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This year’s U.S. men’s basketball roster consists of four freshmen: Wyatt Nausadis, Shane O’Reilly, Erik Michaels And Julen Iturbe. While each of these players will look to make an impact on a veteran-heavy team which is projected to finish second in the Patriot Leaguethey will also try to set a new direction for the future of AU basketball. This year’s freshman class is the first that head coach Duane Simpkins was able to bring in based on his recruiting priorities.
From a basketball perspective, Simpkins has a clear archetype for what type of players he wants on the court. He wants players who can perform all three skills of passing, dribbling and shooting, along with players who pride themselves on their defensive skills. From a positional standpoint, Simpkins looks for guards who are physically adept and have good length and athleticism, with the ability to put the ball on the floor and be playmakers. For the big men, Simpkins looks for centers who can stretch the floor and help achieve his goal of the team making about 30 three-point shots every game. Simpkins also emphasized that while they will try to get the best players possible, it’s all about how that talent fits into the team’s playing style.
But Simpkins isn’t just looking for a player’s on-field attributes when scouting a player on the recruiting trail. He mentioned four aspects he looks for when American focuses on a player: character, work ethic, toughness and humility.
“If we are sufficiently intrigued by a prospect, we now start doing our homework. We’re going to talk to the family members. When we go to the gym where they are, we try to encounter a teacher or a janitor, we want to know who they really are,” Simpkins said. in an interview with De Adelaar. He also wants players who can fight through adversity, saying that “even when things don’t go well, (the future players) still have their hands up, they still give energy to their teammates.”
While there may be players who are sophomores who notice them and write them down so they can monitor their growth as players, Simpkins said he tries to focus mainly on rising juniors and seniors. He has certain qualities he looks for in players. But other than that, it’s not yet clear how they can get it. Geographically, Simpkins said American will go wherever it needs to to get the players they want, but he also emphasized his and the program’s strong ties to the DC area. He said the D.C. region has some of the best talent and coaching in the region, and players from here usually have an easier time adapting to college basketball. Simpkins mentioned his time as a player as something he uses on the recruiting trail. He also mentioned American’s D.C. location and the opportunities it provides for life after basketball, as well as the ability to connect recruits with players currently on the roster, as assets he can use in convincing players to come to college. .
However, the college sports landscape has changed tremendously since Simpkins went through the recruiting process as a player. Athletes can now profit from their name, image and likeness (NIL) through endorsement deals, as well as transfer as often as possible without losing eligibility for years. While Simpkins supports players who make money on NIL deals, he emphasized that if a player makes it clear that his main priority in choosing a school is how much money he can make, that player would not be a good fit at AU.
“We don’t want prima donnas in our program… There is a certain segment of recruitable athletes who want to try to make money off their name, image and likeness, which is great, but there is a vast majority of (players) who are I’m going to base their college decision on that (NIL money), and we’re not going to recruit those kids,” Simpkins said.
As for the impact of the transfer portal, Simpkins said it would take time, “maybe two, three years,” to assess its true impact. Since Simpkins took over, American has lost two key players to the transfer portal: Johnny O’Neil to Santa Clara, and Jermaine Ballisager Webb to Portland.
Players leaving the Patriot League to pursue NCAA Tournament and NBA dreams has become a common theme during the transfer portal era, with examples such as the 2023-2024 Conference Player of the Year Braeden Smith transfer from Colgate to Gonzaga, and former Chicago Bulls guard Andreas Funk he transferred from Bucknell to Penn State, where he led the Big Ten in 3-point percentage. Simpkins realized that with schools like North Carolina, Virginia and St. Joe’s on the schedule, it’s possible that if one of AU’s players has a good performance against him, there will be eyes on him from outside the Patriot League who encourage him to switch. However, Simpkins believes that both on and off the field, AU can provide players with the best opportunities to succeed and end their college careers in DC.
Eric Michaels is a player who embodies the qualities Simpkins is looking for. Originally from Poughkeepsie, New York, Michaels attended Blair Academy, a boarding school in New Jersey. He credits spending his high school years away from home as something that helped him adjust to college life and Division I basketball.
When asked why he chose AU, he cites many of the reasons that Simpkins highlighted: “It’s right in DC, very close to a lot of things…a very nice place to live. (The) education here is a lot of fun. (The) people are very nice here. The environment and culture are absolutely excellent.”
On the field, Michaels supports the graduate student Matt Rogers at center, who Michaels said has been a big asset in helping him adjust.
“He’s always there to pick me up, help me out when things aren’t going as well as I should, and he always sees the vision that I’m trying to achieve, and he wants me to achieve that goal that I want. (to achieve),” Michaels said.
As for the off-court qualities Simpkins expects in a player, Michaels applies them appropriately, saying, “I’m not going to stop, no matter what happens, no matter what adversity I have to go through, I’m just going to keep going… for my team… for the people who believe in me.”
The nature of college sports means that high roster turnover can be expected annually. It’s not like professional sports where successful teams can keep their core together for more than a decade. College sports, if you’re lucky, give you a maximum of five years with a group of players. A coach’s job is not only to build a roster that can survive this turnover, but also to create a system for players to buy into, as there is little transition time if a program wants continued success.
Michaels is one of several players who will spend four years at American University while Simpkins is in charge. But the job for Michaels, Iturbe, Nausadis and O’Reilly isn’t just to get more names in the record book. It is intended to build a culture and help bring a winning mentality to Bender Arena, a mentality that will outlast both their time and Simpkins’ time at the school.
“You have 13 scholarships and not everyone is going to play, but we have certain profiles that we like,” Simpkins said. “They all have a tough character.”
This article was edited by Penelope Jennings, Delaney Hoke and Abigail Turner. Copy editing done by Luna Jinks, Emma Brown, Sabine Kanter-Huchting and Nicole Kariuki.
sports@theeagleonline.com
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