By Zack Cziryak
In Seton Hall Assistant Coach Fred Hill’s 37 years coaching college basketball some things have changed, but at the end of the day bringing in players and building a successful program retains one constant: relationships.
“It all starts with one thing, you’ve got to bring in the right young men into your program and we’ve been very fortunate to get very good players at Seton Hall. To get high character kids, competitive kids. Then once you’ve got the right players you’ve got to coach them up.”
“It’s 17 years ago, but it’s kind of like a glove that you put back on,” Hill said of building a winner in South Orange. “Not much has really changed. It comes down to the players you have in your program and the ability you have to coach them. In that time frame under both regimes (Amaker/Willard) we’ve been able to have a lot of success because of that.”
Seton Hall’s coaching staff was able to reel in a successful 2017 recruiting class highlighted by three freshmen; swingman Myles Cale out of Appoquinimink High School in Delaware, forward/center Sandro Mamukalashvili out of Montverde Academy in Florida by way of Tbilisi, Georgia and point guard Jordan Walker from the Patrick School in Elizabeth.
The class headliner is Cale, a consensus top 100 player in the country last year.
“Myles Cale is one of those guys that has the total package. The sky is the limit for this young man. Right now as we prepare for the upcoming season we expect him to emerge and become a strong presence for us,” said Hill.
Hill noted that Cale had surgery shortly after his senior high school season ended to “tighten up” his left shoulder after having it pop out multiple times during the year. He is expected to be 100% ready for the coming campaign.
A 'big' sporting a varied skill set and touch from the outside, Mamukalashvili committed to the Pirates following a year with former St. Patrick’s Head Coach Kevin Boyle at Montverde Academy in Florida.
“He’s got the whole package,” Hill said of Mamukalashvili. “6’10” maybe 6’11”, shoots it, puts it on the deck and is bouncy."
"He's got a good feel for the game – a guy that is well rounded. That and he’s very young meaning as his body matures and he gets bigger and stronger his potential is enormous.”
The final piece to this year’s freshmen class is Walker, a lightning-quick New York City guard who completed his high school career at the Patrick School under former Rutgers Head Coach Mike Rice and co-coach Chris Chavannes. Hill believes Walker’s fiery determination and quickness projects him to be a future fan favorite.
“He’s a guy that I love. In practice and from what I have seen in high school. Jordan’s quick on quick and the best thing I can say about him right now is he’s the ultimate competitor. He has a great self-confidence about himself and loves to compete. Jordan's going to bring a different dimension at the point guard position for us because of his incredible quickness.”
Identifying a “Seton Hall player" has become more of a feeling that Hill has developed over his two stints in South Orange, selling what the program and school have to offer and determining with whom those offerings have resonated the most.
“I wouldn’t say it’s hard, but you’ve got to develop a relationship and get a feel,” Hill said. “There are kids that want that intimate family atmosphere, a smaller campus feel as opposed to players that want the big state university experience that includes football on Saturdays. Every situation isn’t right for every player. That’s the key, finding the guys that want what Seton Hall has to offer.”
One of those “Seton Hall players" the program landed with a large assist from Hill was Cale, who committed to the Pirates in March of his junior year in high school before jumping up the rankings as a senior. While Hill acknowledges his contributions to the Pirates’ recruiting efforts, he’s quick to pass credit onto the staff’s joint approach to building relationships with potential program additions.
“We have a great staff and we recruit as a group. What we did as a staff was to identify that Myles would be a very good player for us.
Again, you’ve got find the right type of kid. He was an excellent player, a Seton Hall-type of kid so to speak. We just went through the normal recruiting process and it was a perfect fit. And fortunately for us they – Myles and his family – felt the same way.”
In addition to the program’s freshman class, Hill is enthused by the Hall’s pair of transfers sitting out the 2017-2018 campaign, Quincy McKnight and Taurean Thompson as well as juco transfer, Romaro Gill, eligible to play this season unless the staff decides to redshirt him.
McKnight, a combo guard, has spent the last two years at Sacred Heart University who will provide a level of versatility that will prove invaluable to the Pirates in a similar fashion to another recent Pirate transfer, according to Hill.
“He’s a guy that’s done it. You love players that have competed for two years at the D1 level and have scored as many as 18 points a game in a season,” Hill said. “He’s been coached well while gaining experience. In a lot of ways he’s kind of like Derrick Gordon, a mature player who fits right in with our younger kids. His game might be a little different but players like that are invaluable. He'll give us versatility. A young man who can fill in at three positions if needed. The point, shooting guard and maybe even a little 3.”
Thompson, in addition to McKnight, will parlay his experience and skills to help fill the gaping hole that will be left by Angel Delgado and the Hall’s three other seniors following the 2017-2018 season.
