a great response as far as the coaches are concerned that left the conference or retired. For yourself, for Hubert Davis, for Tony Bennett, the ones who have been to the bottom four, at what point do you think this is the point where you guys are starting to be recognized as those coaches for the ACC?
Yeah, I said it before. We lost some really good Hall of Fame coaches that have been in this league. They had a big voice. You couldn't tell me if those guys were still in the league. They would accept the fact that we're getting five teams in the league. Their voices would really carry. In order for any of us in this league, 18 coaches, we may have that type of voice one day. But in order to do that, we have to continue winning games. I think that's important. I'll top down on it. We do not go to the final four if we do not compete in the ACC, where we're battle tested through those 20 games that we play.
Coach, you bring that up in the fact that the ACC being as difficult as it is throughout the conference. Despite not having a lot of teams getting into the NCAA tournament, we've seen year after year in recent history, the success of those teams above all the other conferences. Shouldn't success speak for itself for the ACC now?
Yeah, I think so. But here's the problem. Every committee values something different. It's almost a little bit weird because when it comes to the ACC, it seems like lately that whatever they value, we haven't been able to provide. I said this, I think we have to start concentrating on how much we can win in the non-conference because that has been a major factor in deciding who goes to the tournament. I didn't think we were seeded right. I thought by our team performance throughout the year, we were seeded right. But after you win five games in five days, it's hard to... I was thinking about Texas Tech, thinking about who they saw us beat. We're 11th seed and they worked all year long to become a sixth seed. I just didn't think we were seeded right. That being said, I think the committee does a tremendous job of what they do. I think as coaches also in our league, it's our responsibility to try to win as many games as we can in the non-conference so we can raise our conference net up instead of more individual nets.
Kevin, DJ was a totally unique player. With him gone, how does that change stylistically the way your team is going to play this year?
Well, two things. I'm never going to coach a guy like DJ Burns. All you can say is nobody in college basketball is probably going to coach a guy like DJ Burns. How unique was he? He's got to be frustrating to guard because you can't front him in the post because he's catching the ball with the three-point line so you can't front him. Then he would back you down and then if you decide that you want to double him, he would find open shooters. That being said, when I went out to recruit, I didn't look for DJ Burns. I looked for good players. I'm never going to replace him. I don't have DJ Burns on his roster. We probably don't have DJ Horne on our roster. But we've got some guys that are good players that can do it in their own way.
So how does that change stylistically what this team will look like on the court?
We're going to try and play faster. Here's the weird thing is we still played fast with DJ Burns but we would wait on him and obviously run a lot of tough action if we could but with this particular team, we have to get out and run more. I think we have to create some more opportunities off of our defense.
Kevin, you've seen a lot of freshmen in a practice setting now. What have you noticed from them and their growth from the summer to now?
Our freshmen are really talented. Paul McNeil can score with the best of them. He's probably 6'5", 6'6". He can really shoot the basketball. Trey Parker is a combo guard. They can play one and two. Super athletic, very quick. Heard can play some two and three. He's a guy that can score a lot. The biggest thing that all freshmen, including my freshmen, they have to learn how to compete every day. I think you see moments where maybe on a Monday or Tuesday they may be really good and Thursday and Friday they may struggle. It's more being consistent because you're young. It's going to bed at night, eating the right stuff, doing all of the right things that will get them consistent on the basketball court.
Kevin, who have you challenged to be that culture guy?
You mean coming in?
Whoever is on the roster. It could be a DJ Burns or a player like that. Who do you want to step up and be a player like that?
Last year, I will tell you this. At this point, we had no idea that DJ Horne was going to be DJ Horne and Mo Diarra was going to rebound the basketball. What we learned as we go through the exhibitions and through games and everything else is that the cream always rises to the top. Somebody will step into that role.
I think we've got several candidates that could be really good. I'm hoping that Ben Middlebrooks has a breakout year. I thought he was really good against Texas Tech. Michael, you can't say enough about him and what he did in the NCAA tournament and the ACC tournament. You've got three dudes that have transferred in that have all played in the ACC. Brandon Huntley-Hatfield, Mike James, Dontrez Styles, and then you had a guy like Marcus Hill who was a big scorer. I couldn't tell you today who's going to accept the role. I've lost my leading scorer for probably the last six or seven years. We've got to figure out who's going to be this year.
What impressed you the most about Georgetown transfer Dontrez Styles?
