Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1511150
Connecting this summer with Joe Crispin, Penn State's new assistant to the head coach, Hicks has also picked up wis- dom from one of the best shooters in pro- gram history. Crispin ranks fourth in both career three-pointers and career scoring at Penn State, and the time they spent to- gether left Hicks feeling optimistic about his ability to transition successfully into a new shooting environment. "Coach Crispin grabbed me, being here every day, just getting used to the rims and stuff like that," he said. "Having played in the NBA, just seeing different things and giving us influence on the of- fense, it has just been great for us. I can tell these rims are real shooter-friendly." Poised to make a big impact on the Nit- tany Lions in his first year in the program, Hicks is hopeful that the combination of improvements could lead to big things this season. But, harking back to the element central to becoming the type of well-rounded player Rhoades and his staff value most, Hicks directed his attention inward this offseason. Facing the challenge of a new style of play, with physical demands not yet seen to this point in his career, he has embraced the makeup and state of mind required. "Some things you've just got to get used to," he said. "Us coming to practice every day, getting used to the play style every single day helped us the most. "It's mental, because if you don't have the right mentality, it can hurt you. To get up or down, I always say it's fun until you get tired. And then you've got to push through. That's where the men- t a l i t y c o m e s through." ■ "It definitely was a challenge in the beginning. I would say more so the conditioning part, because Coach likes to get up and down a lot." H I C K S D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 3 3 9 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M Hicks was a proficient three-point shooter in his two seasons at Temple, hitting 36.3 percent of his attempts from beyond the arc. PHOTO BY STEVE MANUEL