North Carolina State University Athletics
Wilkins a Winner on and off the Court
10/20/1999 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
The Damien Wilkins basketball file is impressive, to say the least. The son of Orlando Magic guard Gerald Wilkins was ranked the #1 prep prospect in the nation last year by recruiting analyst Bob Gibbons. As a senior at Dr. Phillips High in Orlando, Florida, Wilkins averaged 22.1 points and 12.2 rebounds. He also finished the year with 23 double-doubles. Again, impressive.
But when NC State head coach Herb Sendek talks about his prized freshman, he speaks more about Damien Wilkins the person, as opposed to Damien Wilkins the basketball player.
"Damien brings a wonderful character to our program," Sendek said. "He has impressed me this fall as simply being rock-solid. He is a true gentleman off the court. He's unassuming, considerate, and gentle. He's just a nice person."
Even in his short time on campus, Wilkins has impressed coaches and teammates with his work ethic and unselfishness. And, he hasn't taken his substantial basketball skills for granted.
"When he trains, he takes it very seriously," said Sendek. "He's as likely as anybody else to encourage a teammate and help a teammate. He's not consumed with himself during workouts. He brings a real personal strength to our team, both on and off the floor."
In other words, Wilkins possesses a maturity that is not often seen in most freshmen athletes or non-athletes, for that matter.
In his NC State Media Guide bio, Wilkins is asked what he must do to improve as a person. His response: "continue to stay humble and good hearted."
Wilkins almost always uses the word "we" as opposed to "I" in interview situations, but when he's forced to talk about himself, he never speaks of where he's been, but rather where he must go as a basketball player.
"Coach Sendek is definitely going to prepare me and make sure I'm going to reach my potential," he said. "And I'm going to make sure I reach my potential. My father always told me to be myself, play as hard as I can and enjoy my time here."
Many NC State fans hope that time will last four years, but in today's college basketball environment, that may be too much to ask. For now, Wilkins is just looking forward to putting on that NC State basketball uniform for the first time.
"It was one of the schools I always wanted to come to when I was growing up. When I got the opportunity to come here, I thought, 'why not?' It's turned out to be the best situation for me right now."
Wilkins' eagerness to learn and improve has already paid off. He took full advantage of the opportunity to hone his skills with the coaches during the fall skill workouts.
"I think I've improved greatly from the first day of skills to the last day of skills," he said. "I've really improved my perimeter skills, especially the jump shot and ball handling. All the coaches are great at helping you improve and I think I've done so."
The NC State coaches have helped to make Damien Wilkins a much better basketball player, but if all goes as expected, he'll certainly return the favor by making them better coaches this season.
