On Wednesday, Marquette Golden Eagles head coach Shaka Smart was at Madison Square Garden for BIG East Conference Media Day. Marquette was one of three teams from the BIG East Conference who made the NCAA Tournament last season.
To no surprise, many have picked the UCONN Huskies to win the conference for the second straight season. UCONN, Marquette, and the Creighton Blue Jays are the only teams from the conference who are ranked to start the 2024-2025 college basketball season.
Marquette Golden Eagles Head Coach Shaka Smart Makes 1 Important Statement Ahead Of the 2024-2025 College Basketball Season
Shaka Smart met with the media on media day on Wednesday. The Golden Eagles’ culture has been strong over the last two seasons. They were the number two seed in the NCAA Tournament for the last two seasons. Smart said about Marquette’s culture:
“I’ve learned over the years, the relationship between the players, is much more important than the relationship between the players and the coach.”
This is an interesting quote from the head coach. It is always important for the head coach to have a relationship with their players, but the players are the ones performing on the court together.
Culture Will Matter This Season
This season, there will be no Tyler Kolek and Oso Ighodaro leading the way. This season, there will need to be new leaders for the Marquette Golden Eagles basketball program. Kam Jones could very well be the one who steps up into a leadership role.
Jones could also finish as a first-team All-BIG East player this season. He was a prolific scorer last season with the Golden Eagles. Kam Jones has a chance to be even better as the main guy in the offense this season.
He will not be the only player who will need to step up. Some of the other players to keep an eye out for this season will be Chase Ross, Ben Gold, and Stevie Mitchell.
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