The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1530878
30 ■ THE WOLFPACKER and distributing to others as graduate guard Michael O'Connell's primary backup. It's been a learning experience, but O'Connell has been there every step of the way. The former Stanford transfer appears to have been a good teacher for Parker, stressing the importance of pa- tience as the team's ballhandler so he can see the entire court instead of the side he's on. Parker is used to playing at one speed — fast — so the learning curve has come in the half court, but that is improving. He had only 8 turnovers in the Wolf- pack's first 11 games. "At the end of the day, you have to fo- cus on the main goal," Parker said. "The main goal is to get everybody involved and have a good stat line. Making the coaches see what they want to see, get- ting the teammates and everybody in- volved." Parker isn't worried about how many minutes he plays in his first season at NC State. He's behind one of the nation's best assist-to-turnover players, so the newcomer is using this campaign as a learning opportunity. It almost seems as if Parker takes a step forward every time he puts a game under his belt — a healthy way of im- proving in his first season at the col- legiate level. Senior guard Jayden Taylor noted that the experience he's gaining this year will serve him well in the sea- sons to come. "As time goes, he's going to get even better," Taylor said. "We haven't seen the best Trey yet. I'm proud of him." ■ NC State signed two highly regarded players in Novem- ber, with four-star power forward Mikey Wilkins and three-star shooting guard RJ Greer joining coach Kevin Keatts' program. The 6-foot-8, 240-pound Wilkins was a hot name on the recruiting trail, generat- ing interest from all over the country. He received offers from Georgetown, Michigan, LSU, Clemson, Georgia and others, but it was NC State that was able to check all the boxes for the Arden (N.C.) Christ School standout. "I want to go to a program that is going to let me play my game and be the person that I am," Wilkins told On3's Jamie Shaw before his com- mitment. "The three things are fit, family connection and education." Wilkins is willing to do whatever it takes to win a basketball game. "He is a unicorn in his best sense," Christ School coach Josh Coley said. "He is very, very unique and very special to coach because he can do so much. I think his greatest gift is that he's never uncomfortable in any place you put him on the floor. … No matter what you ask of him, he will do. I think he's the ultimate team guy who wants to win at all costs." Wilkins averaged 13.4 points, 7.2 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.4 steals as a junior, his first campaign at Christ School. Before that, he put up 28 points with 11.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists during his sophomore season at Ruther- fordton (N.C.) R-S Central High. On3 lists Wilkins as the No. 108 overall player and No. 30 power forward nationally, as well as the No. 5 prospect in North Carolina. In the On3 Indus- try Ranking, which averages the grades of the four major recruiting web- sites, he's No. 75 nationally, No. 13 at his position and No. 4 in his home state. Greer, a 6-4, 170-pound prospect from Archbishop Alter in Dayton, Ohio, had been committed to the Pack since June. A priority recruit for Keatts and his staff, Greer was being pursued by Cincinnati, Pitt, Michigan, Penn State, Nebraska and UCF but was con- vinced that NC State was the best fit. "They have a bright future for me," he said. "It was a no-brainer." Greer, whose father is an assistant at Dayton, traveled to the Final Four in April and had an opportunity to see the Pack in action. While he was in Phoenix, he experienced the passion of NC State's fan base and was able to watch the team up close. "I wasn't expecting anything crazy, but I was surprised at the amount of people that came for NC State at the Final Four," he said. "They had a re- ally great showing." In June, Greer traveled to Raleigh with his family for the first of three official visits he initially scheduled. After his time on campus, he canceled his next two trips to Cincin- nati and Penn State. Greer is the No. 61 shoot- ing guard in the 2025 class and No. 6 player in Ohio, per On3. In the Industry Ranking, he's rated 135th overall, No. 35 at his posi- tion and No. 2 in his home state. NC State's two-member class is 39th nationally in the On3 Industry Team Rankings and seventh in the ACC behind Duke, Notre Dame, Miami, North Caro- lina, SMU and Syracuse. NC State will have six ros- ter spots open for the 2025- 26 campaign and would like to add another high school recruit in the late signing period, leaving the other spots for potential transfers. — Noah Fleischman Described as "the ultimate team guy" by his high school coach, power forward Mikey Wilkins announced after a visit to campus in September that he was joining Kevin Keatts' program. PHOTO COURTESY MIKEY WILKINS Guard RJ Greer checked out the Wolfpack during its trip to the Final Four last April and came away impressed with the program and its fan following. PHOTO COURTESY RJ GREER Wolfpack Welcomes Two During November Signing Period " He's a good basketball player. What I wanted from Trey is to be more of a basketball player than a guy who's about Instagram and Snapchat." Coach Kevin Keatts on Parker