"The rest of the guys have to be ready to play. He's going to attract a lot of double teams, triple teams. Everybody's going to have to be ready on the catch-and shoot or to be ready to make a play and that's what we did today and it helped us out a lot."
The mercurial Brown, who is committed to St. John's, did not re-enter the game until the second half. When he returned, his presence and feathery left-handed hand garnered notice. Brown, who has been working to establish his left hand more, has also been working on keeping a straight, distraction-free path in front of him. The oft-troubled recruit was arrested on robbery charges in May. A Miami Beach native, Brown recently transferred from Elevation (Sarasota, FL) Prep so he could complete his probation sentence.
On Saturday, Brown's performance was free of any fits of anger or outbursts.
"You are looking at a new Zach Brown," he said with a smile. "I know I needed to make adjustments and make changes in my life. I'm a changed man. It's a new team and I'm with new people and I could start a whole new life here (at Calusa)."
In Brown's previous life, which took place on the rough-and-tumble, crime-laced sections of Liberty City, adversity surfaced. One of the reasons Brown chose St. John's is because he established a deep connection with head coach Chris Mullin. Mullin is a classic example of someone who has emerged from adversity unscathed, having overcome alcoholism during his lengthy NBA career.
"I've been to jail, I've been on drugs, alcohol and everything like that so basically we had a sit down for the first time and we talked about bouncing back from that lifestyle and leaving it for good," Brown said.
He opened up to me and I opened up to him. He knows what I've been through. I can't just go with anyone who can say, 'Ok you've been through this, you've been through that.' He talked to me about what his situation was and I felt it was similar to me. Ever since we've had a great relationship."
Brown cited SJU assistant Matt Abdelmassih as another major figure in his support system. Both he and De La Grana have been instrumental in helping him keep his focus and continue on as the reformed Zach Brown.
Brown has made conditioning a major focus.
"On both sides of the floor he attracts a lot of attention," De La Grana explained. "We're trying to teach him the game a little more, get his IQ up so he knows what plays to make. We've got to make sure everyone around him is ready and get him better everyday. He's been doing that so far, he's been great for us."
zach smart – @zsmart3
Jack leads Calusa to victory, SJU-commit Zach Brown says his troubles are over
http://zsmart.blogspot.com/2016/11/nathaniel-jacks-up-calusa-in-acd-victory.html …
The mercurial Brown, who is committed to St. John's, did not re-enter the game until the second half. When he returned, his presence and feathery left-handed hand garnered notice. Brown, who has been working to establish his left hand more, has also been working on keeping a straight, distraction-free path in front of him. The oft-troubled recruit was arrested on robbery charges in May. A Miami Beach native, Brown recently transferred from Elevation (Sarasota, FL) Prep so he could complete his probation sentence.
On Saturday, Brown's performance was free of any fits of anger or outbursts.
"You are looking at a new Zach Brown," he said with a smile. "I know I needed to make adjustments and make changes in my life. I'm a changed man. It's a new team and I'm with new people and I could start a whole new life here (at Calusa)."
In Brown's previous life, which took place on the rough-and-tumble, crime-laced sections of Liberty City, adversity surfaced. One of the reasons Brown chose St. John's is because he established a deep connection with head coach Chris Mullin. Mullin is a classic example of someone who has emerged from adversity unscathed, having overcome alcoholism during his lengthy NBA career.
"I've been to jail, I've been on drugs, alcohol and everything like that so basically we had a sit down for the first time and we talked about bouncing back from that lifestyle and leaving it for good," Brown said.
He opened up to me and I opened up to him. He knows what I've been through. I can't just go with anyone who can say, 'Ok you've been through this, you've been through that.' He talked to me about what his situation was and I felt it was similar to me. Ever since we've had a great relationship."
Brown cited SJU assistant Matt Abdelmassih as another major figure in his support system. Both he and De La Grana have been instrumental in helping him keep his focus and continue on as the reformed Zach Brown.
Brown has made conditioning a major focus.
"On both sides of the floor he attracts a lot of attention," De La Grana explained. "We're trying to teach him the game a little more, get his IQ up so he knows what plays to make. We've got to make sure everyone around him is ready and get him better everyday. He's been doing that so far, he's been great for us."
zach smart – @zsmart3
Jack leads Calusa to victory, SJU-commit Zach Brown says his troubles are over
http://zsmart.blogspot.com/2016/11/nathaniel-jacks-up-calusa-in-acd-victory.html …
