RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — From the moment Will Wade became the head basketball coach at NC State, expectations soared among the Wolfpack faithful.
“No one has higher expectations than ourself, we don’t listen to the outside noise,” said NC State assistant coach Brandon Chambers. “And I can promise you this there is no staff in the country that’s exhausting themselves more than us and pouring more into our program and our players than our staff.”
No less than nine new players will suit up for the Wolfpack next season as Wade and his assistant coaches hit the transfer portal hard looking for the best players possible, with Paul McNeil being the only returner who contributed last season.
“Paul McNeil who wanted to be here when coach [Wade] met with him first day on the job. You could tell just how passionate he was to be at NC State and to have guys who want to be here and want to get this thing back to a consistent winner is very important,” said NC State assistant coach Adam Howard.
It is highly unusual for a new staff to inherit an empty roster, but then again, times are changing. This squad will not have the luxury of a core foundation to add on to, instead, a handful of transfer players will learn to mesh together.
“Hopefully this time next year we’ll be able to retain most of our roster, and then at that point we can build on what we’ve already done so far this year and it will make things a lot easier,” said NC State assistant coach Vernon Hamilton. “Recruiting, because players help you recruit a lot of times, you know this year a lot of guys just had to take a chance on us, and to be able to put together this type of recruiting class tells you just how special coach is.”
And Pack fans can’t wait to see the results of all the hard work and effort.