26 ■ THE WOLFPACKER
BY NOAH FLEISCHMAN
fter NC State's magi-
cal run to the Final Four
came to a close at State
Farm Stadium in Phoe-
nix, graduate forward DJ
Burns Jr. had one request
before talking to the me-
dia in the locker room: He
wanted to do his interview standing in
front of the wall that had the oversized
photo of the team celebrating the Elite
Eight win over Duke.
It was a simple ask, and it said a lot
about Burns, who spent most of the
time before and after games during the
NCAA Tournament surrounded by doz-
ens of reporters inside the locker room.
The former Winthrop star transferred to
NC State two years prior, following the
Pack's worst season in program history.
He had a goal of turning the ship around
by the time he left Raleigh.
"Anywhere that I go, I'm going to try
my best to affect winning," Burns said
with a smile. "That's usually the outcome
— we win games."
He did just that in Raleigh.
Burns, named the Most Outstand-
ing Player of the ACC Tournament and
NCAA Tournament South Region, paced
the Wolfpack to its first Final Four ap-
pearance since 1983 with his dynamic
GAME GAME
CHANGER CHANGER
DJ Burns Hopes He Helped Bring Back
A 'Basketball Culture' At NC State
A
