The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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BKB PREVIEW 12-13 candidate for league player of the year hon- ors. Having such a talented floor general makes the jobs of the players around him that much easier. In turn, having returning starters such as senior small forward Scott Wood, junior power forward C.J. Leslie and senior center Richard Howell, plus the Rivals.com No. 4-ranked recruiting class, gives the talented playmaker plenty of op- tions at his disposal. N BY JACEY ZEMBAL C State junior point guard Lorenzo Brown is arguably the best player in the ACC at his position, and he is a preseason Williams, plus wing reserves Tyler Harris and Jaqawn Raymond, who transferred to Providence and Middle Tennessee State, respectively. Plenty of options are at NC State head coach Mark Gottfried's disposal at the open wing spot, especially freshmen Rod- ney Purvis, Tyler Lewis and T.J. Warren, who were all McDonald's All-Americans. Brown's ability to play both guard posi- tions at 6-5 and 186 pounds gives Gottfried plenty of flexibility. Purvis could seize the shooting guard po- Veterans Lorenzo Brown And Scott Wood Lead Talented Group Of Perimeter Players Old And New A Blend Of "It's definitely going to be fun and I love the guys on the team thus far," Brown said. "The new guys are great, and of course Richard, C.J. and Scott, so it's going to be a fun year. "Everybody is equal in my eyes, but I don't want any of these guys mad at me. I'll distribute the ball equally." Brown averaged 12.7 points, 6.3 assists, 4.5 rebounds and 1.8 steals in 34.3 minutes per game last year. He finished first in the ACC in steals, third in assists, fifth in min- utes played and 15th in scoring. Brown will have some new faces on the perimeter this season, but he does have veteran sharpshooter Wood back on the wing. Wood averaged 12.4 points per game and shot 40.9 percent from three-point land to lead the ACC last season. He also shot 90.7 percent from the free throw line and set NC State and ACC records with 66 straight made free throws, which is the fourth-longest streak in NCAA history. Having Brown and Wood back helps make up for the loss of four perimeter play- ers — two to graduation and two that trans- ferred. Gone are reserve point guard Alex Johnson and starting shooting guard C.J. Brown scored in double figures in the last 14 games of the 2011-12 season, and he flirted with a triple-double with 17 points, nine re- bounds and eight assists in the Pack's NCAA Tournament win over San Diego State. PHOTO BY KEN MARTIN ward. The two wing positions are the same offensively, but defensive matchups help define who guards opposing teams' shoot- ing guards and small forwards. "I always say each year, your team has to learn how it needs to play and who needs to do what," Gottfried said. "We all would like to know that on Oct. 15. Sometimes as you play games and you go through those first few games in November and Decem- ber, you begin to really learn your team. Part of that for us is learning the rotation in the backcourt." Gottfried has also discussed playing Lewis at point guard and Brown on the wing at various points in games to get an extra ball handler. Whatever lineup and rotation NC State settles upon, Brown and Wood will be the constants. Brown did throw a scare into the Wolf- pack when he underwent minor knee sur- gery during the summer, but he was able to play in all five games during the trip to Spain in August. "I thought honestly prior to the trip, I wasn't going to play him much if at all," Gottfried said. "Our doctors felt it was almost better that he plays. It was the next step in his rehab. He needed to move and cut and get used to playing. It was five weeks after the surgery, so that was the natural progression." Gottfried still sees areas for improve- sition, or the Wolfpack could go with Wood at shooting guard and Warren at small for- ment, which usually center upon Brown's defense or occasional turnover. Playing point guard at a listed 6-5 usually means Brown is three to five inches taller than his opponent. "It's interesting because he's a taller player, and it sounds simple, but bend- ing your knees [is the key on defense]," Gottfried said. "He plays sometimes very erect. He gets into trouble and then loses the ball sometimes because he's tall trying to dribble through traffic as opposed to get- ting his body down lower to the ground." The 6-6, 169-pound Wood has started 101 of 103 games during his NC State ca- reer, missing last year's loss to Vanderbilt due to an ankle injury and then coming off the bench the next two games before resuming his spot in the starting lineup. He hit at least four three-pointers in 10 games last year, and had a season-high 23 points and six three-pointers against Wake Forest Feb. 2. Wood went from 39 free throw attempts to 97 last year (making 88), and Gottfried wants to see him even more aggressive on scoring situations inside the three-point arc. Gottfried set the goal of at least 140 free throw attempts this season. "We wanted him this summer, and he's done a good job, to put the ball on the floor one or two times, and really kind of create shots more than a year ago," Gott- fried said. "I think with Scott, he's such a phenomenal foul shooter, those ways for him to get to the foul line are important. In the back of his mind every day when he walks into the gym, is to not just shoot standing jump shots, but finding ways for one-, two-bounce dribble and can you get fouled more." Purvis averaged 26.1 points, 6.7 re- bounds and 4.2 assists per game in his se- nior season at Raleigh Upper Room Chris- tian Academy, where he was coached by former Wolfpack player Avie Lester. The 6-2, 195-pound Purvis, who was ranked as the No. 12 player in the country by Rivals. com, will create a new dynamic for the Wolfpack this season. "I think one word if you could describe Rodney or a word that I would use with him is the attack word," Gottfried said. "He is great in transition. If I was guarding him myself, I'm worried that he's going to run me right over and dunk it right on my head because he's coming at 100 miles an hour." Gottfried is inclined to make football analogies for his basketball players. He compared missing Brown to the Patriots not having Tom Brady at quarterback, and compared Purvis' combination of strength and explosiveness to former college foot- ball legends and NFL running backs Her- NOVEMBER 2012 ■ 33