Thursday, April 10, 2014

Local Big Man Delarosa Helps St. John's Take a Step Forward

St. John's ended a two week period of turmoil with a commitment from a local star. Christ the King's 6'11" center Adonis Delarosa becomes St. John's first recruit in the 2014 class when his letter of intent becomes official next week. The Bronx native also becomes coach Steve Lavin's first New York recruit since Queens native Mo Harkless arrived 3 years ago for what was a productive but brief stop on his way to the league and guaranteed first round money. Delarosa has NBA ready  size but his stay in college figures to be a bit longer thanks primarily to conditioning issues. Make no mistake though, he brings a few things, size being just one, that St, John's needs.
     Before discussing those things it must be noted that he arrives at a time when the program has experienced some turmoil. Sophomore forward JaKarr Sampson declared for the draft despite a complete lack of  buzz on draft sites, limited shooting range and a non-functioning left hand finishing plays around the basket. Chris Obekpa, who was the nation's leading shot blocker two years ago transferred after  reportedly refusing to re-enter his team's Big East tournament loss to Providence. The team then suffered a dismal home loss to Robert Morris in the N.I.T. which has been followed by speculation of other defections.  Their coach Steve Lavin spent a week during this time testing his TV muscle memory at Fox in Los Angeles. Unfairly or not that has fueled internet chatter questioning his long term commitment to coaching in New York at St. John's. With all this in mind, I don't envy the position that my young friend with great hands passing acumen size and strength has put himself in. I worry that people looking for a guy who can carry the Red Storm to an N.C.A.A. tournament will not be happy with a guy who's a great complimentary piece. And for those who use the term "role player" to imply that a guy is less important to a team's ability to win games I say no sir. Those players are also essential to winning. And the skill set that Adonis brings to the table includes lots of winning things.
              Like any young player moving to the proverbial  next level he will need time for the game to slow down for him. But once that happens his coaches and teammates will be able to trust him to do two things; catch the ball and make good decisions once he gets his hands on it. In fact, his passing might be his most college ready skill as his passes to both cutters and spot up shooters are almost always on time and on target.  And his willingness to use that skill brings a needed dose of unselfishness to the team.
              His size and girth may help in another way that's a bit less noticeable but still important. Beginning with their  season opening loss to national semi-finalist Wisconsin. St. John's was hurt repeatedly  by teams that had wide bodies as well as long ones. Nowhere was that more evident than in the team's second loss to Xavier at Madison Square Garden on Feb 25th where Muskies' freshman Jalen Reynolds chewed up the Red Storm and their vaunted lineup of shot blockers for 17 points and 16 boards. Delarosa may not be as athletic as the departed Sampson and Obekpa  but he's long and wide and reads the game well  defensively. St. John's will need to continue their re-tooling with some  run and jump athletes but Delarosa's combination of a wide low post presence and skill compliments those players, and could ultimately help them be better prepared for a new league that carries basketball ethos that is familiar to urban Catholic  schools; one that emphasizes rugged play under the basket. Just as the speed of the game will take some adjusting so will its physical play.
              Adonis is not the kind of star recruit that could force local sports talkers to discuss St. John's basketball on a semi daily basis. He can however be an essential part of a team that gets back to the tournament  and helps St. John's regain a place in New York's sports consciousness that goes beyond its fiercely loyal fan base. The recruitment of this talented big man is a small but essential step forward for the program as it seeks to regain its footing both on and off the floor.


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