By JP Pelzman
South Orange – Near the end of his news conference at Seton Hall’s basketball media day, Kevin Willard looked over to the stands and personally addressed freshman point guard Anthony Nelson.
“I’ve been giving him a lot of compliments and he’s been practicing terribly,” Willard said with a smile, adding that it probably wasn’t a good idea to praise the newcomer so much so soon.
“And he’s probably going to stink on Tuesday” in the opener against Wagner," the coach said, “but he’s really good.”
The Pirates will need Nelson to be closer to Willard’s overall assessment of him if they are to make some serious noise in the Big East this season. The 6-4 Nelson and Sacred Heart transfer Quincy McKnight, who sat out last season, are being counted upon to run the point for Willard’s Pirates.
Nelson, the youngest of six siblings, is from Harlem and averaged 16 points, eight rebounds and five assists last season for South Kent School, a private institution in Kent, Conn.
“We haven't had a point guard like Anthony in quite a while,” Willard said, “someone who’s got great court vision (and is) a pass-first guard. We’ve had scoring guards ever since I’ve been here.”
Other than Wake Forest graduate transfer Madison Jones, who mostly ran the offense for Seton Hall’s 2016-17 NCAA tournament team, the Pirates usually have relied on scoring point guards over the last few years, players such as Isaiah Whitehead and Khadeen Carrington. Even the talented and heady Jordan Theodore, who ran the show for the 2011-12 team that nearly made the tournament, averaged 16.1 points and 6.6 assists that season.
When asked what his position is, Nelson quickly replied “1” and added, “I want to average a decent amount of assists, about six assists per game, that’s my expectation. … I trust my teammates and I trust Coach Willard."
“Ant has picked things up as quick as any freshman in terms of understanding concepts,” Willard said. “We put in our press on the first day (of practice) and he picked it up by just playing it. He’s extremely smart. I think you’re going to see someone, as his shooting gets better, who we’re really going to rely on in getting Myles (Powell) shots, getting (other) guys shots.”
As for Willard’s effusive praise of him, Nelson said, “I don’t have any pressure at all because Coach has confidence in me. I’m thankful for the comments, but I just want to keep working. I still have stuff to work on. I need to work on my decision-making a little.”
Nelson chose The Hall, in part, because he knew the departure of Carrington, one of four decorated seniors, would enable him to compete for significant playing time immediately.
“That was the plan coming in,” Nelson said. “I knew if I worked hard (Willard) would trust me.“
"When I came here on my visit,” he added, “I really built a strong relationship with Shaheen (Holloway) and Coach Willard. It just felt like home to me. I kind of wanted to stay close to home so my family could see me play and Shaheen and Coach Willard made me feel like they wanted me here.”
Of course, former assistant and Hall legend Holloway left the team after the season to run his own program as the new Saint Peter’s coach. But his departure didn’t sway Nelson.
“It was tough,” he said of losing Holloway, “but at the end of the day, I trusted Coach Willard.”
One part of Nelson’s transition to college life that he termed “seamless” is his living arrangement, because he is rooming with fellow freshman Jared Rhoden, a 6-4 swingman who played for Our Saviour Lutheran High School in the Bronx. The Baldwin, N.Y. native played with Nelson on the New York Lightning AAU team and the two of them roomed on the road with the Lightning.
“We’ve been going through everything together,” Rhoden said of the transition to college. “Ant’s been a long-time friend, so it feels natural. He seems like a brother to me, so it’s kind of neat. I think once he gets the freshman kinks out he’s going to be really good.”
And how does Rhoden see his own prospects as a newcomer?
“I think I can do all right,” he said. “I’ve just been trying to learn a lot from the older guys and do the little things before I can make that jump and see where I kind of fit in.“
"I’m just trying to take everything I can every day,” Rhoden added, “every little lesson, every little drill and try my hardest just to earn my keep here. … I think I can shoot the ball pretty well. I bring some versatility to the team and I’ve been working a lot on my defensive game.”
“He’s going to be really good once he settles down,” Nelson said of Rhoden. “He plays a little fast, but he’s energetic and once he gets that under control, he’ll be fine.”
“What I like about Jared,” Willard said, “is he can play two positions. He can play the wing and he can play a stretch 4. He has great energy and plays as hard as any freshman we’ve ever had here.”
Nelson’s older brother Courtney originally played for Richmond, and later transferred to Rutgers and then Division III William Paterson.
“Courtney always challenged me,” Nelson said. “I was thinking about playing at Rutgers but I just didn’t. … I’m really excited to get on the court with these guys and just try to get wins.”
Nelson admitted he does feel the responsibility of continuing the legacy of last year’s senior class, which helped steer the Pirates to three straight NCAA appearances.
