North Carolina State University Athletics
Siddle Prepared to take NC State to the Next Level
6/2/2017 11:21:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Long-time North Carolina resident excited for future with the Pack
RALEIGH – Takayo Siddle has learned from some of the top coaches in the nation during his career; combine that with being a North Carolina native, joining the NC State men's basketball coaching staff has brought his career full circle.
Siddle, who grew up in Eden, N.C., first met Kevin Keatts at Hargrave Military Academy, where he played before moving on to college ball at Gardner-Webb. There was a lot of on the court success at Hargrave, but it was more than just Keatts' X's and O's that inspired Siddle.
"The thing about Kevin that really stood out to me was that he's a players' coach. He wasn't a guy that was going to be in your face and yell at you, but he was going to push you to the limit," Siddle said. "He was going to put all his time and effort into you in terms of player development, and that includes socially, helping you out in your personal life—he was really good at that and connecting with us in a fatherly type of way."
When his playing days as a Bulldog came to a close, Siddle knew he wanted to impact lives and the best way for him to do so was as a coach. He coached for a year at Hargrave with Keatts and then went back to his college alma mater, Gardner-Webb, where he picked up some pearls of wisdom from Chris Holtmann, currently the reigning Big East Coach of the Year at Butler.
"Chris Holtmann always told me 'I don't want one-dimensional guys. I want guys who can everything on my staff,'" Siddle said. "I'm confident in myself. I know I can do everything. I prepare myself. I'm a process-driven guy, so everything that I do, I have a process to it."
From high school to a low-major to re-joining Keatts at a mid-major in UNC-Wilmington to the ACC, there's no doubt that Siddle climbed the "Hoop State" coaching ladder. He wouldn't have it any other way.
"I couldn't have drawn it up any better. Being here at NC State, being a North Carolina guy all you hear about is the ACC and that's all you know.
He continued: "You have every resource that you need, you can get any player that you want. It's appealing to recruits, being near other top schools Duke and North Carolina, you have to make this stop. NBA scouts, all of those guys make the trip to NC State. For me and Coach Keatts and others guys on this staff, we've been underdogs our whole lives so we like a challenge.
"We're a sleeping giant. We can win big at NC State."
Rather than choosing an ACC allegiance while growing up, Siddle watched the conference for it's pure basketball talent. Herb Sendek, Sidney Lowe, Julius Hodge, Scooter Sherrill and Anthony Grundy were Wolfpack products that stood out the most to him.
Being in a state with so much talent at the college level, it's not surprising that North Carolina yields some of the top high school talent in the nation as well. Per an NCAA study from 2013-2016, North Carolina produced the second-most Division-I players per capita in the country.
Being a homegrown product, Siddle uses that to his advantage when making connections with the array of AAU and high school crosses across the state.
"North Carolina, I take it personal. If you're an in-state guy, you have to dominate the state in recruiting," Siddle said. "I said when I got in it is, I want to get to know every AAU coach, every high school coach in the state and I want them when someone calls them and says my name, they say 'Oh, that's my guy right there.' I've been able to establish some great relationships. The more years you do it, the more people will help you out. Coaches will say, 'I got a guy for you, I'll help you get him,' and it's that easy."
First up: Siddle wants to take over the state. Next? The country. It'll be hard to tell him anything otherwise. He has a giant to wake.
By: Ian Pierno, Special to GoPack.com