He can play some three and four. Super athletic. You can tell he's really worked on his outside shot. When you look at his stats from last year playing in the Big East, very efficient on the three-point line. He has a chance to be a really good player for us and wear a lot of different hats. I think he can rebound forwards. He can rebound in transition. I've already told him there's one thing that he will not accomplish here at NC State. When we have prime time with the Pack, he will not win the dunk contest. It's going to go to Trey Parker. He didn't like that. He's like, I'm going to win the contest. We'll see if I'm right about him.
You seem to have a very deep and versatile roster. Could you see lineups where you can go big with Ben and Brandon? Do you see lineups where you could have your maybe pass Torin Dorn in small ball form?
Yeah, you will see at some point Ben and also Brandon on the floor together. You can add Ish in there. Dontez is going to play some Torin Dorn roles and all that other stuff. We do have the versatility to match up with different styles and different people that we play depending upon size.
What do you want to learn when you play against Purdue, either Ole Miss or BYU?
I just want to learn that we're competing and playing hard. These are early games. My toughest challenge when you've got eight new guys is to try to get them to be ready to play on Thanksgiving or obviously at the start of the season. It's a measuring stick that you want to see where you're at, but it's some opportunities for you to get some early wins.
Are the returning guys, are they preparing themselves in a different way this year? Do you sense that they have more of a lean reputation than themselves after what happened last year?
Man, they're walking around with major swag. I said at my press conference a few weeks back, Ben Middlebrooks is having the time of his life. I've got to slow him down a little bit. But they're excited. They're having a good time. I'm talking a little bit off the court right now, but when it comes to a work ethic and teaching the new guys what's expected at NC State, they've done a great job. We didn't become a really good team until late March when Michael started realizing that his voice matters. He started talking. I looked around at one huddle and he's talking to somebody. I was like, hold on, is that Michael? Because he hasn't said a word all year long. What we're trying to do is get the eight new transfers to talk and be a part early. It's hard to talk when you don't know what you're saying, but you can say, play harder, be here, do that type of thing.
How did March and April change you, if any?
It didn't. It changed me in the fact that not as a coach or the way I go about things, it changed me in that I got a chance to look at a group of guys that pretty much everybody gave up on outside of the guys in the locker room. It really doubled down. As coaches, we all say that it's a marathon, not a sprint. NC State basketball this year, it tells you everything about being a marathon. Coaches, we all talk about, you've got to get your team ready for March. You've got to be ready for March. Obviously, you take a beating all year long from everyone and then your team might not be ready for March. We were prepared for March. That was a good thing about it.
Still, five wins, five days. Has it sunk in how enormous of an accomplishment that was?
I usually go back and I watch every game. I start from the beginning to the end. This year was so special, I started at the end. I got through Purdue real quick. I never wanted that one. I didn't want to. I watched every game backwards. Those nine games, I watched probably four or five times just to see. It was special. It was unbelievable. I'll be there if there's another team, hopefully in my lifetime, that wins nine games, nine elimination games in a row. I want to be standing right beside them congratulating them. It's a tough thing to do. Our conditioning really showed through. We didn't, for those five games, there weren't any breaks. This team was unique. On the way to shoot around, doing DC, we would listen to rap music. We would put on every song. They never put on Biggie Smalls, which I liked, which I was disappointed about. But on the way back, we would play Marvin Sapp. We would play all types of gospel music, Kirk Franklin. The bond that you get when you win that many games in that many days, this team is going to be forever remembered for what they did.
You said that you haven't changed, but has life changed for you, in terms of getting recognized, like around Raleigh at all? What's different?
That's a good question. I don't think life has changed. I get a couple people every now and then who say, I recognize your face, I know who you are. The ones who are not basketball fans. I think you guys will love this part of it. I think you're a newscaster. Aren't you on TV? They're like, yeah, that's me. It hasn't changed. If anything, it's strength in my face. What I believe in, and how hard you gotta work, and a group of guys doing something special. It was really special to see this group of guys come together. Now, everybody will ask, how did you do it? One of the things was we never panned because we lost seven games by five points or less. Seven ACC games by at least five points or less. So we always knew we had a good basketball team, we just were not finishing. So we concentrated on more of ourselves and how we can get better than our opponents.
Do you want some swag for you? Huh? Do you want some swag for you?
Man, I've always had swag. But if you want to give me extra, I'll take it.
I wanted to ask about one of your conference rivals since you've experienced there in Louisville. What did it mean for the ACC to hat-pick Kelsey and get the Louisville program back to kind of what it was?
I think it's, you know, listen, I was there for three years. And my three years may have been as assistant coach, you know, we went to the Final Four, we went back and won the National Championship, and we went to Sweet 16 before I got my job at UNC Wilmington. It's a special place. And if he can turn it around, it's a special place for Louisville, but it also helps our conference. And I hope all of our teams are really good because we just want to uplift the conference.