In Seton Hall Assistant Coach Fred Hill’s 37 years coaching college basketball some things have changed, but at the end of the day bringing in players and building a successful program retains one constant: relationships.
“It all starts with one thing, you’ve got to bring in the right young men into your program and we’ve been very fortunate to get very good players at Seton Hall. To get high character kids, competitive kids. Then once you’ve got the right players you’ve got to coach them up.”
“It’s 17 years ago, but it’s kind of like a glove that you put back on,” Hill said of building a winner in South Orange. “Not much has really changed. It comes down to the players you have in your program and the ability you have to coach them. In that time frame under both regimes (Amaker/Willard) we’ve been able to have a lot of success because of that.”
Seton Hall’s coaching staff was able to reel in a successful 2017 recruiting class highlighted by three freshmen; swingman Myles Cale out of Appoquinimink High School in Delaware, forward/center Sandro Mamukalashvili out of Montverde Academy in Florida by way of Tbilisi, Georgia and point guard Jordan Walker from the Patrick School in Elizabeth.
The class headliner is Cale, a consensus top 100 player in the country last year.
“Myles Cale is one of those guys that has the total package. The sky is the limit for this young man. Right now as we prepare for the upcoming season we expect him to emerge and become a strong presence for us,” said Hill.
Hill noted that Cale had surgery shortly after his senior high school season ended to “tighten up” his left shoulder after having it pop out multiple times during the year. He is expected to be 100% ready for the coming campaign.
A 'big' sporting a varied skill set and touch from the outside, Mamukalashvili committed to the Pirates following a year with former St. Patrick’s Head Coach Kevin Boyle at Montverde Academy in Florida.
“He’s got the whole package,” Hill said of Mamukalashvili. “6’10” maybe 6’11”, shoots it, puts it on the deck and is bouncy."
"He's got a good feel for the game – a guy that is well rounded. That and he’s very young meaning as his body matures and he gets bigger and stronger his potential is enormous.”
The final piece to this year’s freshmen class is Walker, a lightning-quick New York City guard who completed his high school career at the Patrick School under former Rutgers Head Coach Mike Rice and co-coach Chris Chavannes. Hill believes Walker’s fiery determination and quickness projects him to be a future fan favorite.
“He’s a guy that I love. In practice and from what I have seen in high school. Jordan’s quick on quick and the best thing I can say about him right now is he’s the ultimate competitor. He has a great self-confidence about himself and loves to compete. Jordan's going to bring a different dimension at the point guard position for us because of his incredible quickness.”
Identifying a “Seton Hall player" has become more of a feeling that Hill has developed over his two stints in South Orange, selling what the program and school have to offer and determining with whom those offerings have resonated the most.
“I wouldn’t say it’s hard, but you’ve got to develop a relationship and get a feel,” Hill said. “There are kids that want that intimate family atmosphere, a smaller campus feel as opposed to players that want the big state university experience that includes football on Saturdays. Every situation isn’t right for every player. That’s the key, finding the guys that want what Seton Hall has to offer.”
One of those “Seton Hall players" the program landed with a large assist from Hill was Cale, who committed to the Pirates in March of his junior year in high school before jumping up the rankings as a senior. While Hill acknowledges his contributions to the Pirates’ recruiting efforts, he’s quick to pass credit onto the staff’s joint approach to building relationships with potential program additions.
“We have a great staff and we recruit as a group. What we did as a staff was to identify that Myles would be a very good player for us.
Again, you’ve got find the right type of kid. He was an excellent player, a Seton Hall-type of kid so to speak. We just went through the normal recruiting process and it was a perfect fit. And fortunately for us they – Myles and his family – felt the same way.”
In addition to the program’s freshman class, Hill is enthused by the Hall’s pair of transfers sitting out the 2017-2018 campaign, Quincy McKnight and Taurean Thompson as well as juco transfer, Romaro Gill, eligible to play this season unless the staff decides to redshirt him.
McKnight, a combo guard, has spent the last two years at Sacred Heart University who will provide a level of versatility that will prove invaluable to the Pirates in a similar fashion to another recent Pirate transfer, according to Hill.
“He’s a guy that’s done it. You love players that have competed for two years at the D1 level and have scored as many as 18 points a game in a season,” Hill said. “He’s been coached well while gaining experience. In a lot of ways he’s kind of like Derrick Gordon, a mature player who fits right in with our younger kids. His game might be a little different but players like that are invaluable. He'll give us versatility. A young man who can fill in at three positions if needed. The point, shooting guard and maybe even a little 3.”
Thompson, in addition to McKnight, will parlay his experience and skills to help fill the gaping hole that will be left by Angel Delgado and the Hall’s three other seniors following the 2017-2018 season.
