Keeping Up With Old Friends Thread

RedStormNC

RedStormNC

Well-known member
2023 $upporter
Thought this might be a fun and useful thread for those that like the topic of former Johnnies...transfers out or perhaps any Johnnie alum

I'll start...

Mikey Dixon, former Mullin era, then Grand Canyon, and now at Idaho 

Had 35 points, 8 asst, 5 reb, 5-7 from 3, and a perfect 16-16 from the FT line tonight vs. S. Dakota St.

He also had 27 pts in prior game vs. Southern Utah..

Legend out West...


 
 
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Beast of the East post=445970 said:
Willie Glass, SJU star, now owns adult theatres in NJ.

Posted this for my buddies Mjmaher and Monte.  :)

 
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Heard he only shows movies that Monte starred in and that mjmaherjr produced and directed.
 
I'm catching a red eye as soon as the first poster says they wish Mikey Dixon were still here so I can be there to strangle you by morning.
 
L J S A post=445973 said:
I'm catching a red eye as soon as the first poster says they wish Mikey Dixon were still here so I can be there to strangle you by morning.

Sad to say but there wouldn't be much of a drop-off with Dixon as opposed to Smith and Coburn.
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Maybe stretching it to call him an old friend but our former torturer Max Strus has earned a spot in a good Miami Heat team's rotation, playing 20 mpg and averaging 9 points shooting 41% from three. 
 
Max Strus could play ! Period .  Great shooter , tough kid , worked hard .  Him playing in the NBA shows how hard it is to play in that League , if you are not a first round or high second draft choice . 
 
Porgyman post=445995 said:
Bill Wennington (incredibly nice guy). Still doing commentary on Chicago Bulls radio broadcasts. (13 seasons).
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Dead on.  I saw Bill at UBS.  It's incredibly easy to have a candid discussion with him, which is great.  He really missed not being at Looie's statue dedication, loves SJU to death, and was also happy Mark was inducted in the HOF.  We spoke about Mark's coaching aspirations and he was very honest about that too, offering some stuff I wasn't aware of.   Great guy.
 
Beast of the East post=445997 said:
Porgyman post=445995 said:
Bill Wennington (incredibly nice guy). Still doing commentary on Chicago Bulls radio broadcasts. (13 seasons).
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Dead on.  I saw Bill at UBS.  It's incredibly easy to have a candid discussion with him, which is great.  He really missed not being at Looie's statue dedication, loves SJU to death, and was also happy Mark was inducted in the HOF.  We spoke about Mark's coaching aspirations and he was very honest about that too, offering some stuff I wasn't aware of.   Great guy. Bill Wennington and others of that Era  are part of the Golden Age of  Redmen basketball .                                            The Artest team , Ron , Barkley , Bootsy , Grant , Jessie  , etc came close but , that loss to Ohio State denied them a Final 4.                           They were the last great SJU team of the last 50 years .       We haven’t come close since . Which results in many of us Old Guys just distraught with disappointment .                        
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Funny how time fast time goes. I saw Bill Wennington at UBS vs Kansas. Like all of us, he looks much older.

Brought back a funny memory I had of him (at least to me). Years ago, I was a freshman at SJU. I walked into the classroom and the prior class was just breaking up. In the back, was Mr. Bill all 7’1” of him in a pair of shorts and flip flops shoe horned and I mean SHOE HORNED into one of those pull the desk top up to get out of the chair desks. I saw him literally struggling to get out of the seat. For a minute there I thought the desk might have to go with him. He laughed it off and said something like damn things aren’t big enough. Holy smokes he was a big dude. 

 
 
Two questions (didn't want to start a new thread) so here goes:

1. Is Wennington in the St. John's HoF?

2. Isn't Mullin's #20 up in the rafters at the Garden for St. John's home games?

(I think it is a lot smaller jersey than Knicks/Rangers, and only there when we play a home game, but lately has it been there?)


http://www.queensledger.com/pages/full_story/push?article-Mullin-s+number+retired-again%20&id=18010811&instance=lead_story_left_column
 
sjc88 post=446015 said:
Funny how time fast time goes. I saw Bill Wennington at UBS vs Kansas. Like all of us, he looks much older.