Jim Phillips, mentioned today in the press conference, do you think it was, do you guys think it does a better job of promoting itself, and it might result in more pitch-to-the-edge type of basketball? Do you think that's a valid idea, I guess?
Yeah, I think it's, I'm rooting for all of our ACC teams to get some early wins because, you know, basically it's coming down to the numbers. And if the numbers don't work, it doesn't look like we're getting a bunch of teams in. We used to have four teams, or four out of 15. Now we've got 18. So we, as a collective group of coaches, we've got to figure out how to get back to the old days where we're getting 8, 9, 10 teams in, especially when you've got 18.
Do you think it's done any good in promotion, in PR, doing a good job of that?
I think promotion is important, but the most important thing is winning.
What kind of comments have you had in the last, like, a moment to help NC State maintain that top tier of college basketball programs, or do you not think about that?
Well, I think because of college basketball and the way it is now, it's a one-year deal. I mean, everything starts over. And it's not just me, it's everything starts over. So it's not, it wouldn't be fair for me to say the one thing that we can carry over is our culture and how hard we play. You know, I'm not going to say because D.J. Burns is good and D.J. Horne is good and that team is good and Casey Morsell and Mo Diarra, it has nothing to do with this group. This group has to go out there and find their own way, and we've got to figure it out. We've got a long ways to go, but I do like that group.
Do you feel like now that you know what you're looking for, what have these other five guys ever done for you?
As a team who has lost its leading scorer almost every year, we've created leading scorers and I think we have a. I'm not going to give you my secret, but I think we have a good formula of bringing in transfers that have been successful. When you look back at my tenure here, I've done a great job for it. Identifying the right transfer is very important.
DJ Burns plays for Pat, Kelsey, at Winthrop, prior to transferring into you. What did you see from him when he first came into your program? Maybe signs of Pat's coaching style and just things that he maybe, you know, you all have ties to his staff as well, but when you brought in DJ Burns, how did you have some of that with Pat's coaching?
That's a hard question because he had a chance to play for three different coaches and Pat certainly did a good job with him. Rick Barnes started it off and probably you'll give Rick Barnes a lot of credit because he was tough on him, didn't play him, because he wasn't ready to be played. And then obviously it forced him to transfer over and Pat did a good job and he got coached again. I just like his ability to win. Last year when I asked the team about who had been to the NCAA tournament, it wasn't many of them, but DJ Burns was one of those guys. I just think he's had enough coaches where he's gotten better. I became a better coach when I realized who DJ Burns was and we started playing to his strengths and not his weaknesses and I think that really helped our team.
Kevin, they were asking you earlier about promotion and marketing and helping the ACC and getting them to say what went through your mind when you were crafting the conference schedule and seeing the coach's meetings.
Yeah, I don't know what went through my mind when I said I'm going to Kansas. And I don't even drink, but I'm refrigerated. Did I drink something that night when I signed that contract? No, it's important. We got a chance to, we got Texas at home, which is really good. Really good program, but we wanted to challenge ourselves. We didn't want to get to the end when we have such a good year and then don't have the opportunity to play because someone's going to hold a conference against us. Also, if you look around our conference, I think our entire league has raised their level of who they play based on the fact that we just, when you look back at it, which is crazy because in the net it bakes your non-conference in there, it bakes your schedule, but outside of it is also a spot that says non-conference and how you do it. So I think as a league, we've done a good job. I do think Jim Phillips is correct. We are continuing to market, but in order to market, we've got to help him by winning.
What kind of voice does Brett Nelson bring and is he now the best shooter on the staff?
He's the second best shooter on the staff behind me. I think Brett brings a lot of experience in a lot of different ways. He's been a head coach before. He was a McDonald's All-American. He can relate to today's players. It's always good when you add someone of his value to our program. We're excited to have him. Him and Kareem had worked together before. I don't talk enough about my staff, but we don't make that amazing run without the staff. The countless hours that they worked and the work that they put into all of the players and how they helped us turn everything around. So I just think he compliments the guys that's there. I wanted to go and get a guy that would compliment our assistant coaches that we have.
You have a very flashy player in Trey Parker. What does he add to your offense?
It's crazy to say that, but when you see him play, he's not as flashy as he is and he's a good basketball player. What I wanted from Trey to be more of a basketball player than to be a guy who's just about Instagram and Snapchat. He's a talented basketball player. He's a freshman, but he's a really good basketball player that'll bring a lot of value to our program. He's got a lot to learn, but he's going to be good. When you watch him, he knows how to play as opposed to what you see on the internet a lot.
What players on the bench from last year could help you out this year?
