Tennessee Basketball Players Warming To Cuonzo Martin, Too

by Joel Hollingsworth on Mar 29, 2011 7:08 AM EDT in Rocky Top Talking Points

Tennessee basketball players are warming up to Cuonzo Martin, as well. Cameron Tatum:

His ultimate goal here, recruit quality guys, and when guys leave here they become grown men and quality men and always come back to the university and see him as the coach and be welcomed back,’’ Tatum said. "We all need to buy in to whatever he does and whatever he brings to the table.’’

Scotty Hopson:

"He’s definitely a straight-forward guy, a guy that’s going to keep it real,’’ Hopson said. "Guys are even talking about changing their numbers. It’s a new change, new face, guys seem happy right now, and I’m happy for them.’’
Kenny Hall:
"It's good," rising junior post Kenny Hall said. "I'm glad we now know who our coach is and we've got a chance to establish a good relationship with him throughout the summer and get ready for the season."
None of that, of course, means that either Hopson or Harris are going to be back. They both have Martin's full support to test the NBA waters (although he wants them to dive in rather than dip their toes in), but will welcome them back if they learn that now is not the time. By the way, the reason Tobias Harris wasn't there for the press conference was because he'd gone home after learning his Monday class was canceled. He'll be back today.
As a high school player, Cuonzo Martin had to be creative to get to the basket. When he realized he could no longer slash to the basket in college, he built a three-point shot from scratch, going 0-7 in his first two years and finishing his career as Purdue's all-time leader with 179 of the long balls.
Martin's compensation is $1.3M guaranteed plus bonuses over the next five years. The base is nearly ten times what he was making at Missouri State. Yay for paydays!
No candidate interviewed for the head coaching position asked Mike Hamilton about his own job status. Huh. Draw your own conclusions.
The TFP is reading a lot into the timing of the announcement of Martin's hiring, which has a ring of truth to it.
Incoming UT DB Byron Moore has a three part series on dreams, which is worth the read. He's not your typical Juco.

Tweet Comment 3 comments | 0 recs |

Do you like this story?

Comments

"I'm happy for them."

If I were betting man, I would bet that Scotty is leaving.

by Prometheus1185 on Mar 29, 2011 12:47 PM EDT reply actions

However, there was also this:

Rising senior Scotty Hopson said he was impressed with Martin’s credentials on and off the court. Martin has been in Hopson’s shoes before, with talent to play at another level and weighing options for the future. Hopson said he would indeed lean on the new coach for guidance, but also was glad to see how the coach laid out his plans for the team.

“He said a lot about what we’re going to do as a team, how we’re going to be as a unit, the style of play we’re going to play, and the fact that we are going to play defense,” Hopson said. “We’re going to try to be the best team we can be.”

Link here

And this.

Wes Rucker
@wesrucker247:
Vols guard Scotty Hopson on Cuonzo Martin: “He’s definitely a guy that I can see myself playing for.”

"It breaks your heart. It is designed to break your heart. The game begins in the spring, when everything else begins again, and it blossoms in the summer, filling the afternoons and evenings, and then as soon as the chill rains come, it stops and leaves you to face the fall alone." A. Bartlett Giamatti

by sddbaker on Mar 29, 2011 4:04 PM EDT up reply actions

Surely, the fact that the Final Four

is this weekend played heavily into the decision to pull the trigger quickly. I think Hamilton’s hired guns reached out to several coaches and were turned down immediately….including Xavier. The Vols got the best coach they could get with the timeframe they placed on themselves. I believe that CCM can succeed at this level. The question now becomes whether he will be given the time to do so.

by ChattVol on Mar 29, 2011 11:15 PM EDT reply actions