Diary Series: Lamont Smith, Asst. Coach - Arizona State

The new school year couldn’t get here fast enough.  After a rough season last year, it’s finally time to get the taste of it out of our mouths.  Fortunately, we have had a productive offseason, and many of our players were in the gym all summer. 

When the first official day of practice rolled around on October 14^th, instead of putting on a production for the public, we got to work behind closed doors.  We were fortunate to have former Sun Devils, and current NBA players, James Harden and Jeff Pendergraph in town for a couple of days.  The duo was able to participate in a few drills during practice, and what an impact they had!  Our players knew they had to close-out quicker if it was James open on the wing, and likewise, our players knew they’d have to be physically tougher if Jeff caught the ball on the low block.  Overall, having the opportunity to compete with professionals was a real good experience for our players.  It helped to set the competitive tone early, and hopefully we can maintain that spirit throughout the season.

Besides getting better on the court, we have also gotten our program more involved in the community.  At Arizona State, we have always prided ourselves on producing respectful citizens. To help this cause, over the last month, players and staff members from the Sun Devil basketball family have made a few trips to the Phoenix Children’s Hospital.  The kids at PCH absolutely love interacting with our players, and it’s always a good feeling to brighten a few days.  The team will be visiting the hospital again in the next few weeks.

We open the preseason with an exhibition game on November 5^th, before diving right into a strong non-conference schedule, and as always, the Pac-12 looks to be deep again this year.  If we continue to make progress one day at a time, we’ll be just fine.

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