At his introductory news conference Tuesday, new Georgia Tech men’s basketball coach Damon Stoudamire provided gathered media and Tech guests with insight into who he is and how his tenure will look.
The former Boston Celtics assistant coach spoke about himself, his plans for the Yellow Jackets and his departure from the NBA, among other topics. Here are five things learned from the session:
Playing style
Stoudamire said he envisions “an exciting brand of ball” when his team takes the floor with a premium on spacing, ball movement and unselfishness.
“I think that’s how I want to define Georgia Tech basketball,” he said. “Spacing will be important, shooting will be important and ball movement will be very important. I look forward do doing those type of things.”
The Celtics had the fourth-highest offensive rating (116.6) and points-per-game average (117.7) in the NBA as of Wednesday morning, relying heavily on a “five out” scheme that spaces the floor and takes advantage of the team’s array of 3-point shooters. Boston was second in the league in 3-point field goals attempted per game (42.2, almost half of its shots taken), 3-pointers made (15.9 per game) and percentage of points generated from 3-pointers (40.5%), behind only Golden State in each category.
Stoudamire takes over a team that, particularly in its last 10 games of the season, was clearly capable of winning with the 3-pointer, having connected on 38.4% of its 3-point tries and making 10.1 per game. It accounted for 40% of the Jackets’ scoring.
Putting together staff
Stoudamire said he doesn’t have a timetable on putting together a staff, including three assistant coaches and support staff.
“Phone has been ringing a lot over the last 24 hours,” he said. “Trying to digest a lot of things. There’s a lot of good candidates; there’s a lot of good names. It’s just a matter of finding what fits me and where I see in terms of what I need within the program.”
Leaving the Celtics
Stoudamire said he would have liked to stay with the Celtics through the end of the season. At 47-22 after their Monday night loss at Houston, the Celtics are among the favorites to win the NBA title.
“But that would have not been giving Georgia Tech the credit and the attention that it deserves,” he said. “If I’m going to do this, I’m going to do it 100%. I’m committed. I’m in this for the long haul.”
While tempting, such a decision would significantly hamper Stoudamire’s chances for success in his first season and beyond. The NBA postseason can last until mid-June. By that point, the signing of remaining high-school seniors for the 2023 class would be all but over and transfer portal activity would mostly be done. Much of the summer evaluation period to evaluate prospects in the 2024 class and beyond would also be past.
It also would critically delay time for getting to know the team and hire staff. Stoudamire said he made the decision to leave Boston with the playoffs approaching out of respect for Tech athletic director J Batt and school President Ángel Cabrera.
Plus, “when Boston wins the championship, I’ll still get my ring,” he said. “We already talked about that. I’ll get my ring.”
Approach to transfer portal
While recruiting out of the transfer portal can happen quickly – former Notre Dame guard J.J. Starling announced his transfer to Syracuse on Tuesday, the second day that the portal had been open – Stoudamire planned to be methodical in his approach.
“There’s a lot of guys in the transfer portal, and at times, you’ve got to understand, there’s a lot of guys in the transfer portal for a reason,” Stoudamire said. “You’ve got to do your homework.”
Tech has 11 scholarship players on the roster who have eligibility available for next season, and signee Blue Cain has received a release from his letter of intent. The scholarship maximum is 13 players. How much space for recruiting out of the portal (or available high-school seniors) that Stoudamire will have depends on if and how many Tech players elect to go into the portal. Stoudamire met with the team as a whole Monday via videoconference and was to meet with players individually Tuesday and Wednesday.
Finding players who are the right fits will be paramount, Stoudamire said.
“That’s how I’ve always been,” he said. “That’s how I’ve always approached the transfer portal. It’s been good to me in the past, and I expect it to be good to me now.”
On NIL
Tech’s lack of a significant collective last offseason impacted former coach Josh Pastner’s ability to recruit out of the transfer portal. With the help of Batt, a recently formed collective (the Tech Way) has “made incredible progress in a short period of time,” Batt said Tuesday.
The ability of college athletes to make money off their name, image and likeness had just become part of the landscape when Stoudamire left Pacific for the Celtics in July 2021. Stoudamire approached the topic of collectives distributing money to players in NIL deals with an attitude one might expect of an NBA coach.
“It’s nothing new,” Stoudamire said. “I think it’s kind of taboo, I think in collegiate sports, but from the world I come from, it’s almost like it could be playing with the salary cap. Just being honest with you.”
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