Since Rick Pitino has become the head coach of the St. John’s basketball program, the Johnnies are getting more of a presence in the NBA.
It hasn’t resulted in any draft picks yet, but Daniss Jenkins, the leader of Pitino’s first team in Queens, has carved out a large role for himself on the Detroit Pistons, joining as an afterthought on a two-way contract and now an integral part of a team trying to make the Eastern Conference Finals.
After Jenkins went undrafted, it put a major chip on his shoulder, and he uses that as motivation each night he takes the floor. It’s a mindset that Zuby Ejiofor, the hopeful first St. John’s draft pick since 2015, also utilizes when he takes the court.
“Just the underdog story and plays with a chip on his shoulder,” Ejiofor said about Jenkins on Wednesday in Chicago at the NBA Draft Combine. “And I feel like that’s something I still do to this day.”
“[I] Still got a lot to prove, and he’s been able to accomplish everything that has been thrown his way. He didn’t get off to a great start, but he stayed levelheaded and he was still putting the work in. He got an opportunity and a chance, and he was able to capitalize on it.”
Ejiofor’s path to the NBA Draft will be a little different than Daniss Jenkins, his teammate for one year in Queens. The reigning Big East Player of the year is expected to have over ten workouts with NBA teams leading up to June’s draft and he is currently projected to be selected between the late first round and early second round.
“He’s in a situation where I envision myself to be,” Ejiofor continued about his former teammate.
“On a playoff caliber team, getting solid minutes…he’s just a player that I admire a lot, especially when he was here down here at St. John’s. He was a leader for our group and he’s someone that I definitely looked up to.”
Zuby Ejiofor arrived at St. John’s nearly as an afterthought, backing up Joel Soriano after a tough freshman season at Kansas before he developed into one of the best players in the sport over the last two seasons.
Now, he will try and use his three years playing under Rick Pitino to carve out a role in the NBA next winter.
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