Brought back a funny memory I had of him (at least to me). Years ago, I was a freshman at SJU. I walked into the classroom and the prior class was just breaking up. In the back, was Mr. Bill all 7’1” of him in a pair of shorts and flip flops shoe horned and I mean SHOE HORNED into one of those pull the desk top up to get out of the chair desks. I saw him literally struggling to get out of the seat. For a minute there I thought the desk might have to go with him. He laughed it off and said something like damn things aren’t big enough. Holy smokes he was a big dude. 


 
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Great story! Here’s a similar one. During our sophomore year, Bill and I had the same late afternoon class. I would give him a ride from campus, down to Hillside Ave. He would then catch the bus home. (Imagine that today!)

Anyway, I drove a very small and tight Dodge Colt. Watching Bill get into or out of my car was both hilarious and painful. He did it one body part a time! 

Still he was the nicest, most down to earth guy on the team.
 
Marcus Earlington leading San Diego in both scoring (12.8) and rebounding (6.3) as well as three point baskets and attempts (shooting 42% from three). Had 23 points and 16 rebounds in their last game, a blowout win. I'm pretty sure The Duke is happy with his transfer decision as he is getting to be featured in their offense and making the most of it. Good for him. He's not going to get to play in the tourney as they are in same league as Gonzaga, St. Mary's, BYU & San Francisco and I'm sure they'll take their lumps in league play, but still hard to argue it was a good move for him in his own journey to play professionally overseas.

Very different results for Greg Williams so far as he has been struggling some with his new team.
 
While I wish all our transfer players well at their new schools , I can’t help but , wonder if they were a better team than this year?  Too early to tell .                                                                          And , as other posters have commented before , their worth was what they contributed collectively last Year , not what they are doing this year .  
 
NCJohnnie post=446788 said:
Marcus Earlington leading San Diego in both scoring (12.8) and rebounding (6.3) as well as three point baskets and attempts (shooting 42% from three). Had 23 points and 16 rebounds in their last game, a blowout win. I'm pretty sure The Duke is happy with his transfer decision as he is getting to be featured in their offense and making the most of it. Good for him. He's not going to get to play in the tourney as they are in same league as Gonzaga, St. Mary's, BYU & San Francisco and I'm sure they'll take their lumps in league play, but still hard to argue it was a good move for him in his own journey to play professionally overseas.

Very different results for Greg Williams so far as he has been struggling some with his new team.
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Agree that for Earlington, it is working out according to plan so far, but let's remember a couple of things:

1) We are still in OOC season in most leagues.  Beating up on inferior competition can bloat your stats.
2) Almost stands to reason that when you play down a level, relative to teammates, you will get more looks, more points, and play with more confidence as the man.   

You cannot simply look at stats and say a transfer was a good or bad move.  Tariq Owens scored about the same amount of points and rebounds leaving SJU, but his shooting % skyrocketed when he wasn't permitted to launch at will from the outside.  He got to the Final Four, so it was a very good move for him.  

LJ Figueroa got more minutes, less starts, less shots, less points, but a much higher shooting %.    It was a much better team and he fit in, so good for him.  

Both are G League players, but so is Ponds, so it is hard to determine if the transfers paid off for them or not.   They did put up better numbers tho, but not at first glance.
 
SLYFOXX1968 wrote:
While I wish all our transfer players well at their new schools , I can’t help but , wonder if they were a better team than this year?  Too early to tell .   And , as other posters have commented before , their worth was what they contributed collectively last Year , not what they are doing this year .

Sly my post on Earlington & Greg was not intended in any way as a comment on whether St. John's was a better team with the outgoing transfers than with the incoming transfers. Greg was one of my favorite players last few years and I was not happy to see either he or Duke leave; still, way too early imho to judge whether this year or last year's team is better.
Post was intended to report on a few ex Johnnies which was my understanding of the purpose of this thread. Once a Johnnie always a Johnnie for me and this thread is a good spot to get updates on former Johnnies whether from last year's team or older alums like Dixon, Trimble etc.
Also, while it may be true that in the argument as to whether St. John's is better off with or without the exodus of players what the kids accomplished for us last year is more important than what they are doing this year, for the kids themselves what they accomplish this year is every bit as important.         
 
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