October 26, 2000
HEAD COACH MELVIN WATKINS
On the attitude of the team this season: "I can see some enjoyment. At times, practice last year was painful in a lot of different ways. This year, I see kids enjoying themselves, slapping each other on the butt and making a play that last year possibly we couldn't make. As a coach, I get encouraged by that. I am seeing it develop right under my nose. It is exciting for me. If we are showing signs of improvement and showing signs of coming together as a team then guys enjoy being around each other. That is what I am looking for and I am seeing some of that at the early stages."
On expectations: "If I say we'll win 12-15 games that may be selling us short. On the other side, if I said 20 or so it might be a little bit more than we can handle right now. We are just going to take it one game at a time, one step at a time and hopefully just have some fun with this. I think the greatest thing that is happening to me right now is I can come in here and talk about more than just one player on my team. That is what I can get excited about. I want to start talking like a coach again. In the past few years I'm not sure what I was talking like."
On Bernard King: "For us to be a good team, Bernard does need to take on a different role. It may be that his scoring does come down some. We have to get other guys involved in the offense. We went to Bernard too much and forced him to take bad shots at times and that's not good basketball. When your options are limited you do what you've got to do. If he is still playing good basketball I think that if he is still playing good basketball people will identify that."
SOPHOMORE GUARD BERNARD KING
On the possibility of a sophomore jinx: "Hopefully nothing different happens. I hope I have a good year this year just like last year. I don't try to think about the sophomore jinx."
On the attitude of this year's team: "There is a very different attitude. We don't take off any day, if we take a day off then we will be running."
On this year's recruiting class: "Coach has brought in some players that can score. When teams try to double me I can just dish to them and they can put it in the hole."
SOPHOMORE GUARD JAMAAL GILCHRIST
On his maturity from a freshman to a sophomore: "As a freshman I didn't have the mental edge. As a sophomore I now know what I need to do being mentally tough will help me go out and do it."
On the difference in team's attitude from last season: "Last year we didn't have the mental part of the game. This year we practice hard everyday. Last year our bodies were hurt and tired and we were thinking I can't go. This year we give 110 percent. That is the maturity that I realize from last season as compared to this season."