Davon Reed and Kamari Murphy Meet the Press at Operation Basketball
The Miami Hurricanes sent Senior Captains Davon Reed and Kamari Murphy to the ACC’s Operation Basketball to discuss the upcoming season.
Reed and Murphy are the Hurricanes leading returning players statistically and as the players, the rest of the team will look up to this season. Junior Point Guard Ja’Quan Newton joins Murphy and Reed as captains.
They will be the players counted on to replace Angel Rodriguez, Sheldon McClellan and Tonye Jekiri’s production and leadership from last season’s Sweet 16 team.
They discussed the transfers in College Basketball, the environment, and culture of this year’s team, how they will replace the three departed Seniors, how they will improve, leadership and the type of music they like.
Environment and Culture of This Year’s Team
Reed spoke first and was asked about the impact that transfers have had on the Miami program. He mentioned the Murphy had a big impact on last year’s team after transferring from Oklahoma State and that Rashad Muhammad should have an impact on this year’s team, particularly on the offensive end of the court.
Reed next spoke about the environment of this year’s team. He is happy with the direction and hard work the younger players have put to this point of the season.
"“This team is a hard-working team. What I see right now is not a lack of effort, which is the best part. It’s just a little bit of a lack of experience. But the guys will pick things up along the way and be ready to learn and work.”"
How they Will Overcome the Loss of Rodriguez, McClellan, and Jekiri
The moderator of Operation Basketball asked Reed about the loss of the three Seniors and how it compared to Reed’s Freshman season when the Hurricanes lost Shane Larkin and (in the Moderators words) Julian Gamble. Durand Scott and Trey McKinney-Jones were other key players that Miami lost after the 2012-13 season.
Reed Said:
"So I think the biggest difference this year for my freshman year is we’ve got guys that returned and myself, and Kamari, and Ja’Quan that played a lot more minutes than maybe the guys returning my freshman year. We’ve also got a lot of talent that came in this year… despite not having the most experienced team, we’ve got a team full of guys that have experience, some don’t have experience, some transfers. We’ve got a little bit of everything"
What Did They Do in the Off-Season to Improve
"I’ve taken pride in putting in work and adding more and more to my game every off-season. This off-season I just continue to shoot the ball and finding different ways to score on different spots on the floor, picking my spots better, finishing around the rim. Other things that don’t require skill, like being a good leader to the guys and pushing them"
Larranaga has built a program instead of just a team. In his meeting with the media, Larranaga spoke about the difference between building a program and just having a season where everything goes right. That has definitely rubbed off on his players. Reed said: “we’re here to win the ACC”
Reed and Murphy’s Leadership Styles:
Leading is a funny thing…You can’t communicate to everybody the same way. Certain guys, you can’t yell at, certain guys you can be a little tougher on…It’s still a learning process. I’m still learning. I’m sure Kamari’s still learning how to do so as well. But I think finding that line will be a big deal with our success this season, knowing when to be tough on guys and knowing when to be a little bit more reserved and let them find their ways. So we’re both learning, Kamari and myself, still how to be leaders of this team..”
How Murphy Would Describe Reed:
“We like to call Davon the old soul of the team. He listens to all the classic, old school music. Even last year as one of the younger guys, he was the old head of the team that we call him. But now that he’s a veteran on the team, he’s a great leader, leads by example. Great in the books, he’s a great friend as well. He’s just one of those guys you want to have in your corner.”
Asked to elaborate on Reed’s taste in music he classified “Old School Music” as Earth Wind and Fire and Mary J. Blige.
How did Murphy Feel About His 2015-16 Season?
Murphy is the most experienced post player Miami has. He is going to have to produce numbers similar to Jekiri what has last season if Miami is going to successful this season.
“I think I could have done more. I think my role…I had more personal goals that I wanted to accomplish that I really didn’t get to…thankfully I have another year to do so…to take advantage of the opportunity in my last year in college basketball and try to accomplish those goals as well.”
How Do Miami Scorers Compare to LaBryan Nash and Marcus Smart from Murphy’s two seasons with Oklahoma State?
“Ja’Quan is definitely a great scorer. He’s going to have a lot of opportunities to get in the lane and either finish or create shots. Davon Reed has shown since summer that he’s going to be one of our main scorers, if not our best scorer. Bruce Brown is very aggressive on offense as well. You can see him attacking, dunking, and doing stuff like that as well.”
Next: Miami Hoops Ready For Barry in Opener
It should be an interesting season for Miami, somewhat of a transition season. Larranaga has done exactly what he discussed last week and that is to create a program. Despite what they lost from last season’s team, they have an excellent mix of returning talent with an outstanding recruiting class.