What a terrible article! Could Mr. Parrillo find a worse set of photos of the coach to use in such an important season opening introduction of the LaSalle team to the philly community? Was this on purpose? I think Mr. Parrillo needs to apologize to the LaSalle team, coach and LaSalle grads.
La Salle takes aim at NCAA berth
With a frown and slight wave of his hand, Rodney Green quickly dismissed a question about his individual goals.
"Once you set goals for points and rebounds, that's when you go out there and start looking crazy," the 6-foot-5 senior guard from La Salle said. "The goal is to make it to the [NCAA] tournament. I've been here three years and we haven't done that. There'd be no better way to go out than that."
DAVID M WARREN / Staff Photographer
Center Devon White is covered by Explorers coach John Giannini with the aid of a broom. The 6-foot-8 White is a rugged rebounder who should give the Explorers muscle off the bench.
Green was barely old enough to pick up a basketball the last time La Salle was part of the NCAA tourney in 1992, But by most indications, and largely because of Green, the Explorers appear to be quite capable of ending the long drought this season.
Green, who should be one of the top players in the Atlantic Ten Conference, heads a tall, experienced, balanced group that took coach John Giannini six years to put together after he took over a program that was on its knees before the 2004-05 season.
"We've made a lot of progress over the last three years and I don't think we would have made that progress without Rodney," Giannini said. "He's been a driving force behind all the improvements we've made. I think he's become an elite player, plus he's been a great kid and he's really added to our campus and our culture."
The Explorers return four starters who averaged double figures in scoring last season, and it's likely the fifth starter - 6-11 freshman center Aaric Murray from Glen Mills - is expected to be a dramatic upgrade over Vernon Goodridge, whose eligibility was ruled to have expired by the NCAA after last season because he played in an all-star game at age 21, before he entered Mississippi State.
Murray, ranked as the nation's 35th top prospect by Rivals.com, became Giannini's highest-rated recruit when he turned down offers from Big East schools such as Villanova and West Virginia, as well as Temple and St. Joseph's, and decided on La Salle. He averaged 18 points, 12.4 rebounds and four blocked shots a game at Glen Mills.
"He can be a great player, but the first step is for him to get better every day and learn what it takes to win at this level," said Giannini, whose team was picked to finish fourth in the A-10. "If he learns that level of intensity and makes those improvements, he will be tremendous."
Still, it will be Green, a native of Southwest Philly who led Prep Charter to a state championship as a senior, leading the way. Green was the key to Giannini's first full recruiting class, which also included 6-7 Yves Mekongo, 6-6 Kimmani Barrett, and 6-5 Ruben Guillandeaux. The foursome combined to average 50.1 points and 18.5 rebounds a game as juniors last season. The Explorers will have no starter smaller than 6-5.
"We've been here for four years," said Green, who averaged 17.8 points and five rebounds and led the team with 105 assists last season. "We've been through all the wars, and now we know how to win."
Green, who has filled out to 212 pounds, can be a matchup nightmare because he can post up most point guards and out-quick many wing players. If he continues to progress as a perimeter shooter, he will score 20 or more points more than the 14 times he did last season.
Green said he chose La Salle partly because he was intrigued by the prospect of helping turn around a struggling program.
"I think people look at you differently when you go to a program that's so bad and you come and help turn it around," he said. "They have more appreciation for you."
Obviously, Giannini knows what he has in Green. But he wants more. The players voted Green team captain, and his coach wants him to be a more vocal leader.
"He just needs to be more of a coach on the floor," Giannini said. "That's what team leaders do - they help teammates on the floor, tell them what to do, try to motivate them. Rodney is going to have to do a better job of that for our team because he is the leader."
Quiet and shy by nature, Green sounded like he embraced his leadership role.
"I think I'm vocal on the court," he said. "I like to lead by example. I don't expect things from my teammates that I don't expect from myself. But I get on guys all the time and I want my teammates to get on me when I need to do something better."
As for contending in the A-10, Giannini warned the expectations won't be met if the Explorers don't improve on defense.
"Physically we have the potential to be a very good team," he said. "The difference between having a very good team and a great team really is mental. It's taking pride in the right things like defense, and we have not reached that level yet and that's our challenge."
