USC basketball coach looks for negative traits, talent in recruits
In new South Carolina basketball coach Frank Martin’s introductory press conference, the word “recruit” was mentioned nine times, either by Martin or Athletics Director Eric Hyman.
Less than a month into his tenure as USC basketball coach, Martin showed why the word is used so much around him, as he landed four 2012 basketball commitments in a span of 24 hours, according to multiple reports.
With sophomore Damontre Harris and freshman Anthony Gill almost certain to transfer, and forward Tyrone Haughton signed by former coach Darrin Horn, Martin has six scholarship spots available. Point guard Bruce Ellington, who said he will play both football and basketball again next season, will be on a football scholarship.
“It’s not always about taking the best player, it’s about taking the best person that can play that fits in your necessities and who you are,” Martin said recently on the recruiting process.
Martin’s first commitment came from Thaddeus Hall, a 6-foot-5 wing from New York, who is surrounded by questions of whether he’ll academically qualify, according to a story by The New York Post. The next commitment came shortly after Hall’s, as Lithuanian forward Mindaugas Kacinas, out of Wichita, Kan., picked USC over Wichita State, Wake Forest and Boston College.
Kacinas’ friend and fellow Lithuanian, forward Laimonas Chatkevicius, was a Kansas State signee, who asked for a release once Martin resigned as coach of the Wildcats to fill the coaching vacancy at South Carolina. Point guard Tarik Philip out of Charlotte rounded out the class, though Martin still has one scholarship spot available that he could choose to save for the 2013 class.
Martin said that the first thing he looks for in a prospective recruit is if they’re talented enough to help the Gamecocks accomplish the goal of winning the SEC, which was “objective No. 1” since he was hired. The next thing Martin and his coaching staff look for is a negative trait.
“I don’t want anyone that’s selfish anywhere near us,” Martin said. “People think that when we say selfish, we’re talking about a guy that shoots every ball — that’s not being selfish. If that’s what you’re good at, then you better shoot every ball. Selfish are people who have no interest in coexisting with others. ... If it’s there, I don’t want him because selfishness is the cancer that kills your locker room, and you can’t have that in there.”
Martin said once you get past people that are good enough and who don’t have the negative traits that can hurt a team, then it’s about identifying people that have a similar approach and mentality to the USC coaching staff.
According to Martin, being a high school coach in Miami for 16 years doesn’t necessarily make him more able to sniff out the negative traits or recognize the type of players that can help the team, but it did give him a better understanding of a prospective player’s environment, which can help him be more relatable to a player.
“It’s not just you’re a used car salesman and you’re selling a product — you understand the culture and the environment that they’re in and the challenges they deal with to get through school,” Martin said. “I don’t know if that’s an advantage or disadvantage. That’s the understanding it gives me because at the end of the day, it goes back to the same thing — I’ve got to answer every question that the family and the young man has.”
Martin said that being around high school basketball for so long, in that he worked camps across the country and made connections in Amateur Athletic Union basketball, he has prior relationships with the people who are typically most influential in a prospective player’s decision. Often, it’s because of their knowledge of Martin’s character, he said, that he’s able to earn the trust of a player.
“There’s a comfort level and trust factor, that I will look out for those kids and will hold them accountable — we’ll work everyday to make them better men and better players,” Martin said. “Because I’ve been there with them before and they know what I was like when I didn’t have a high profile job and incredible money — and they know that I’m still the same way.”