There is no hiding for the St. John’s basketball team this season. The target is squarely on the backs of the Johnnies but that doesn’t seem to bother its new batch of players.
In fact, Zuby Ejiofor, the team’s lone returning starter, is looking to build off last season’s success with a longer stay in the NCAA Tournament and it’s something he’s not afraid to admit.
“We brought in pieces that’s going to help us, you know, overcome the hump that we didn’t do last year,” Ejiofor said on Wednesday afternoon in Manhattan at the Red Storm’s launch event of its new partnership with adidas.
"Obviously, we had a really successful year. Now our mindset is piggybacking on that and just getting better.”
While the rest of last year’s starters alongside Ejiofor have moved on, Rick Pitino didn’t hesitate to fill out the remainder of his roster with some of the best transfers in the country.
St. John’s portal haul is ranked as the consensus top class in the nation and will likely have the Johnnies in the preseason Top 10 in the fall, if not higher. CBS Sports pegged the Red Storm as the No. 1 team in the country in its way-too-early poll.
“We’re not really thinking about, you know, what we are, [what our preseason rankings is], because at the end of the day you still have to go outside and just put in the work towards the [ranking] that you deserve.”
It’s a sentiment that is held throughout the team, including some of its most notable newcomers.
“To getter better every day,” North Carolina transfer Ian Jackson said when asked about the expectations for the team. “To go out every day, put our shoes on, lace up, and try to be better than we were yesterday.”
Yes, it’s only July but the St. John’s players are giving off the vibe that they are very excited for the season, and they are going to be an elite team. The countdown to November is officially on in Queens.