Khadrice Rollins
krollins@ajc.com
Ron Hunter said he was not a fan of the pace his team played at last season.
“We were one of the best teams in the country two of the last three years in pace, last year we were one of the worst,” the coach said. “So we want to get our pace back. We want to start getting back up and down the floor. We want to press a lot more … than we did last year. We went back to our values of going back being great defensively, pressing, scoring off turnovers and that’s the type of team that we got this year.”
So this season, Hunter said he looking for the Panthers to go back to the tempo that he used to put his program on the map. Between his team’s emphasis on strong defense and an increase in the number of capable ball handlers Georgia State can put on the court, Hunter said his squad is well-equipped to make a 180 from last year when it was one of the slowest paces of play in the country.
Playing faster should jump start the Panthers’ offense that only averaged 65.7 points per game last season on 44.1 percent shooting. In the 2014-15 campaign GSU posted 71.4 points per contest and shot at a 48 percent clip on the way to an NCAA Tournament appearance.
In order to sustain a quicker pace though, Hunter needs players who are built to play that style, particularly in the middle. With transfer Willie Clayton, Hunter has just that. Hunter said he plans on playing in transition more this year, and will go with a small lineup at times, which means he needs a big man who can hold down the paint and run the floor to complement the guards and allow them to play to their strengths.
“Last year, what we didn’t have enough (ball) handlers,” Hunter said. “This year you’re going to see sometimes three, sometimes even four. There will be some times this year I play four guards and Willie. So we can space the floor, drive — we got a lot of guys who can really shoot it. And so we may go to a four guard lineup a lot.”
Clayton sat out last season after coming to GSU from Charlotte and is now poised to finish out his college career as a key piece of the Panthers’ plans. The athletic big man brings a strong presence in the paint and on the glass, Hunter said.
Clayton said having to sit out a year gave him the chance to truly learn and understand GSU’s defensive scheme, and as the man in the middle, it was critical that he had a complete knowledge of the intricacies of the defense.
“If you don’t know the defense you can’t play,” Clayton said. “It’s a lot of pieces. … The five has to know when to go out on a ball screen, when to tell someone when to push, drop, when to tell a guard that two screens are coming at them. The five is the most important part of the whole defense because the five sees everything,”
Clayton’s work in the middle will be a factor in just how much the Panthers can pick up the pace, but a bulk of the responsibility to get out in transition more frequently still falls on the guards.
Hunter said he saw big improvements from Malik Benlevi over the summer. The sophomore said he feels like he is more consistent with his game now and wants to help make a difference on the court.
Offseason leaps from guys like Benlevi and the addition of some transfers and freshmen should set up the Panthers to bounce back from their 16-14 record last season, but the leadership and experience of the seniors is what will take the team over the top. Guys who have had success playing the style Hunter is looking to return to will have to show others what it takes both on and off the court if GSU wants speed up the game and return to the top of the conference.
As guard Isaiah Dennis tries to help new players get acclimated with the team, he must also fix up his own game so he can help the Panthers’ pace.
“This season I’ve just been trying to improve my offense,” Dennis said. “I’ve just been focusing on trying to finding ways to score, trying to find ways get in transition to use my athleticism … and help our team play faster.”
