The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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MAY/JUNE 2020 ■ 43 The 6-2 guard averaged 13.9 points and 4.5 assists per game his senior year and helped lead Greensboro Day to the North Carolina Independent Schools Athletic As- sociation (NCISAA) 4A semifinals. Hayes will immediately compete to be- come the first freshman to start at point guard for NC State since Dennis Smith Jr. in 2016. He would supersede another pass-first point guard in Markell Johnson, who ended his college career last season with the third- most assists in school history. In the late fall of last year, Johnson pulled Hayes aside at a football game and gave a briefing to his likely successor. "He showed me the ropes and told me ev- erything I needed to know about the system at NC State," Hayes recalled. "He just gave me the keys and basically said, next year, it's going to be my team and I got to lead out on the court." Moore Is 'A Dog On Both Ends Of The Floor' Originally considered a likely candidate to sign this spring, Moore was ready to fo- cus on his final year of high school basket- ball when he surprisingly signed early with NC State last November. The teammate of former Pack signee Josh Hall at Moravian Prep Academy in Greens- boro, Moore averaged 17.5 points and 4.5 assists per game his senior year according to the school's website. "It was a big relief," Moore said after his signing. "We are ready to work and ready to build something big." Moore, the nation's No. 26 point guard and No. 112 overall prospect per Rivals. com, is especially looking forward to build- ing in Raleigh with former AAU teammates Hayes. When the two played together last summer on Team CP3, Moore averaged 16.8 points, 4.6 rebounds and 3.6 assists in 14 games for the travel team. "He brings what I bring to the table," Moore said of Hayes. "Playing alongside Cam was fun because we had a feel for each other. We were the backcourt that got a lot of stops on defense." While Hayes is considered a traditional pass-first point guard, the 6-1 Moore's off- the-charts athleticism gives him an aggres- sive tendency on the court that bodes well at shooting guard. "He's a little bit more of a natural combo guard than a true point guard," Bossi said of Moore. "I like the idea of eventually playing [Moore and Hayes] together. I'm a big proponent of getting as many guys who can make plays out there, and I think Kevin Keatts likes that a lot too." With a quick first step and the ability to bounce out of the gym, Moore also possesses a smooth jumper that will demand the re- spect of defenses. He shot 35.7 percent from beyond the arc on the AAU circuit last year. While Moore's offensive potential is clear, his defense may be the most elite element of his game. Considered a lockdown on-ball defender, his high-motor will inject a boost of energy whenever he's inserted in the lineup. "He's a dog on both ends of the floor, one of those guys who plays with a serious chip on his shoulder," Bossi said. "I like him defensively, and I think he's one that could perhaps be an All-ACC type defender by the time he's done." Dowuona Gives Pack Another Elite Shot Blocker Dowuona will be the furthest freshman from home next season as the sole out-of- state member in the Wolfpack's 2020 class. With his infectiously affable charisma, however, it won't take long for the 6-10, 220-pound center from Newnan, Ga., to get comfortable once he arrives later this year. Dowuona, nicknamed "E.B." by his coaches and teammates, said he looks forward to meet- ing NC State fans once he gets to Raleigh. "I'm a nice person, you can talk to me whenever you see me on campus," Dowu- ona noted. "Like [NBA All-Star] Kawhi [Leonard] said, 'I'm a fun guy.'" As approachable as he may be walking down Hillsborough Street as a student, Ri- vals.com's No. 36 center in the 2020 class is an equally ferocious shot blocker on the basketball court. Entering his first season as a member of the Pack, Dowuona will likely step in with a role off the bench as a raw, athletic reserve center. Keatts believes a lineup featuring him and redshirt sophomore Manny Bates, who led the ACC in blocked shots last year with 83, could create the best rim-protecting duo in the country. "I can learn a lot from him because he's a big shot blocker," Dowuona said of Bates. "I'm just excited to have a teammate that plays the position a similar way. We can work out together, make each other better and I'm really excited to play with him." His former AAU coach, Russell Powell of Game Elite (Fla.), compared Dowuona's game to Atlanta Hawks center Clint Capela and attested to the big man's gritty go-getter style on the hardwood. "He can catch it off the glass, dunk, and he's really good at defending," Powell said. "E.B. is a very high-energy, high-motor type of a kid. He can run the floor, switch off ball screens to defend guards for a second and can also make the occasional 15-footer." Dowuona isn't the only Wolfpack recruit that has played for Powell. NC State ju- nior commit Ernest Ross, a four-star power forward ranked No. 45 nationally in the 2021 class according to Rivals.com, played with Dowuona for Game Elite last sum- mer. Before arriving on campus for his first semester, Dowuona had already put on his recruiting hat to sell Ross on the Pack. "Ernest has been my guy for a while," he said. "I was just on social media one day and saw that he got offered from NC State. I called him right after that and said, 'Hey Combo guard Shakeel Moore played with classmate Cam Hayes on the AAU circuit for Team CP3, and the four-star duo represent the backcourt of the future for NC State. PHOTO BY ED DELGADO/JON LOPEZ CREATIVE " It is becoming popular for in-state guys to come to NC State. That is one of those things that we wanted to happen. " NC State head coach Kevin Keatts