The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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28 ■ THE WOLFPACKER TRACKING THE PACK Men's Basketball Roster Unveiled BY MATT CARTER The new-look NC State men's basketball roster has been released with updated jersey numbers and measurables. Head coach Kevin Keatts' second team at NC State will include just three returning players that saw action for last year's team that made a surprise return to the NCAA Tournament after the Wolfpack was picked to finish 12th in the ACC in the preseason poll. Fifth-year senior forward Torin Dorn, junior guard Markell Johnson and sophomore guard Braxton Beverly are back, but the rest of the roster will be new to NC State fans. However, redshirt junior wing C.J. Bryce (UNC Wilm- ington), redshirt sophomore wing Devon Daniels (Utah) and sophomore guard Blake Harris (Missouri) were on the bench last season as transfers. Harris will not be eligible to play until after the first semester ends. Redshirt junior post Wyatt Walker (Samford) and fifth-year senior wing Eric Lockett (Florida International) were added as graduate transfers, and redshirt sophomore post DJ Funderburk was signed from Northwest Florida State Col- lege. Three freshmen — post players Manny Bates and Ian Steere, and forward Jericole Hellems — also have joined the team. Kentucky transfer Sacha Killeya-Jones, another big man, will sit out this sea- son per NCAA transfer rules and then be a redshirt junior in the 2019-20 season. The 2018-19 basketball schedule is expected to be revealed by early Sep- tember. NC State will have home-and-homes with North Carolina, Wake For- est, Boston College and Pittsburgh in the ACC. The Pack will play at Duke, Florida State, Louisville, Miami and Notre Dame, and will host Clemson, Georgia Tech, Syracuse, Virginia and Virginia Tech. In non-conference action, NC State will host USC Upstate and Auburn, the latter being Dec. 19. It also will play Vanderbilt Dec. 1 in Miami and Penn State Dec. 15 in Atlantic City, N.J. The Pack is at Wisconsin for the Big Ten/ ACC Challenge Nov. 27. Here is how the new NC State roster looks, in numerical order: ■ 2018-19 Men's Basketball Roster No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Year Hometown 0 DJ Funderburk F 6-10 210 R-So. Cleveland 1 Sacha Killeya-Jones F 6-11 220 Jr. Chapel Hill, N.C. 2 Torin Dorn G/F 6-5 210 5th-Sr. Charlotte 4 Jericole Hellems F 6-7 198 Fr. St. Louis 5 Eric Lockett G 6-5 193 5th-Sr. Warner Robins, Ga. 10 Braxton Beverly G 6-0 180 So. Hazard, Ky. 11 Markell Johnson G 6-1 175 Jr. Cleveland 12 Manny Bates C 6-11 221 Fr. Fayetteville, N.C. 13 C.J. Bryce G 6-5 195 R-Jr. Charlotte 21 Ian Steere C 6-9 261 Fr. Sanford, N.C. 24 Devon Daniels G 6-5 200 R-So. Battle Creek, Mich. 33 Wyatt Walker F/C 6-9 240 R-Jr. Jacksonville, Fla. 55 Blake Harris G 6-3 190 So. Chapel Hill, N.C. Head coach Kevin Keatts has just three players returning this season that saw ac- tion for last year's NCAA Tournament squad. PHOTO BY KEN MARTIN NCAA Adopts Rule Changes For College Basketball The NCAA has adopted some "significant" rule changes that are expected to alter the landscape of college basketball. According to NCAA president Mark Emmert, the changes are intended to "pro- mote integrity in the game, strengthen accountability and prioritize the interests of student-athletes over every other factor." Most notably, the NCAA's Board of Governors and Division I Board of Directors announced on Aug. 8 that underclassmen — pending anticipated approval from the NBA and NBA Players Association — that declare for the NBA Draft and are not selected will have the ability to return to school. In addition, it will now allow "elite" high school basketball recruits and college players to be represented by agents while still playing. College underclassmen that want the option to return to school will be required to request an evaluation from the NBA Undergradu - ate Advisory Council before deciding to enter the draft. Also, if they opt to return, they will be required to notify their school's athletics director of that intention by 5 p.m. on the Monday after the draft. Effective immediately, the NCAA will permit college players to be represented by NBA-certified agents — the agents must also become NCAA-certified no later than Aug. 1, 2020 — beginning after any season, as long as they request an evaluation from the NBA Undergraduate Advisory Committee. Agents will be permitted to pay for meals and transportation for players and their families during the agent selection process and for meetings with pro teams, if changes are made to agent acts and state laws. If the NBA and NBA Players Association change their rules and make high school basketball players eligible for the draft at age 18, they will be allowed to sign with an NCAA-certified agent starting July 1 before their senior year of high school. However, they will have to be identified as an elite senior prospect by USA Basketball to be eligible for that. The agent agreements must be in writing and disclosed to the NCAA by high school athletes and the school by college players, and will be terminated when the student enrolls or returns to college. Division I schools will be required to pay for tuition, fees and books for basketball players that leave school following two years and return to the same school to earn their degree in the future. Former players will be eligible for financial assistance to complete their degree if fewer than 10 years have passed since they left school. The NCAA is also altering its rules for official and unofficial visits. Beginning this August, basketball prospects will now be allowed to take as many as 15 official visits, compared to only five before. The prospects can begin making trips Aug. 1 before their junior year of high school. They will be permitted to make five visits be - tween Aug. 1 and the end of their junior year; five visits between the end of their junior year and Oct. 15 after high school graduation; and five more visits between Oct. 15 after high school graduation and the remainder of their college eligibility. A student-athlete can visit a particular campus only once per year, and Division I schools will now be permitted to pay for 28 official visits over a rolling, two-year period (34 visits for service academies.) The previous totals were 24 official visits for Division I programs and 30 for service academies. Finally, a new recruiting calendar in 2019 will allow college coaches to attend more high school-sponsored events, but will limit their access to events not sponsored by high schools. College coaches will be permitted to attend the National Basketball Players Association Top 100 Camp in mid-June, as well as two more events at the end of that month, if the National Federation of State High School Associations has approved them. The new calendar also allows coaches to attend NCAA youth development camps in late July, which are a new collaboration between the NCAA, USA Basketball, the NBA and NBAPA, while also still attending one weekend youth basketball event in early July. Coaches could previously attend only three weekends of youth basketball events in July.