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BIG TEN CONFERENCE BASKETBALL MEDIA DAYS

October 2, 2019

Richard Pitino

Madison Square Garden - New York, New York

RICHARD PITINO: Excited, obviously, going into year seven. Around the corner we've got a lot of new guys, so it's a good opportunity to kind of reintroduce ourselves a little bit and start over. So we lost a lot, but that doesn't mean that we have to take a step back, and I've got to get our guys to understand that. Just excited about this group. They're good guys. They work hard. They represent themselves the right way.

Q. Talk about the impact of your transfers on the team. I know obviously two sat out last year and you brought one in new as a grad transfer, but what impact are they having on your leadership?
RICHARD PITINO: Yeah, Marcus is a natural leader, just confident, on and off the court, tough, competes, versatile, can play a multitude of positions, fearless. So he's only a sophomore, but he doesn't act like it. So he's got natural leadership abilities.

Payton Willis may not be as loud as him at times, but his work ethic does the talking. I think the young guys see how hard he works every single day, and that's the biggest thing that you can get because everybody thinks a good leader is what they say, but a lot of it is what you do. And with those transfers Alihan and Payton and Marcus, they're really, really good at doing the right things to show those other guys that's how you need to act at this level.

Q. How healthy do you believe Eric Curry is going to be this season, and what do you expect from him this season?
RICHARD PITINO: You know, obviously he's dealt with a lot of injuries. He's been really, really important to our team from a depth standpoint. He can play the 4, he can play the 5. He knows how to play. You know, he's a very, very good defender. He's a very good passer. And for a guy at 6'9" to do that, that's very valuable. So the biggest thing for Eric is staying healthy, physically, mentally, just making sure that he gets his confidence back, and I'm rooting for him. I mean, what he's dealt with the last couple years has been really, really hard. So he's been doing a little bit in practice, not 100 percent yet, but he's getting close, and every time he's on the court, we seem to be a better basketball team.

Q. The California bill for players capitalizing on their images and likenesses, where do you stand on that?
RICHARD PITINO: Yeah, I think it's progress. I think over the last couple years, we're headed in the right direction with taking care of our student-athletes. I don't know exactly what it's going to be, but I think it's a good idea. I know a lot of people have been pushing for it. I think the biggest thing now is just getting everybody on the same page, getting all the states, getting the NCAA, getting everybody working together is the most important thing. But the more we can get these guys, these student-athletes, I'm all for it.

Q. I wonder as you've gone through your coaching career, the challenges of building a roster and keeping roster continuity, how has that changed since you've been a coach, and what are those challenges of trying to have consistency from year to year?
RICHARD PITINO: It's challenging. That's why you have so much respect for Coach Izzo and what he's done, to be able to do it every single year. Because I think that with Amir Coffey, we recruited a really good player. When he was healthy, he was a really good player, and he goes and makes a decision to go early to the NBA, which we supported. But if he's back, we're probably a different team. He's a really talented player. But you can't hold these guys back from doing what's great for them and what they've dreamed of their whole lives. If you are able to recruit certain guys that can go early, you've got to support them, you know.

And then obviously the transfer situation. I've got seven new players, and you always want to save one or two for those guys that may want to come sit out and grow.

It's fun. I saw something the other day about -- I think Nick Saban said he goes into every year as if it's year one. I feel like that a little bit. But it does make it enjoyable. So you've got to embrace it. It is what it is. The kids aren't wrong if they transfer or they go early to the NBA or overseas or whatever. They're taking advantage of opportunities, and I think a lot of us coaches would do the same.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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