Head Coach: Skip Prosser: @ Wake Forest: 46-19, 3rd season; Overall: 211-97, 11th year. National Championships: 0; Final Four appearances: 0
2002-03 Record: 25-6 overall; 13-3 in the ACC (1st)
Player to watch -- Chris Paul wants to give Luol Deng a run for his money in the race for the conference's top freshman. The shifty guard may be Wake Forest's best player from the get-go, as his high school competitors may attest.
He is only 19, but freshman point guard Chris Paul is already being refereed to as "The Mayor".
"My teammates are already teasing me--they've been calling me the mayor of Winston-Salem. But I love being close to home," Paul said. "I'm very family-oriented, and I like having my family and friends close by."
Showing his familial devotion, Paul received a plethora of media attention after scoring 61 points in a high school game to honor his grandfather who was murdered just days earlier. He intentionally missed a free-throw to keep his point total at 61--paying respect to his grandfather who was 61 years-old. Despite having the high school scoring record within reach, Paul put this emotional opportunity above personal records and immediately took himself out of the game.
The close proximity to home, and his familiarity with the Wake Forest program have made Paul's transition easier than that of most first-year college basketball players. The combination of his connection to the surrounding community, comfort with Wake Forest, and the nature of the point guard's role, is likely eschew Paul into a position of leadership on for the Demon Deacons.
"He is a natural leader, kids gravitate to him," head coach Skip Prosser said. "So I think he has the chance of being an excellent player at Wake."
On the court, according to Prosser, Paul still has significant strides to make. But, as a quick study, the six-foot, 168 pound scoring threat is already making major headway after only a few weeks of practice. Undersized a bit, Paul could struggle defensively as he adjusts to the new level of competition that the college game provides.
"I'm learning a whole new system, I'm getting a lot of different plays thrown at me," Paul said, embracing the challenge, but recognizing the adjustment is a formidable task.
And while Wake Forest is the reigning ACC champion, it enters the season lacking respect and devoid of a star player--circumstances that may well provide Paul the opportunity to make a major impact especially in the leadership area.
As they were last year, the Demon Deacons remain undersized in the front court. Junior Vytas Danelius averaged just over 12 points and 7.5 rebounds for Prosser last season, and with departure of last year's number one option, Josh Howard, Danelius will likely be given more touches offensively.
Fellow post player, sophomore Chris Ellis will miss the first half of the season after fracturing his foot during the first practice of the season. The injury putts even more pressure on Danelius and the inside players including Eric Williams. Now a sophomore, Williams started 31 games for the Demon Deacons in his freshman campaign, but the 270 pound center was plagued by inconsistency and foul trouble.
With considerable depth in the backcourt, Prosser may utilize a three-guard offense at points during the season. Also trying to take advantage of his backcourt skill, Prosser will have the Demon Deacons running in transition, hoping to get easy baskets--points that could be hard to come by with a limited stable of offensive weapons in the halfcourt set.
And with the possibility of extending his bench to ten players, pressing defensively is another option the third-year head coach may choose to exploit.
Still, just like a year ago, many are doubting the quality of Prosser's Wake Forest squad. A response to this lack of recognition, the 2002-2003 squad adopted the motto, "TJDK," standing for "They Just Don't Know."
Riding their battle cry to a regular season ACC crown, expect the Demon Deacons to adopt the same attitude this season, even without consensus ACC Player of the Year Josh Howard and with an out-of-conference schedule including Memphis, Indiana, Texas and Cincinnati.
"They just don't let others set a ceiling for them," Prosser said.
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