New faces and voices, high energy as NC State starts basketball practice

RALEIGH - The whistle blew and practice came to a halt.

No more sneakers stretching, no more chatter. The ball stopped bouncing and every member of the NC State men's basketball team was locked in on one voice.

The instructions were very specific: The coach wanted more effort and communication on defense.

Off to the side, Wolfpack head coach Kevin Keatts watched. Keatts rested on one knee, his arm placed on the side of one of the extra baskets. As Keatts observed, his players were locked in on the words of assistant coach Joel Justus, who stopped a drill and was now giving a demonstration of how he wanted something done on the defensive end.

There were times when Keatts, entering his sixth year, would jump in and give some pointers, but Justus, along with assistant coaches Kareem Richardson and former NC State forward Levi Watkins, made their presence felt, which was a welcomed sight for the head coach.

"We push each other, Joel and Kareem and I," Watkins said. "We push each other getting guys better and recruiting at a high level."

When Keatts revamped his entire coaching staff, he talked about wanting new energy in the building. Want to talk about new energy? How about Justus springing over to help Terquavion Smith off the floor after he was knocked down during a drill.

Or Richardson getting on the team, telling them they should be way more excited about a defensive stop. Seconds later, Richardson's voice would echo throughout the gym as he shouted "TALK!", urging them to communicate more on defense.

Of course the most energetic guy on the court was Smith, who withdrew from the NBA Draft and returned to Raleigh for his sophomore season. After averaging 16.3 points per game as a freshman, Smith turned heads at the NBA scouting combine in Chicago this summer and was expected to make the jump. Instead, he came back and looks to improve on his first year, where he earned All-ACC Rookie Team honors.

"Terquavion is electric on the floor," Justus said. "Can do things that you can't coach."

As practice got underway this week inside the Dail Center, it appeared the changes made by Keatts should be felt immediately.

Justus and Richardson were actively involved with everything the guards did during practice. Watkins was posted up on the baseline, keeping a watchful eye on the post players.

While Keatts has plenty of guard depth that's perfect for his preferred style of play, Watkins has a pair of new bigs to work with, potentially giving the Pack a one-two punch in the paint.

In the offseason, Keatts added former Big South Player of the Year DJ Burns and Dusan Mahorcic, who transferred this offseason from Utah.

They'll join sophomore Ernest Ross and junior Ebenezer Dowuona in the frontcourt.

Keatts also added former Ole Miss guard Jarkel Joiner and former La Salle sharpshooter Jack Clark to take some of the scoring load off of Smith.

Wolfpack fans get to meet the new team on October 13 at Primetime with the Pack.

New faces and voices, high energy as NC State starts basketball practice

Players Mentioned

DJ Burns, Jr.

Jack Clark

Ebenezer Dowuona

Jarkel Joiner

Dusan Mahorcic

Ernest Ross

Terquavion Smith

North Carolina State University Athletics