I use a Breon pass, for example. It comes into the Louisville game. DJ Horne's not playing. Makes a couple big shots for us. We needed that. What I learned is that everybody on our bench and everybody in our game from last year was invested in NC State basketball. All they wanted to do was win. It didn't matter who got the credit as long as we played together.
How have you seen Jayden Taylor grow from year one to year two? Especially from a leadership role?
JT had some great moments for us last year. I expect him to have some really good moments this year. I think in the maturity part of it, when he came in, he thought that you had to score, score, score. My job is to understand that you don't have to score, score, score, score. You've got to be a complete player. If you become a complete player, then your scoring will kind of eventually happen for you. He's embraced several roles. I've asked him to be the best defender on the team. I've asked him to become a better passer, clean up his assist to turnover ratio. I've asked him to shoot better from three. So he's really worked hard to try to be a complete player.
Are there particular moments beyond Michael's shot? Are there particular moments that are just crazy?
Well, just think about this one. No DJ Horne against Louisville. That's the toughest game that you play no matter what people say. It's the first game of the tournament that's the toughest one. Look at the championship game. We were subbing Casey Morsell in and out. Obviously with his hamstring, we kind of have it. The Oakland game was pretty impressive because of that part of it. Michael's shot speaks for itself. But throughout that tournament, we had so many guys step up. Ben Middlebrooks in Texas Tech was really tremendous. So it wasn't just one guy who played great. We had a bunch of guys that contributed. Even though we were down to 7 dudes at one point, we played some guys that really stood out. Mo goes down as the leading rebounder in the history of the ACC tournament. You guys have covered that. You know the guys who have played that tournament. They're going to make an argument that they didn't play five days, but they still won.
What have you seen from Brandon and Mike as a team? How do they fit into this year's team? How’s their confidence heading into this season?
It's tough. I was at Louisville, so I experienced the highs. But when you lose, no matter what they did, for whatever reason, I still think Ken was a really good coach. I just think it never came together. But at the end of the day, I think both of those guys, they have something to prove individually. They know that they are better than the other guys. They know that they are better than Louisville’s record individually. So I think they have a lot to show.
You have some of the transfers coming in? Obviously they're going to be differential at first, but you also work them in circumstances. How do you strike that balance where you can speak to them even though you're a new guy?
That's the toughest thing, because what I'm learning is that if you don't teach a freshman how to play hard without knowing the system, you can lead by example by your work ethic. Those are voices also when I'm speaking the word. Give back and give some of your experience over the years to some guys you may meet.
Do you feel like when you go to Louisville, those kids, their experience has value?
Yeah, absolutely. Whether you win or not, playing in the ACC whether it’s for 2 or 3 years you can’t ignore that experience that they have.
You talked significantly about Michael's leadership growth. What about, yes, he's talking more, but what about the way he talks sticks out to you?
Michael became a great point guard once he realized that his words matter. A point guard, as we all would say, is an extension of a coach on the floor. He learned how to pat some guys on the back. He learned how to say this to a certain player or say this to a certain guy. I think when he learned the power of words is when he really took off as a point guard.
When you were telling the story about how you heard him talking in the locker room and you were like, oh my God, Michael what game was that? Do you remember?
Michael was going off on something. Michael was kind of calming him down. The way he calmed him down was pretty impressive. Michael will play a lot of basketball in his future, but he's the one guy on my team that I could see being a coach one day.
Kevin, you're traveling out west. You talked about what that might look like. Football coaches here in July talking about going once a week. You guys are doing two out there.
That's something we play Wednesday, Saturday, which we do. We're probably going to end up leaving on a Monday, probably practice at home on Monday, get on the flight late on that evening, get out there, try to practice somewhere Tuesday or shoot around on Wednesday. Play the game on Wednesday, but you can’t do the trip without being gone the entire week. We’ll probably leave on Monday and we’ll get back on Sunday. That's the challenge of it. It is what it is. You have to do it. There are two really good programs out there. I remember, hopefully, it will help me a little bit being in the CAA. We played Thursday and Saturday. We really didn't have a day in between. In this situation, we've got a couple of days, but it's a tough trip, especially when you have a guy like that.
Is there a particular area, mentality, player, anything of that nature that you think will take some people by surprise when you look at some of the guys?
I think we have a bunch of guys on our roster that are all 10-14 points a game guys. I think one of those guys can creep up to 18 to 20 points a game. I think what's different about this team is we don't have the big scorers in Terquavion Smith, Jarkel Joiner, and DJ Horne. I think we've got a bunch of guys that are right around the same ability to do what they want to do. I think we've got a bunch of guys that are right around ability who can score the ball.