“Definitely,” he said. “I feel like it’s our job to continue that.”
https://setonhall.rivals.com/
South Orange – Near the end of his news conference at Seton Hall’s basketball media day, Kevin Willard looked over to the stands and personally addressed freshman point guard Anthony Nelson.
“I’ve been giving him a lot of compliments and he’s been practicing terribly,” Willard said with a smile, adding that it probably wasn’t a good idea to praise the newcomer so much so soon.
“And he’s probably going to stink on Tuesday” in the opener against Wagner," the coach said, “but he’s really good.”
The Pirates will need Nelson to be closer to Willard’s overall assessment of him if they are to make some serious noise in the Big East this season. The 6-4 Nelson and Sacred Heart transfer Quincy McKnight, who sat out last season, are being counted upon to run the point for Willard’s Pirates.
Nelson, the youngest of six siblings, is from Harlem and averaged 16 points, eight rebounds and five assists last season for South Kent School, a private institution in Kent, Conn.
“We haven't had a point guard like Anthony in quite a while,” Willard said, “someone who’s got great court vision (and is) a pass-first guard. We’ve had scoring guards ever since I’ve been here.”
Other than Wake Forest graduate transfer Madison Jones, who mostly ran the offense for Seton Hall’s 2016-17 NCAA tournament team, the Pirates usually have relied on scoring point guards over the last few years, players such as Isaiah Whitehead and Khadeen Carrington. Even the talented and heady Jordan Theodore, who ran the show for the 2011-12 team that nearly made the tournament, averaged 16.1 points and 6.6 assists that season.
When asked what his position is, Nelson quickly replied “1” and added, “I want to average a decent amount of assists, about six assists per game, that’s my expectation. … I trust my teammates and I trust Coach Willard."
“Ant has picked things up as quick as any freshman in terms of understanding concepts,” Willard said. “We put in our press on the first day (of practice) and he picked it up by just playing it. He’s extremely smart. I think you’re going to see someone, as his shooting gets better, who we’re really going to rely on in getting Myles (Powell) shots, getting (other) guys shots.”
As for Willard’s effusive praise of him, Nelson said, “I don’t have any pressure at all because Coach has confidence in me. I’m thankful for the comments, but I just want to keep working. I still have stuff to work on. I need to work on my decision-making a little.”
Nelson chose The Hall, in part, because he knew the departure of Carrington, one of four decorated seniors, would enable him to compete for significant playing time immediately.
“That was the plan coming in,” Nelson said. “I knew if I worked hard (Willard) would trust me.“
"When I came here on my visit,” he added, “I really built a strong relationship with Shaheen (Holloway) and Coach Willard. It just felt like home to me. I kind of wanted to stay close to home so my family could see me play and Shaheen and Coach Willard made me feel like they wanted me here.”
Of course, former assistant and Hall legend Holloway left the team after the season to run his own program as the new Saint Peter’s coach. But his departure didn’t sway Nelson.
“It was tough,” he said of losing Holloway, “but at the end of the day, I trusted Coach Willard.”
One part of Nelson’s transition to college life that he termed “seamless” is his living arrangement, because he is rooming with fellow freshman Jared Rhoden, a 6-4 swingman who played for Our Saviour Lutheran High School in the Bronx. The Baldwin, N.Y. native played with Nelson on the New York Lightning AAU team and the two of them roomed on the road with the Lightning.
“We’ve been going through everything together,” Rhoden said of the transition to college. “Ant’s been a long-time friend, so it feels natural. He seems like a brother to me, so it’s kind of neat. I think once he gets the freshman kinks out he’s going to be really good.”
And how does Rhoden see his own prospects as a newcomer?
“I think I can do all right,” he said. “I’ve just been trying to learn a lot from the older guys and do the little things before I can make that jump and see where I kind of fit in.“
"I’m just trying to take everything I can every day,” Rhoden added, “every little lesson, every little drill and try my hardest just to earn my keep here. … I think I can shoot the ball pretty well. I bring some versatility to the team and I’ve been working a lot on my defensive game.”
“He’s going to be really good once he settles down,” Nelson said of Rhoden. “He plays a little fast, but he’s energetic and once he gets that under control, he’ll be fine.”
“What I like about Jared,” Willard said, “is he can play two positions. He can play the wing and he can play a stretch 4. He has great energy and plays as hard as any freshman we’ve ever had here.”
Nelson’s older brother Courtney originally played for Richmond, and later transferred to Rutgers and then Division III William Paterson.
“Courtney always challenged me,” Nelson said. “I was thinking about playing at Rutgers but I just didn’t. … I’m really excited to get on the court with these guys and just try to get wins.”
Nelson admitted he does feel the responsibility of continuing the legacy of last year’s senior class, which helped steer the Pirates to three straight NCAA appearances.
“Definitely,” he said. “I feel like it’s our job to continue that.”
https://setonhall.rivals.com/
